Engaging with local communities

Patient engagement and consultation with community groups are gaining momentum in the health sector in a bid to ensure healthcare is patient-focused and delivered in a way that is relevant and accessible to patients. This project involved Healthwatch Lambeth partnering with Primary Care Networks (PCNs) in Lambeth to engage with specific population groups and develop plans for future pieces of community engagement. 

The first phase of this project saw staff from PCNs in Streatham and Fiveways work through the stages of community engagement, which included identifying priority areas for their patient group, establishing key stakeholders and networks locally, and developing community engagement activities with patients in their network. Throughout the process, the PCNs identified existing and new ways to share and build on their learnings from each of these stages. 

Two engagement activities took place, one in each PCN. Within Fiveways PCN, the community engagement focus was the patient experience of digital services, which led to the delivery of digital skills workshops for patients who were less confident in accessing healthcare online. These events led to improved digital skills and utilisation of the NHS app. Within Streatham, patients attended a health and wellbeing event to learn more about diabetes, hypertension, and ways they can look after themselves. 

The second phase provided staff in each PCN within Lambeth the opportunity to participate in a workshop to develop a community engagement plan tailored to the needs of their network. Staff from five different PCNs attended and developed seven different community engagement plans to be rolled out in the future. 

Throughout the PCN engagement project, Healthwatch learned that community engagement is valued by staff but there are a number of challenges they experience when doing so. Healthwatch met staff from a variety of roles who do community engagement as part of their work, however, they did not encounter a role that holds responsibility for bringing all of that work together or collating the insights in a way that could be shared with staff to enhance their understanding of their patients’ experiences or needs. 

Another challenge shared was a lack of understanding of the needs of their patient group due to the great diversity of patients accessing practices. Healthwatch also learned about practical challenges, such as a lack of budget to text patients or provide materials translated into community languages. The plans developed and skills learned by staff in Lambeth PCNs can be replicated for future pieces of community engagement.