Healthwatch Haringey Annual Report 2022/23
Our annual report showcases two of our key projects from the year:
Barriers to GP registration
Local people told us they found it difficult to register with some Haringey GPs as
the reception staff insisted on proof of address or identification. This particularly
impacted migrants and people who are affected by homelessness.
We teamed up with the NHS, Haringey GP Federation, Haringey Council and Haringey Welcome, Doctors of the World and community and voluntary sector organisations to encourage Haringey residents to register with a GP, even if they don’t have ID or proof of address.
We carried out mystery shopping research by phone and in person.
Our findings included:
- In the telephone mystery shopping: 24 out of 39 surgeries required proof of address; 30 out of 39 surgeries required ID
- In the in person mystery shopping: 20 out of 37 surgeries required proof of address; 20 out of 37 surgeries required ID
- Only 10% of GP surgeries in Haringey told us on the phone they would register a patient without seeking proof of address or ID
We produced hard copy leaflets and posters in English and five community languages, letting people know their right to register with a GP.
We worked with Doctors of the World to facilitate training for GP Practices into becoming a Safe Surgery.
We will conduct a review later in the year to see if positive changes have been made. We hope to find that more Haringey GP Practices are following NHS guidelines on registering patients and more Haringey residents are able to register with a GP easily.
Young people and sexual health
We were commissioned to consult and engage young people on their current views of sexual health services in the borough and ask them about their aspirations and needs to improve their future experiences. Some of our recommendations included:
Awareness
There should be more work done with young people to promote sexual health services, so they know what is available, where to go and how to access them.
Outreach and engagement
There should be a greater promotion and presence of good quality information about young people’s sexual health services with a strong focus on outreach in schools and colleges and dedicated young people’s sexual health clinics.
Sexual health clinics
The dedicated young people’s sexual health clinics should be open access with better signage outside the clinics using logos, pictures, and graphics to show what it is and what services are offered.
Our annual report also features the work we have done around young people and mental health, Long COVID, and engaging with local people to feed into London Ambulance Service's strategy.
Throughout the year, Healthwatch Haringey has worked hard to ensure people’s worries and anxieties, and the challenges they face in accessing health and care services, are listened to, and acted on, by commissioners and providers.
We have set out four cases where we helped local people to get access to the health services they were entitled to.
Our job is to ensure that the voice of patients is heard by those who make decisions or provide both health care and social care – and to press for change on their behalf.
Highlights from our year
- We heard from 720 people about their experiences of health and social care through surveys, service user groups, meetings, focus groups and interviews. They helped raise awareness about issues and improve care.
- We provided advice and information to 203 people.
- We published seven reports about the improvements people would like to see to health and social care services.
Downloads
Download the report here.
If you need it any other format please email info@healthwatchharingey.org.uk or call 020 8888 0579
