Lincolnshire’s NHS has today begun a listening exercise giving residents the chance to get involved in the transformation of the county’s health and care services.

The ‘Healthy Conversation 2019’ is a way for Lincolnshire’s public to share their views on NHS services and for them to be heard and considered as these services are developed for the future.

Senior clinicians in the county say the NHS needs to change to improve the quality of care offered to patients, to attract more healthcare staff to Lincolnshire and ensure the health service is fit to meet the needs of the population long term.

They have called on patients, the public, their representatives, our partners and staff to get involved with ‘Healthy Conversation 2019’ to help make these changes together.

Dr Sunil Hindocha, GP and clinical accountable officer for NHS Lincolnshire West Clinical Commissioning Group said: “Healthy Conversation 2019 is a discussion about what – and how – we need to change to ensure that our health service is fit for the future.

“We all want an NHS that helps us to look after ourselves and offering a service to be proud of that provides safety, compassion and accessibility every single day.

“There is lots we are proud of, but know there are areas where we need to change.

“We want to hear from patients, the public, their representatives, our partners and staff so that they can help to shape future plans.

“We want to explain the need for change and the challenges we all face.”

‘Healthy Conversation 2019’ will cover a number of different areas of health and care, including sharing information and updates with the public about:

•  Looking after ourselves and each other – getting this right is the best way to be healthy and reduce the strain on the NHS. You might hear this referred to as ‘prevention’ and ‘self-care’
• Joined up care close to home – services delivered in the community or your own home
• Mental health and learning disabilities – one quarter of us will be affected by mental health at some point in our lifetime so getting these services right is paramount
• Hospital services – this year we will be talking with you about these services and the emerging options for their future sustainability
• Enabling factors – this is how we refer to such things as travel and transport, IT and digital opportunities, recruitment and estates and buildings – not the services themselves, but big influencers on our ability to deliver them well
• The national NHS Long Term Plan – and how we can make this work best for Lincolnshire

Dr Yvonne Owen, GP and medical director of Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust, added: “This is a conversation between the NHS and you, the Lincolnshire public, about what is important to you, what feedback and experiences you want to share and above all, how you would like to see our health service continue to improve.

“We will be open about the challenges our NHS faces – such as quality, recruitment and money, and what we can and can’t do.

“We will share our thinking as early as possible and be clear about the reasons for it. We will consider all of your feedback and report back on what we did or why we couldn’t act upon it.”

The initial series of engagement events will be held throughout March. They will take place between 2pm and 7pm on the following dates:

•  Wednesday, 13th March – The Len Medlock Voluntary Centre, St Georges Road, Boston, PE21 8YB
• Thursday, 14th March – Louth Library, Northgate, Louth, LN11 0LY
• Tuesday, 19th March – The Storehouse, North Parade, Skegness, PE25 1BY
• Wednesday, 20th March – Jubilee Church Life Centre, London Road, Grantham, NG31 6EY

Further events in Lincoln, Gainsborough, Spalding, Sleaford, and Stamford will be confirmed and promoted in the coming days and weeks. Our Healthy Conversation 2019 offers a number of other ways to get involved:

• More events for public and staff will happen throughout the year that you can attend to share your views – full details will be published on our engagement calendar on our website
• Responding to our survey, which will be available at all events, as well as on our website
• We will also be attending as many of our partners’ events as possible – all of these dates will also be shared on our engagement calendar 
• Our website and social media pages will be sharing the latest information on the topics above and you will always be able to contact us through them, or via phone or email, to feed back.
• We will be sharing information through our hospital sites, GP practices, and other places to ensure you remain fully up-to-date

You can contact the ‘Healthy Conversation 2019’ team in a number of ways. You can email lnht.hc2019@nhs.net, call 01522 307307 or write to us at Healthy Conversation 2019, Room 2, Wyvern House, Kesteven Street, Lincoln, LN5 7LH.

For more information, visit our website at https://www.itsallaboutpeople.info