People living with long term conditions

Healthwatch Devon was requested by North East West Devon Clinical Commissioning Group to survey people with a long-term condition to inform the development of a model of care that puts patients with long-term conditions at the centre. Healthwatch Devon developed and distributed surveys, both online and in paper form. 571 responses were received in total. The report included minutes from the 13 October North Devon and Torridge Be Involved Devon Coming Together meeting. The results from this focus group were included in the Key Findings.

The findings revealed that 63% of respondents considered the care and support they received for their long-term condition as good or excellent, however, 1 in 5 considered the care and support they received as poor or very poor. Most respondents felt well-supported in managing their conditions. The report highlighted some issues around the sharing of information between health and social care services. The findings also revealed that most respondents did not have an agreed Personal Care Plan, and many had not discussed one with a health or social care professional. It was noted by respondents that better communication about Personal Care Plans would be helpful.

The report made several recommendations focusing primarily on additional support for individuals to use personal health budgets and improving access to test results.