Help us identify solutions for our cross-system priorities for improving health and care

Protect green spaces for exercise, relaxation and time with friends and family

Improving primary care services along the prevention pathways

Prompt referral, set up programmes / treatment & improved allied health services; home visits & much needed Hydrotherapy pools

Improving access for disabled people to primary care services/early detection and links to community based support

Working with disabled people and primary care to improve access online and at GP premises for older and disabled people including people with a learning disability. Included disabled person audit, cross sector working and an asset based approach. 18 Practices now signed up to first phase of work.

Fund health visitors and re-instate more health visitor clinics in local GP surgeries

Health visitors coming to the home can be really helpful but they are woefully underfunded. The local GP service in Nunhead no longer has a health visitor clinic. It is really hard if you are suffering from physical or mental health conditions to get on a bus to Peckham with your child to go and seek help, so I expect lots of parents simply don't access those services. The children's centres are brilliant and need to keep being funded as they offer so many different kinds of support.

Facilities

There are very limited inpatient facilities within a local area which I think needs addressing. As a teen i attempted suicide, terminology used with regards to my release complicated it for me, but because of that terminology, I had teams wanting to section me, but there was no where for me to go as a minor. So ensuring a good range and multiple options for this would be important. But also during that time Proper address of the triggers need looking at. If its issues at schools, for example, they need holding accountable for not doing their job as ultimately they did no protect that student.

Transparancy for Services

A big issue I have is appointments where I am asked 'what am I hoping to get from this appointment?' As Service users we get told this isnt available, but never what IS available. Different areas have different accessability to different services; we still have a postcode lottery. If we know options we can consider these as well in terms of a treatment plan, and instead of being told no to availabity, we can discuss why we want to try x or even why we haven't picked x. It will help us understand conditions better and make us feel more in control.

Using therapy WITH medication

There are enough studies supporting this, not just for mental health. NICE say no pain medications for x condition, but long term therapy. Dr logic currently is no medication, nothing more. This is something that has a big impact on mental health and a persons self worth. It shouldnt make people more unwell trying to get help. 10 Years its taken to get under MH support, which isnt a new diagnosis and then pills and a door. Shameful. Lets make our NHS someting we are proud of again. with patients at its heart

Medication and therapy

We need to be able to be referred to psychiatrists and therapy quickly (or self refer). NICE guidelines recommend trauma focused therapy for PTSD but it is difficult to access group therapies or individual therapies unless you are in crisis, and there is little easily available information about this. Medication reviews with psychiatrists are very difficult to obtain unless presenting with psychosis - I heard from my primary care mental health practitioner that she simply can't refer patients because the referrals are so frequently declined.

Improved community service

Home visits for allied health services - chiropodist, health reviews drop in centres for interactive sessions

Communication Choice

It would help me to choose how I get contacted by health services: post, email or phone. For me, it would be email every time. Some jobs mean you cannot stop to take a phone call and this is VERY stressful when waiting to make an appointment, or for important results. When a phone consultation is arranged, the time needs to be respected BY BOTH SIDES. It is NOT right that the doctor can be half an hour late but we lose our appointment if we are not available at the appointed hour. Our time matters too and mutual respect is key.

LTHC Book

There are Black Books for SEND, which cover all sorts of aspects of their care, but a version for LHTC would be really good. Not everyone would need all the pages but you could have a system to order the book. If you had diabetes you could have a section for that for example in premade packs. Then as patients we could just take that book with us. It also means if systems arent working properly we have all the things we deem important with us as well as the parts drs do, e.g. a blood sugar record could be included. ADHD could have a Blood pressure record section within it. A general section as standard for medications a calendar with a key to colour code when appointments are, symptoms records etc. It is so easy to forget something important at each appointment. so this way for those with more than one as well, it could highlight where they are interacting and improve overall care.

Integrated notes

It would help me to have integrated notes which all my health care professionals and I could see easily, maybe on an online platform. I know that some areas such as Kent have integrated notes across health and social care and would be keen to see this here.