News and reports

For Mental Health Awareness Week (18-24 May), we are highlighting some of the challenges local people face when accessing mental health services and also about the crucial role played by community support in helping people manage their mental health.

A reflection on lockdown by Lucy Cribb, Healthwatch Dorset Engagement Officer for Mental Health Awareness Week, 18-24 May 2020.

For Mental Health Awareness Week (18-24 May) we interview Healthwatch Dorset volunteer Catriona, who comes from a professional background of working in the field of mental health as a counsellor, and offers her experience, tips and helpful resources.

We are looking forward to helping local health and care services learn and improve with the announcement of several new projects for the year ahead.

We explain why it’s important to have a plan in place, should you or a loved one become critically ill.

We launch a new survey asking local people to share their stories to help identify how health and care services are adapting and working well during the coronavirus outbreak, and to highlight common challenges that need to be addressed.

Vivienne Aird, former Chief Executive of Bournemouth Council for Voluntary Service (BCVS), has been appointed Chair of the local Steering Group.

As local health and care services come under increasing pressure due to the coronavirus, and access to services becomes more challenging, we remind people that Healthwatch Dorset is here to help.

We have helped several local hospitals to carry out their annual NHS assessment of patient experience.

We have been finding out what matters most to people who use Poole Hospital A&E, by carrying out 10 visits and talking to over 40 patients in the department.

We have been interviewing people in Poole Hospital A&E department to help improve patient experience nationally and locally.

We are working with Macmillan Cancer Support and the Wessex Cancer Alliance to find out more about people’s experience of cancer support care in West Dorset.