Annual Report 2016/17

Healthwatch North Yorkshire report on its key achievements during 2016/17.  It:

• Became an independent charity and strengthened its organisational capacity, building new governance arrangements, expanding partnerships and increasing its ability to represent communities across North Yorkshire.
• Carried out Enter and View visits to care homes across the county, leading to practical improvements in areas such as activities provision, dementia-friendly environments, cleanliness, use of outdoor spaces and staff development. 
• Influenced healthcare planning through major projects on rural access to services, young people’s mental health and wellbeing, care planning, end-of-life care and Yorkshire Ambulance Service performance. 
• Completed a significant study into rural access to healthcare in the Craven district, highlighting transport barriers and missed appointments, with findings used by commissioners and local authorities to inform service planning and transport provision. 
• Supported improvements in healthcare policy by providing evidence to Clinical Commissioning Groups about the impact of health optimisation policies on vulnerable groups, helping ensure appropriate safeguards and exemptions were built into local approaches. 
• Worked with NHS partners across West Yorkshire to gather feedback from around 940 people about stroke services, ensuring patient experiences informed future service development and planning.
• Expanded engagement with local communities through events, forums and outreach with young people, carers, older people, people with disabilities and community organisations, helping ensure a broader range of experiences influenced health and social care decision-making. 
• Produced reports and recommendations on hospital discharge, GP access, carers’ experiences and service quality, helping commissioners and providers understand local concerns and opportunities for improvement.