Category: 2017 Healthwatch Bolton

A report paints a thousand words

Last weeks Healthcare tech community roadshow had inundated the researchers with a plethora of fresh data to interpret and analyse. Luckily for me, this meant that I had been presented with the unique opportunity to see the process of report-writing first-hand and live; right at the start of the week. From this, I was able to decide on the format and parameters of my own report.

My suggestion to my friends at the refugee meeting place, for an in-house written monthly publication to be written by the team of regulars that I met with, had not fallen on deaf ears. Over the next several weeks, I hope to help them develop this from an idea to its fruition.

Tech care of your health!

It’s no secret that the NHS has had a tricky past with technology. Just this year, we saw malicious software cripple 61 trusts across England and Scotland! However, the demands of an ageing population and the shift in the supply of healthcare professionals has meant that tech-enabled care is needed quickly to alleviate pressure from the bed blocking phenomenon.

As part of the devolution of health and social care in Greater Manchester, a Bolton locality plan set out how healthcare services would change over the next five years. This plan looks to introduce technology such as a push button, or fall sensors and alarm pendants worn around the neck, that can allow patients to safely go back to their own homes, rather than staying in hospital longer than necessary.

A dream for a better Healthcare system

The first two weeks have flown by at Healthwatch Bolton and I’m happy to say that I’ve managed to settle myself on a desk space that is usually free. In this time, I’ve been reborn as a coffee gremlin. It really doesn’t help when there is a funky coffee shop right around the corner!

In the office, I’ve hopped from desk to desk to shadow the in-house community engagement officers and research officers. Developing my understanding of research at collection and analysis was essential for me to start designing a project plan.

On my third day in the office, a visit to the BRASS (Befriending Refugees and Asylum Seekers) Bolton Centre and a review of past case notes captured my attention towards the under-represented and growing refugee population in the Bolton borough.