Planned Care Citizens' Panel

Seeking patients’ views on elective recovery

PCCP Image (28.09.21).jpeg Our Planned Care Citizens’ Panel was introduced in partnership with Healthwatch to support communications around elective recovery in West Yorkshire and Harrogate. The panel of volunteers from across the area, all patients on the waiting list for elective care, was in place from June to September 2021.

Panel members met online every two weeks when clinicians and other colleagues from across the Partnership shared details with them about how we are working together as a system to reduce the backlog of elective cases resulting from the pandemic.

All panel members were extremely keen to support elective recovery work and help improve the situation for others in the same position. They shared their own experiences of waiting, asked relevant questions, and provided valuable insight around several areas of healthcare, not just elective recovery.

Themes included patient and public communications, personalised care, shared decision-making, clinical validation, prioritisation of patients, proposals for creating additional elective capacity, and the current pressures on accident and emergency services. One of the most important themes for panel member was around helping patients to stay well during their wait for care so support services, such as patient information and guidance, social prescribing options and activities provided by the VCSE sector were also covered.

All this comprehensive feedback is now being used by the appropriate programmes and teams within the Partnership for ongoing consideration as work progresses. We are also looking at how we can keep panel members involved with these important work areas, to make sure that the voice of the patient is heard, and to retain the personal experiences and knowledge that only people with a lived experience can bring.

There's more information about the current situation with planned care, and the reasons for establishing a dedicated citizens' panel below. We'll give updates on this page but if you have any questions in the meantime, please email: wyhhcp.plannedcare@nhs.net

Catherine Thompson "Although I was aware of the dreadful impact that long waits have on people’s lives, hearing this for myself from patients affected, and seeing their anguish and distress, is what really brought it home."

Our weekly blog on 23 July 2021 featured Catherine Thompson, Programme Director for the West Yorkshire and Harrogate Planned Care Alliance. Catherine talks about the current situation with regard to planned care across the region and the positive difference that the new Planned Care Citizens' Panel is making. You can read Catherine's blog in full here.

What is planned care?

Planned care is also known as ‘routine’ or ‘elective’ care. It is treatment that people decide to have to help manage a health problem, rather than emergency treatment for an urgent (life-threatening) medical condition, or following a serious accident. People are usually referred to hospital for planned care by their GP or other healthcare professional.

Planned care covers many different medical procedures including joint replacements and cataract surgery for example. It also includes tests to diagnose and detect diseases such as cancer and other serious medical conditions.

Improving planned care services is one of the Partnership’s main priorities. This is why we have an Improving Planned Care Programme that focusses just on this work. The Improving Planned Care Programme works with local hospitals through the West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts’ Elective Surgery Programme. This collaboration is called the Planned Care Alliance.

How has Covid-19 affected planned care services?

Photo of a young Black woman reading a letter and looking concerned. The pandemic had a stark impact on planned care services across the country. The initial outbreak of the virus forced the NHS to postpone a huge amount of planned care activity to free up staff and beds for people seriously ill with Covid-19. This difficult decision to temporarily stop services has affected millions of people waiting for planned care.

Throughout the pandemic, hospitals continued to carry out urgent surgery and diagnostic tests for cancer and other potentially life-threatening conditions. However the necessity to treat patients with Covid-19, staffing and capacity issues, and the essential safety restrictions created a growing backlog of people needing their planned care procedures.

Planned care services that were temporarily stopped during the pandemic are gradually being brought back in the safest possible way for patients and staff.

Planned Care Citizens' Panel

Seeking patients’ views on elective recovery

What is planned care?

How has Covid-19 affected planned care services?

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