Co-production and Public Engagement across Health and Social Care in Cornwall: impact of Covid-19 pandemic

This research, conducted by Co:Create and Healthwatch Cornwall set out to independently review any changes to local working practices in Cornwall’s Health and Social Care system during the initial Covid-19 period with specific regard to public engagement and co-production, and to make recommendations for how positive aspects of this can be sustained locally in the longer term and elsewhere:

Covid-19 has galvanised a sense of everyone being an equal part of the same community with a shared aim.

Covid-19 has shown how technology can be used to support and enhance services, co-production and public engagement.

Covid-19 has meant that rules and regulations have been relaxed, enabling changes and ideas to be implemented more freely. This, in theory, makes it easier to engage with people.

Covid-19 has brought different services and sectors together as an aligned Health and Social Care ecosystem

Covid-19 has made funding more available for people and easier to access so that people can do good work.

Covid-19 has shown that positive change can happen quickly if needed.

Some groups of people have found Covid-19 particularly difficult and may not be benefitting from any positive changes to services equally. This includes those who are disabled or experiencing mental health concerns

The willingness of decision makers to listen and give other staff a sense of agency to support changes ‘in the system’ is key to ensuring effective co-production and public engagement but Covid-19 affected this as other ‘operational priorities’ took over.