News and reports

If you are a patient or carer in any of the wards across Westminster or Kensington & Chelsea and are registered to a local GP, then the good news is you can join your GP practice Patient Participation Group (PPG).

The current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic may cause you to feel worried, anxious, or scared. Read our tips to looking after your wellbeing when self-isolating.

From collaborating with local schools to auditing GP websites, discover how Young Healthwatch is exploring and representing the needs of young people in Kensington & Chelsea.

To find out how well the ‘digital first’ strategy is working for all people, we engaged with a range of organisations and groups from across the borough. This report builds on previous work we carried out on digital healthcare in 2020.

Last month we were delighted to continue our relationship with Imperial College London by hosting four third-year medical students for a workshop on health inequalities and the work of local Healthwatch.

On Tuesday 7th December, we held our 2021 Annual Meeting.
We brought together over 60 members, volunteers, staff, local colleagues, community partners, and members of the public to showcase our work and plan our priorities for the coming year.

We have published a new report, ‘Accessing Healthcare Digitally’. The report sets out the findings from our recent community engagement on the accessibility of digital healthcare tools. It also contains a comprehensive set of recommendations for service providers, designed to ensure that digital healthcare tools become as accessible and user-friendly as possible.

Over the past two years, collaborating with local groups has become an essential part of our work through our Small Grants Programme. It enables us to connect with people from a range of minority ethnic backgrounds and minority groups.

Alongside this year’s Annual report, we have created an A5 booklet that shares the impact of our work, with a focus on tackling health inequalities and improving local services.

Online GP consultations have become more common since the COVID-19 pandemic, when many GP practices were physically closed to patients. Some online systems have now been expanded, with patients able to see their GP online for anything from a routine consultation to non-urgent medical advice, or support with a long-term condition.

We’ve been hearing from a number of care home residents in Westminster and RBKC about the difficulties they have when trying to access dental care. This got us thinking about how dental care is managed in care homes.

The vaccine is now being offered to all 12 to 15-year-olds and the NHS will be delivering the vaccination through schools. Schools are contacted with students of this age to arrange a date to vaccinate their students.