What we heard in May 2024
Health and social care feedback Northumberland May 2024
Poor communication was the common theme we heard about again this month, with negative comments about hospitals and GP surgeries not communicating with each other, and patients not getting clear communication from the services either.
We were invited by Healthwatch England to give a presentation on our Autism and Young People Report that we produced in the summer of 2022, as an example of good practice. The presentation was given to Healthwatch England’s Research and Insight Network Group. Partly as a result of the feedback on this presentation Healthwatch England has set up a special forum devoted to working with patients with ADHD and autism on its internal webchat site.
Positive feedback
A patient told us “I had an appointment for an ECG. I reported to hospital outpatients reception where I was quickly and efficiently checked in. When I entered the ECG waiting room I was met by a nurse who greeted me politely and confirmed my appointment. One minute later I was taken by another nurse who carried out my ECG check. He was professional and polite and confident. My whole visit lasted around 20 minutes but I must say I felt in very safe hands and these guys were a shining example of pure professionalism. Well done and thanks.”
Negative feedback
A lady reported that her husband had been waiting for two years for keyhole knee surgery. There had been poor communication between the GP, the consultant and the physiotherapist, with each one referring to the next one and going round in circles each time, leading to the long delay.
Find out more in our short report
