Engagement in the ambulatory assessment unit
Download (PDF 765.23 KB)Summary of report content
Healthwatch Wigan and Leigh spoke to 14 patients or family carers at the RAEI Ambulatory Assessment Unit on the 12th and 13th September to explore patient experiences of ambulatory care.
People thought there were numerous benefits of the environment in the Ambulatory Assessment Unit; it was more patient friendly than A&E and on the day results were seen as an advantage. There was a mixture of experiences on the extent to which their personal circumstances had been considered. This report also looked into the leveling of understanding people had for the term 'Ambulatory' or the concept of ambulatory care.
The recommendations from this report included; to clarify the meaning of ambulatory care to potential patients by renaming the Ambulatory Assessment Unit, to provide a clear information statement about what the Unit is and what patients should expect, to consider a protocol for providing refreshments to carers during their wait and implementing signage to direct carers to alternative services, and to create a parking ticket that covers all local health sites for patients who may need to be referred to other sites.