Health Care and Wellbeing e-newsletter for March 2009

 

 

'Six Lives'

Last week, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman published the results of her investigation in to the healthcare received by six people with learning disabilities, with the title 'Six Lives: the provision of public services to people with learning disabilities'.  These six cases were first drawn to attention by the charity Mind in its 2007 report 'Death by Indifference'. Inspired by that report, the health OSC in Haringey reviewed health services for this vulnerable group and both Haringey and CfPS gave evidence last year about the role that scrutiny can play in service improvement, to Sir Jonathan Michael's Independent Inquiry into Access to Healthcare for People with Learning Disabilities.

Support Programme News
Welcome to the first edition of the new look health care and wellbeing scrutiny champions newsletter, which links you directly to all the resources on our website, as well as keeping you up to date with what’s coming up in the health scrutiny support programme. As well as news of scrutiny in action around the country, the bulletin will focus on the strategic issues and endeavour to give you a short cut to the latest thinking and initiatives in health, social care and well-being. The newsletter will continue to be monthly and we welcome your comments and your contributions, particularly short items about your experiences and reflections of how health, care and well-being scrutiny is being taken forward in your patch. 

 
National Networking Event
New ways of working was the theme of the first National Networking day held in March for all Health Care and Wellbeing scrutiny officers and members.

Healthy Accountability Forum
Three innovative scrutiny reviews show how scrutiny can challenge commissioning to deliver health services that meet local need, and overcome the many percieved barriers to scrutinising commissioning.

Department of Health News
The minimum to keep you up to speed.

Annual Conference - Register now 
At the end of April the full calendar of Health Scrutiny Events for 2009 will be published.

Scrutiny of Health and Social Care for people with learning disabilities 
Prior to the recent report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman into ten tragic cases, the CfPS  published a 10 questions guide to the provision of mainstream health services to people with learning disabilities.

Cambridgeshire: health services for people with learning disabilities.

Please send us your completed reviews to add to our comprehensive archive of scrutiny reviews across the country. Eleven reviews have been added since we featured the joint ambulance service review in November.

Register for the e-newsletter and discussion forum  Forward this email to any one you consider a health scrutiny champion who will find the support programme and the e-newsletter useful. You need to register to receive the free e-newsletter directly.