Sheffield Local Involvement Network

It was standing room only for our version of what the Government is calling their ‘listening exercise’. This was an opportunity for members of the public and healthcare professionals to comment on some aspects of the Health and Social Care Bill that is currently ‘pausing’ on its journey through Parliament. The meeting went very well and LINk has now submitted its formal response.

The meeting started with Simon Kirk, Director of Strategy and Transition at NHS Sheffield, talking about the changes that are already taking place in Sheffield. He explained how NHS Sheffield has become part of the South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Cluster as just one of the changes that will be part of managing the huge transformation of health services.

He then introduced the Department of Health’s ‘listening exercise’ and explained that the Government was not considering scrapping the reforms; it just wanted to get more feedback from people on the proposals and how to make them work. Since the exercise included some quite technical questions, LINk focused the discussion on patient involvement and transparency although people were offered the opportunity to complete a full listening questionnaire. Everyone was split into small groups to discuss a number of questions and to make their suggestions. The discussions were animated and everyone could have continued for longer.

Key comments from the event included that there should be patient representatives on the GP Consortia boards, that they should meet in public and be accountable to their public and that they and the Government need to work hard to ensure that people understand the new structures and how they serve the local population. Everyone’s views, both from the group discussions and individual feedback forms, were gathered in by the LINk and will be compiled into a formal LINk response.

Speaking after the event, Simon Kirk said, “I want to thank LINk for organising this ‘listening event’ to give people the chance to comment on the Government’s proposals and for inviting me to be part of it. There were some searching questions, intense discussions and heartfelt concerns about what will happen to local healthcare in the future.”