91. Evidence submitted by Sheffield Children's
Hospital NHS Foundation Trust PPI Forum (PPI 52)
I have been a member of this Forum since it
started and during the last three years we have worked with the
following groups:
Primary Schools
Secondary Schools
Local Surestart and Children's Centres
Family Service Unit
SIGN (an information centre for disabled children,
young people and their families)
Northern Refugee Centre
Oral Health Promotion Unit
SHINE (Self Help Independence Nutrition and Exercise)
Somali Mental Health
Travellers Health Group
Healthy Cross Initiative
Various support groups for parents/carers of children
with special needs, Alder Hey, Great Ormond Street and Birmingham
Children's Hospital Forums (regular meetings)
We also spend time in the hospital talking to
patients and parents about any concerns they may wish to raise
with us.
One of our members attends the Trust Board meetings,
and we have one member on the Diversity and Involvement Committee
of the hospital, and have close links with the PALS service and
management team. We also work with the Child and Adolescent Mental
Health Teams in Sheffield as this service is part of the Trust's
responsibilities. One member sits on the Children and Young People
Scrutiny and Policy Development Board at Sheffield City Council
which scrutinises all aspects of service provision for young people
in the city.
— Our members feel that the work we
do does not fit within the remit of local involvement as acute
trusts have their own board and executive who have been appointed
for their ability to manage their organisation particularly in
the case of specialist children's hospitals where patients travel
from all areas of the country.
— The 500 responses to the consultation
by the Department of Health did not indicate any real interest
from the public. 50% of the 500 responses were from PPI forum
members, 14% from NHS staff,13% from Local Government, 13% from
Stakeholders, 4% were unspecified, 1% each from FSO staff and
Trade Unions and 2% each from MPs and members of the public. Given
the difficulty CIPPHE have encountered in recruiting and retaining
members even with their large budget this 2% does not look like
a demand for greater involvement from the public.
— There has been no formal review to
ascertain what the problem—if indeed there is one—was
with the existing forums
— Our Forum already does exactly what
the Department of Health says it wants LINks to do but without
the budget and autonomy we now have although our focus is only
on children rather than all social services and health care within
a local area.
— We have succeeded despite having
only four active members during all of the previous three years
Alice Riddell
Vice Chair, Sheffield Children's Hospital NHS Foundation
Trust PPI Forum
9 January 2007
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