Healthwatch Newcastle September Newsletter

Our September Newsletter

What we’re up to

Healthwatch Newcastle is growing, so a warm welcome to our new Engagement Officers Jay and Hannah, and our new Communications and Information Officer Elaine. We have more to come, with all hands on deck to find out more about your experience with health and social care services – what works, and what we can do to help it get better.

Our team joined up with Healthwatch Gateshead and North Tyneside to attend Newcastle Mela in August, a fabulous celebration of South Asian culture in our area. We’ll be attending other local events soon so if you see our team, come and say hello!

We’ll be at the Community Health and Wellbeing Fair at Newcastle Civic Centre on Saturday 22 October.

Vacancies

Healthwatch Gateshead and Newcastle are recruiting for a Volunteer and Engagement Officer, and an Engagement and Involvement Officer for Healthwatch Gateshead. See job descriptions and application forms here: Vacancies – Tell Us North

Your Voice
Because we all care campaign

Healthwatch have launched a joint campaign with CQC to try and find out more about the barriers people face when they need specialist referrals from their GP.
Tell us your story so we can make real change, together.
Share your experience and help make care better: Getting a GP referral for tests or support

We’ve all been through a challenging couple of years, and health and social care services and workers are no exception. Everyone’s doing all they can, but it’s always helpful to have feedback. ou Healthwatch England always want to hear about your experiences, and feed back into local services.
Let us know at Healthwatch England: have your say

Healthwatch Stars

We’re working through a backlog of nominations, it’s such a pleasure to see how many people are being recognised for making a difference in our area. If you know someone who you think deserves special recognition, let us know.
Nominate a Healthwatch Star - Healthwatch Newcastle

Going forward

We’re launching campaigns to find out more about your concerns over the next few months – what works well and what needs to change in health and social care services across the region. Watch this space!

In the news

Tackling waiting lists with 50 new surgical hubs in England
Waiting lists in the NHS have gotten longer and longer, and they’ve set out a plan to open 50 new surgical hubs across England. Read our National Director Louise Ansari’s response to this, and why we still need to focus on health inequality.
50 new surgical hubs set to open across England - our response | Healthwatch

Back to school – with your inhaler!

It’s back-to-school time, and kids are dusting off their protractors and preparing for that first day. But did you know that every September also sees a sharp increase  in the number of people admitted to hospital with asthma attacks? It’s important that anyone who needs to carry an inhaler keeps it handy. It’s usually the blue ‘reliever’ inhaler for kids, but speak to your GP if you’re not sure. And don’t forget spacers!
https://www.asthma.org.uk/back-to-school

Freshers’ Week: are you up to date with your vaccines?

New or returning students should make sure they’re fully up-to-date with their vaccinations before they go to university. Most people starting uni will have had the usual vaccines, but you can check with your GP surgery to make sure you’re protected and haven’t missed any. Make sure you’ve had both doses of the MMR, the HPV vaccine (now recommended for anyone, regardless of gender) the MenACWY vaccine against the bacteria which cause some forms of meningitis and septicaemia.
Students told to get up to date with vaccinations ahead of Freshers' Week