News and reports

Healthwatch Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark contributed to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspector information pack prior to their inspection of South London and Maudsley (SLaM) NHS Trust in September 2015.

This visit programme contributes to one of Healthwatch Lambeth’s priority areas; access to community based services and their impact. We chose to focus on community pharmacies because most people use these services.

Over 2015, we carried out Enter & View visits to all 5 of Lambeth’s extra care schemes and held interviews with the on-site service providers to understand whether services are enabling people to have a good quality of life and improving independece.

Healthwatch Lambeth Trustees held a seminar on transforming primary care services (dental, GPs and community pharmacists) on June 10, 2015. The seminar took place from 6pm – 8pm at the Norwood Health and Leisure Centre.

We visited Dulwich Care Centre, a nursing home for 93 residents, providing nursing or personal care to older people, including people with physical disabilities and people living with dementia.

We undertook a review of dementia services in the Clapham Park area of Lambeth during the second half of 2014, in order to gain an insight into the experiences of local residents with dementia and their carers (both paid and unpaid)

We did an Enter and View visits at Lingham Court, an extra care housing facility for 30 tenants, providing care and support to older people including wheelchair users and five residents living with dementia.

We carried out Enter and View visits at Helmi House, a Sanctuary Home Care for 46 tenants, currently providing care and support to 26 people of mixed ages including wheelchair users and two residents living with dementia.

In this presentation to the Lambeth Council Health & Wellbeing Board, we highlighted why social relations are important, in relation to our priority areas including Poor Mental Health, Community based care and Cuts to welfare and care budgets.

We did an Enter and view at Hillyard House, an extra care housing facility for 41 tenants providing care and support to a mixed clientele including older people, learning disabled adult and younger disabled people, and residents living with dementia.

We conducted the survey to understand patients’ experiences of using primary care services. The results were fed back into the whole “transforming primary care discussion” on a local and regional level.

We spoke with women who have experienced violence or sexual violence, or have been in touch with the criminal justice system. They shared their individual journeys with us, telling us about the barriers and challenges faced.