This event took place on 1 May at the very accessible Think Tank Science Museum in Birmingham. The title this year was ‘Choice - valueless without meaningful information'. Essentially this means that while patients are entitled to choose where they go for their treatment; our choice is still limited without having accessible information.

The keynote session was by Earl Howe - Parliamentary Undersecretary of State for Quality. He spoke of the Department of Health's Consumer Health Information Strategy for England. This strategy promises that the patient will have access to information as it should not only be available, but also written "with the patient at it's heart". We await the results with interest.

The plenary and workshop sessions were all interesting in their own way; they were about sharing information, promoting clarity and cooperative decision making. One of the most exciting was by Doctor Mohammed Al-Ubaydli , CEO of the Patients Knows Best organisation, and his mantra is ‘the patient is king'.

As he pointed out, by giving information to the patient it overcomes the issues of different doctors and different systems. It seems so obvious, I wondered why I hadn't thought of that!

I look forward to the new Information Strategy to see how far this concept has been adopted.

9 May 2012: Quality of Health Principles - setting out a good patient experience

By: Sarah Markham, Patient Network member

I recently saw a link on the HQIP website to 'Quality of Health Principles'. Launched in November last year, Changing Our Lives worked closely with people with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, people with visual and hearing impairments and people with mental health issues and older people to develop the principles, setting out what a good patient experience should look like. The Department of Health and some of the people who developed the principles are now working together on the Audit programme which will see these principles used as a basis for audits of local health services.

I was very impressed with the document, it is attractive and straightforward, the photographs are a good idea too. I found the best part the glossary which is very informative.

The principles can be found here >>

30 April 2012: a patient's view of the European National Clinical Registries & Audit Summit

By: Margaret Hughes, Patient Network Delegate

Margaret Hughes I was privileged to attend the European National Clinical Registries & Audit Summit last Friday (27April 2012) at London's Victoria Park Plaza Hotel. The venue was ideal as it was located almost next door to Victoria mainline and tube stations.

The conference took place over two days allowing for many delegates to attend from as far afield as Australia, America and all over Europe. In total I think I counted 17 different countries including all four countries in the UK - a measure of the recognition and importance that registries and clinical audit are given across the world. The conference was chaired by HQIP Chief Executive Robin Burgess and Paul Bartels, President of the European Society for Quality Healthcare (ESQH).

It was interesting to hear a speaker from Sweden - Professor Göran Garellick - give recognition to John Charnley, who is widely acknowledge as being the first surgeon to successfully perform a hip replacement in the 1950's (at Wrightington Hospital where I am a patient ), having recommended in the 1960's that a national register should be set up to record joint replacements. It took 40 years to get around to it in the UK. Sweden are a world leader in clinical registries and have over 40 at present.

We heard from speakers from Denmark, France, Spain, America and Great Britain. Documenting the strengths and weaknesses of registries across Europe and the problems associated with working in a federal country like Spain where every area does something different and trying to bring the information together, is almost insurmountable.

The UK's Professor Michael Roberts spoke of the European COPD audit. This had been successfully carried out in spite of many challenges, and had proved to be a big learning curve for the future. The final speakers before lunch talked of pooling data across Europe for conditions in common, using as an example device registers for joint replacement.

After lunch the conference split into two streams and I attended the first one "Using release of results to improve quality of care: shared issues for national registry programmes". This was well facilitated by Helen Laing (NCAPOP lead) and Dr Yvonne Silove (NCA development manager) from HQIP. They were followed by the information manager from the UK Lung Cancer Audit, Julie Henderson and Dr James Kent, who had left Medicine to work in business management. They were both very interesting with lots of food for thought. This was followed by the plenary questions and answers session to a board of international experts.

It was a long day and many people (including me) were flagging by the end. The person sitting next to me faced a journey of six hours home to Norway although the actual flight was only two hours. I was pleased that I only had a two train journey!

Overall, it was an excellent day with lots to think about. It was particularly interesting to note that the challenges faced by trying to carry out the European COPD audit for the first time closely resembled the problems I faced trying to set up a lay team of auditors at my Trust for the first time...

12 April 2012: HQIP Advisory Group, PN events and e-learning tool update

By: HQIP PPI Lead Kim Rezel

Today sees two Patient Network (PN) representatives meet with HQIP's Chair and CEO Robin Burgess.

Among the things they are discussing will be fine-tuning how the HQIP Board and the PN will work together across the next 12 months. Not least here will be the role of the new advisory group for the Board. Plans for this group are still at an early stage of development, but it is hoped it will include representatives from both the PN and patient representative organisations, and help shape HQIP's work.

The next PN meeting is on the April 25and we have a busy agenda planned, including a presentation from South London and Maudsley Trust. We have invited them along as the Trust has achieved very successful patient involvement in clinical audit, as shown by their runner-up spot in last year's Clinical Audit Awards at the HQIP Annual Conference.

Coming up in the next few weeks, PN representative Brian Hodges and I will be attending the Patient Information Forum in Birmingham, where we look forward to hearing some innovative ideas around communication tools and presentation to the public.

As mentioned last month, we are in the process of creating an online learning tool aimed for patients and patient representatives, designed to firstly enable understanding of clinical audits reporting and secondly offer a foundation course for those wishing to get more involved with the audit process.

Work on this e-learning tool is coming along well - we now have designers on board, and so the next stage will be for the PN working group and me to meet to agree the educational objectives for the resource and the content for it...watch this space, and if you have any suggestions, do let me know: kim.rezel@hqip.org.uk

9 March 2012: Chair named, CAI feedback, e-learning tool imminent!

By: HQIP PPI Lead Kim Rezel

Since our last update the HQIP Patient Network have appointed a Chair - John Lynch spent a career in IT but as a long term patient from a heart condition John has been involved in the voluntary sector since his early retirement. He has been a chairman for the Enfield Christian Social Responsibility Association and the Enfield Community Health Council and has been involved in various working groups including in the strategy, development, research and ethics departments of both Enfield and Haringey Trusts.

Presently John is also the Chair of the Enfield LINks which has received Pathfinder status for Enfield HealthWatch. As the role of Patient Network chair John says "I hope to lead the team of Patient Network volunteers along a path that will ensure that patients' voices are heard and respected in both health and social care arenas - with a particular focus on clinical audit issues and related programmes that will result in improved outcomes for patients."

In the past few months the Patient Network (PN) have been very active with strong involvement at the HQIP Annual conference and attendance at the CAI conference. Members are also attending the upcoming European National Clinical Registries and Audit Summit as well as a Patient Focus conference for the NJR.

Margaret Hughes presented at the HQIP Annual conference to a great response, eloquently speaking about her involvement in clinical audit, how she started and where she is now; playing a pivotal role in her own trust at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh, and as a valued member of the PN.

John Lynch and another member of the PN will be meeting with members of the HQIP Board in the second of what we hope will become a regular event. HQIP want to ensure that there is an opportunity for the PN to put their views to the board and also for the Board to have the chance to feedback to the PN.

CAI Conference feedback

One of the PN Jagadish Jha attended last months' CAI conference and had the following to report back:

"Simon Bennett, Head of Clinical Governance at Department of Health was unfortunately not able to attend the conference, so HQIP CEO Robin Burgess had to play the double role of chair and presenter for both of the morning slots. He did it remarkably well, and did not show any signs of fatigue!

I asked Robin about clinical audit for dental services and he told me there was none. There is a gap there which needs to be addressed, I feel. Dental charges are very high for patients often on low income but not receiving any benefits, and the same can be said for opticians' charges.

At the conference itself, I particularly liked Simon Bennett's paper "Giving patients the information they need to make choices and to take control" we were each given a copy and Robin presented the paper on Simon's behalf. I also attended two masterclasses; 'Clinical audit action planning' and 'Junior doctors and clinical audit'.

The former was in two parts. The first was facilitated by Nancy Dixon who talked about planning, action logs, resulting in improvement and the second part by Colin Bryant, who talked about his experience in military medicine, for example in the treatment of trauma . Nancy had a lot to say about the efficiency of the American system but admitted that poor people there have a raw deal. Colin made us laugh by saying how people shouted at each another in the military, but people outside the military treated each other with respect.

The latter masterclass involved a presentation by junior doctors and was very informative. It concluded that at least one round of repeating data collection is important to determine the effectiveness of any action taken to improve patient care. Unfortunately there was not much time left for Q&A.

Elsewhere, clinical champion (HQIP) and Doctor in Pathology from Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, Graham Russell talked about closing the audit cycle: audit leading to action and improvement and re-audit being essential in an audit programme. He provided case studies of re-audit and change in practice.

Finally Lynne Hoffin and Lee McCleary, Team leader and Care assistant respectively, talked about a particular case of palliative approach to mouth care, involving the multi-disciplinary team and re-audit leading to improvement in the Ayrshire Hospice.

In conclusion a very worthwhile examination of all the major themes in clinical audit, using specific subjects."

Online learning tool set for launch

Over the coming months the PN and HQIP will be finalising an e-learning package for patients who would like to be involved in clinical audit. Please keep an eye on the PPI and news pages for more information, and if you haven't already, sign up for the HQIP eBulletin.

We are looking to expand the Network and welcome anyone to contact Kim Rezel at HQIP if you are interested in joining the group. We meet every three months, but if you prefer to only have "virtual involvement" we are still very interested in hearing from you. Expenses, based on the HQIP expenses policy, are covered in the document: http://hqip.org.uk/assets/PPE/Patient-Network/External-expense-claim-guidance-FINAL-2.pdf

If you have any views about national or local clinical audit and patient involvement, please get in touch with me: kim.rezel@hqip.org.uk

16 June 2011: Social care, HQIP conference and PPIweb pages

By: HQIP PPI Lead Kim Rezel

Welcome to the launch edition of HQIP's PPI blog - a monthly update on the latest developments in HQIP's ongoing Patient & Public Involvement work, including all the latest news and views from HQIP's Patient Network.

It's a fitting time to go live with the blog as Patient Network members have been very busy in recent times getting involved in various consultations, events and discussions.

The first point of note is that three members recently met with members of the HQIP Board to discuss their representation on it. Progress has been made to create clearer and more regular lines of communication, and one member will attend part of the next Board meeting. The discussion however is to be continued, and hopefully a permanent solution will be agreed at the next meeting.

Meanwhile, two members attended the first HQIP Social Care workshop which was attended by, among others, social care providers and was held in partnership with the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE). The workshop is the first discussion in what HQIP hopes will be a big project, integrating successful quality improvement approaches in health and social care. The Patient Network input was invaluable and members will continue to be part of this ongoing consultation process.

Looking ahead, HQIP's annual conference in October will be more patient-focused than ever before. Patient Network representative Kate Wilkinson will give the opening keynote address on 10 October in Manchester, followed by NHS Medical Director Sir Bruce Keogh. The event will also have its usual Clinical Audit Awards ceremony, in which one of the categories is Patient Involvement. Members of the Patient Network will be on the Awards panel along with myself and HQIP Quality Improvement & Development Lead Kate Godfrey to judge the top three submissions and the overall winner

Elsewhere, look out for HQIP's PPI strategy which will formalise and frame our PPI aims, objectives and activities. This will be available soon on our PPI pages along with all the existing case studies, useful guides and tools and the Patient Network minutes.

A final update for now is a note that the next Patient Network meeting will be at HQIP's offices on 6July. We are always interested in recruiting new members, so if you are interested in getting involved as a carer, service user, member of the public, patient please contact me on 020 7469 2511 or via kim.rezel@hqip.org.uk.

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