109. Evidence submitted by Louise Bate
(PPI 95)
1. The purpose of patient and public involvement
is to improve the delivery of healthcare. To develop a patient-led
NHS, patients and the public need to be actively involved in the
planning, design and delivery of healthcare services.
2. PPI Forums have had limited success because
the membership process and committee model isn't flexible enough
to actively encourage public participation. Currently a PPI Forums
success is dependent on a good Chairperson and a committed membership,
but this is not often the case. Volunteers without experience
of committees are discouraged from participating by the lengthy
application process, mountains of paperwork and the structured
approach.
3. LINK's should therefore be designed to
be more flexible, allowing people to participate on different
levels. LINk's must be independent of the NHS, in order to avoid
conflicts of interest. They also need to be supported independently
of the Local Authority, in order to avoid political pressure.
There needs to be some form of national co-ordination, to gather
trends and issues. The DOH should take responsibility for nationally
advertising LINKS in a similar way to the current information
about ICAS and PALS.
4. LINK's should be designed to work closely
with OSC's, the Healthcare Commission, ICAS and Foundation Trust
Member Councils. Their purpose should be to actively encourage
patient & public participation and to share information with
all relevant stakeholders.
5. Section 11 of the Health and Social Care
Act 2001 needs to be made clearer. Currently Health Trusts and
OSC's are left to guess at whether a situation will be considered
a "substantial variation". Public consultation by Health
Trusts is often an afterthought, more about ticking boxes than
actively encouraging public participation and comment.
Louise Bate
PPI Forum Development Officer
10 January 2007
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