1. Meet Ibrahim

    Blog -

    Ibrahim is a student mental health nurse. He volunteers for Healthwatch as a Digital Champion.

  2. What is the future of adult social care?

    News -

    The social care system is under huge pressure. What does the future hold?

  3. GP services for Islington residents in residential care

    Report -

    We spoke to care home residents, next of kin, and staff about their experiences of GP services that are delivered in the care home setting.

  4. Care home visits

    Report -

    We visited Bridgeside Lodge Care Centre, Cheverton Lodge Care Home, The Highgate Nursing Home, and Muriel Street Resource Centre.

  5. Experiences of the Integrated Care Ageing Team Service

    Report -

    We carried out interviews with residents, relatives and staff in local care homes.

  6. Meaningful activities in care homes and nursing homes in Islington

    Report -

    Our Enter and View volunteers have visited six care homes and nursing homes across the borough. They spoke to residents, their carers and relatives, and to staff.

  7. We asked residents, relatives and staff what they thought about the activities offered in local care homes

    News -

    Our volunteers have visited six care homes and nursing homes across the borough. They spoke to residents, their carers and relatives, and to staff.

  8. Care homes: understanding your rights

    Advice and Information -

    Choosing a care home can be daunting and it's important to have the right information. Find out more about your rights and how to complain if you are not happy.

  9. What should you expect when it comes to care for your teeth?

    Advice and Information -

    Four questions staff should ask you or a loved one about your oral health if you’re a care home resident, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quick guide.

  10. Local care home residents are well supported with their oral health

    News -

    Our volunteers visited six local care homes, speaking to residents, relatives and staff. We also met with the Oral Health Promotion Team from Whittington Health.

  11. Oral health in Islington care homes

    Report -

    We visited six homes, speaking to 46 residents, 24 relatives and 31 staff. We wanted to see how residents were supported with their oral health and whether there was any room for improvement.

  12. Our annual report 2019/20

    Report -

    Last year, we engaged with over 2300 residents. 650 people shared their stories about health and social care, and we made 25 recommendations to services about the improvements that people would like to see.

  13. COVID-19: What you need to know when visiting a care home

    Advice and Information -

    Take a look at what the latest guidance around visiting your loved ones in care homes means in practice.

  14. Islington care homes: experiences of accessing health services for residents

    Report -

    We asked care home managers about access to health services for their residents.

  15. Urgent and emergency care in North London

    Report -

    Local Healthwatch from Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington organised surveys, focus groups and interviews to find out what people thought of existing services and to get ideas on how to make services better.

  16. Islington Reablement Service

    Report -

    The reablement service supports people to regain independence following a period of ill-health, usually involving a stay in hospital.

  17. What you've told us about the reablement service

    News -

    We carried out phone interviews with 29 people to find out if they thought reablement had worked for them.

  18. Long waits for appointments for community health services can affect health, say local residents

    News -

    Healthwatch asked Islington residents using services like podiatry, physiotherapy, and district nursing to share their views about waiting times.

  19. Community research 2018

    Report -

    Self-care, social issues affecting health, and care delivered closer to home

  20. Local organisations publish joint report showing how their communities experience health services

    News -

    Diverse Communities Health Voice gathers the views of black and minority ethnic communities that don't speak English as a first language.

  21. Local residents talk to us about hip and knee replacement surgery

    News -

    We visited St Luke's Community Centre in south Islington to hear what people thought about plans to improve how hip and knee replacements are offered in the future.

  22. How well do local health and care services support the needs of people with autism?

    Report -

    Throughout the Autumn of 2016 we spoke with Islington residents with Autism Spectrum Condition, and with their families.

  23. Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington 2016/17

    Report -

    207 local residents gave us their views on pharmacy, lifestyle and well-being, A&E, interpreting services, and GP referrals.

  24. Emergency department, general practice, or pharmacy services?

    Report -

    A number of people use hospital emergency departments when they could be seen by a GP or in their local pharmacy. What factors influence how we decide where we need to be seen?

  25. Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington 2015/16

    Report -

    Local residents gave us their views on hospital appointments and patient choice, GP services, and keeping fit and healthy.

  26. Mystery shopping: Healthcare Travel Costs

    Report -

    Healthwatch mystery shoppers phoned GP surgeries and visited local hospitals to see how easy it was to make a claim for reimbursement under the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme.

  27. Experiences of Integrated Care

    Report -

    Gathering views on Multi-Disciplinary Team pilots

  28. Experiences of Deaf service-users in local hospitals

    Report -

    Deaf service users raised a range of concerns about experiences in local hospitals.

  29. Moorfields Eye Hospital - Enter and View visits

    Report -

    Over a two week period in September 2018 we conducted three visits to Moorfields Eye Hospital on City Road.

  30. Moorfields Eye Hospital gets a big thumbs up from outpatients

    News -

    Healthwatch volunteers visited Moorfields Eye Hospital three times last year to speak to outpatients.

  31. Talking to patients using health centres in Islington

    News -

    Healthwatch volunteers from London Metropolitan University have carried out over 80 interviews with patients accessing community services like podiatry, physiotherapy, and blood testing.

  32. Whittington Hospital Enter and View visits

    Report -

    We visited the Imaging Department, and the Fracture and Antenatal Clinics. We asked outpatients about the information they had been sent ahead of their appointment. We also asked them how easy it was find their way around the hospital.

  33. We asked outpatients at the Whittington whether they felt the hospital provided good information about their appointments.

    News -

    We visited the Imaging Department, and the Fracture and Antenatal Clinics. Most people felt the hospital was doing a good job, but there was still some room for improvement.

  34. How we helped one elderly patient regain access to hospital transport services

    News -

    Islington patient with long term health conditions makes good use of our information and signposting service.

  35. Community feedback on Whittington Health's plans for the future

    Report -

    We spoke to 90 local residents to capture their views on maternity services, emergency care, the use of digital technology, and health services located in the community.

  36. Feedback on maternity services at the Whittington Hospital

    News -

    Whittington Health is planning how best to deliver services in the future. To help with this, they asked us to speak to local residents about a range of issues.

  37. Local residents with learning disabilities talk about services provided by Whittington Health

    Report -

    We spoke to 28 learning disabled residents and support workers to capture their views on emergency care, the use of digital technology, and health services located in the community.

  38. People with learning disabilities give their views on emergency care

    News -

    Whittington Health is planning how best to deliver services in the future. To help with this, they asked us to speak to local residents about a range of issues.

  39. NHS Long Term Plan

    Report -

    Local Healthwatch from Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington organised surveys, focus groups and interviews to find out what people thought of existing NHS services and to get ideas on how to make services better.

  40. Six ways health services can improve waiting rooms

    Advice and Information -

    Here are six steps that people have told us health and social care services can take to provide a better environment while they wait.

  41. Do you need help travelling to NHS services?

    Advice and Information -

    Find out what support is available to help you when travelling to your GP, hospital or other NHS services.

  42. What makes for a good text reminder?

    News -

    Increasingly, health providers will text us a reminder ahead of our appointments to help us remember them. We like these reminders, but do we always get all the information we need?

  43. Local residents report difficulties booking patient transport services

    News -

    Call waiting times are unacceptable, and some carers report being refused permission to accompany elderly relatives.

  44. Vulnerable service users are no longer routinely being offered patient transport for hospital appointments and community health services

    News -

    Although eligibility rules have not changed, changes in how those rules are being applied mean that care home residents have been refused patient transport since DHL took over the contract in September.

  45. Our position on Patient Transport Services

    Response -

    We'd like to see clearer eligibility criteria, and better access to the service for patients with communication support needs.

  46. Our response to the consultation on changes to North Central London Orthopaedic Services

    Response -

    The clinical case for change seems clear. We also welcome the introduction of care coordinators to support patients with disabilities, autism, dementia or learning disabilities.

  47. Cancer and coronavirus

    Advice and Information -

    If you have cancer, it’s understandable you might feel anxious about COVID-19. The Government and the NHS have both confirmed that cancer treatment should continue to be prioritised as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic

  48. Presentations and Q&A from the ‘Accessing services as we come out of lockdown’ event

    Report -

    Meeting notes