This is welcome news. The Health Bill’s schedule, which was due to remove the statutory Local Healthwatch arrangements, raised huge concerns about the loss of independent patient and public voice, particularly the risk that inequalities in access, experience and outcomes will become harder to identify and challenge.
As part of this welcome change, we must ensure Healthwatch England and local Healthwatch organisations are empowered to promote accessibility, independence, influence and accountability, which are necessary for patient and public voice to drive meaningful improvement.We need to enable people and communities to participate as equal partners in decisions about priorities, resources, services and improvement.
Gerard Crofton-Martin
Interim Chief Executive of the Social Care Institute for Excellence