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Advice and Information -
NHS social prescribing link workers can connect you to the right community groups and services to help support you.Report -
Healthwatch England report examining ten key areas of care, including GPs, dentists, hospitals, and social care. It is based on more than 65 thousand experiences recorded from all local Healthwatch organisations across the country – including from us here at Healthwatch in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay. It also includes recommendations and potential solutions for the NHSE, commissioners and service providers.News -
Good social care can make a big difference to someone's life. But are people always receiving the help they need? Find out what our research and feedback tells us and how we think social care support could be improved.Report -
Our latest quarterly impact report is now available to read, which details our key activities for the last quarter, including how we have engaged with the public, a summary of the feedback we have collected, case studies, our reports, recommendations and any outcomes or impact made.News -
Last week the House of Commons Health and Care Select committee has published its report Adult Social Care Reform: The Cost of Inaction.News -
A project to support young people with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has secured funding to develop a multilingual virtual assistant.Response -
The ADHD taskforce have today published the first part of their report. The final report will be available later this year.Blog -
ADHD and autism are two neurodiversity conditions that present in contrasting ways. In recent research undertaken by our national partner Healthwatch England, we heard from people who were diagnosed with, or suspected they had, both conditions. They talked to Healthwatch England about the impact of being diagnosed with both conditions.Advice and Information -
Health issues unfortunately don't leave us alone at the weekend and people are often in need of medical assistance out of hours. Using NHS guidelines, we have provided some advice and information on where you can go for help when your GP is closed.Advice and Information -
If you are experiencing or feel at risk of domestic abuse, or are worried about someone who might be, find out where you can go for advice and help.Advice and Information -
The cost of living crisis has put many people under financial strain, and prescription costs are more than some can afford. Find out what help is out there to help you cover the cost of your medication.News -
This Share for Better Care Week (24 February – 2 March), Dr Ranj is teaming up with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and Healthwatch England (HWE) to urge people across England to take three spare minutes to feed back on their recent health and social care experiences.Report -
Healthwatch England’s research unpacks people’s experiences of using Community Diagnostic Centres and lessons for expanding community-based care.Report -
This report details our key activities for the last quarter, including how we have engaged with the public, a summary of the feedback we have collected, our reports, recommendations and any outcomes or impact made.Report -
Healthwatch England recently published their findings and a set of immediate actions for the Government and the NHS, in relation to the cost of living and the detrimental impact it is having on people’s decisions about their own health and wellbeing.
In light of these findings, we wanted to find out if the cost of living was having an impact on people in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay and if so, in what way.
60 people responded to the survey and the survey ran throughout March to May 2023.
By Healthwatch in Devon, Plymouth, and TorbayReport -
In 2022, Healthwatch in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay held a series of meetings with the South West representative of the Royal Association for Deaf People to discuss various concerns that were being raised around access to British Sign Language (BSL) qualified interpreters. These concerns include:
• Interpreters to support appointments in hospital and GP surgeries
• Interpreters to support complaints process
• Access to informationReport -
Building on previous pieces of work on the NHS 111 services provided by Devon Doctors in Devon and Somerset, Healthwatch in Devon, Plymouth, and Torbay (HWDPT) and Healthwatch Somerset (HWS) worked together to find out whether people’s experiences with the 111 service had improved or changed since the previous research was carried out.
This report highlights our key findings and detailed responses.Response -
The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced today that he will bring the NHS back under the control of ministers by abolishing NHS England.Report -
Healthwatch Plymouth were invited to a drop-in workshop with a group of women working with ‘Gifted Women’ – a charity for women who are rebuilding their lives after substance misuse, homelessness and contact with the criminal justice system – to learn more about their experiences with local health and social care services.Report -
In May 2022, Healthwatch Plymouth were approached by the new provider of Mayflower Medical Group (MMG) to undertake a patient survey.
The survey’s focus was to address long established patient concerns and frustrations in accessing GP services at the 5 surgeries that form MMG and to ask for suggestions on generally improving the service and in particular improving access.News -
Want to find out more about heart health? Join Naing KoKo, consultant cardiologist, at a free health talk on Tuesday 29 April 2025, from 5.30pm-6.30pm at TREC, Torbay Hospital (or online).Blog -
Our national partner Healthwatch England's latest research found frequent errors in patients’ individual medical records. Read their latest blog below...News -
The Torbay Health and Wellbeing Voluntary Sector Network has released its second annual report showcasing an “extraordinary year of community collaboration, impact, and resilience in the face of ongoing economic and social challenges”.Report -
Our 2024–25 Annual Report highlights a year of impactful community engagement, meaningful partnerships, and people-driven improvements to local health and social care services.News -
We have released our new 2024–25 Annual Report, highlighting a year of impactful community engagement, meaningful partnerships, and people-driven improvements to local health and social care services.Response -
Following media reports that the Government are abolishing bodies and organisations that unfortunately include Healthwatch England and the local Healthwatch Network, our Chair Dr Kevin Dixon has issued the response below.News -
NHS England has published a refreshed version of the Accessible Information Standard (AIS) which was first released in 2016. Here we look at what the standard means for you and and how this has changed with the refreshed version.News -
The independent review of physician and anaesthetist associates' safety and effectiveness has been published. Read our response.News -
NHS England has published the long-awaited updates to the Accessible Information Standard. Read our response.News -
Are you a refugee or seeking asylum in England? Learn about how to access NHS care and what services you’re entitled to.News -
Our national partner Healthwatch England's self-selecting survey of nearly 1,400 trans and non-binary adults highlights that only 53% rate their GP practice as 'good' for general care.Report -
Latest research shows the barriers that trans and non-binary people face when seeking care.Report -
This report details our key activities for the last quarter, including how we have engaged with the public, a summary of the feedback we have collected, our reports, recommendations and any outcomes or impact made.News -
The Local Healthwatch Network has announced the launch of a new campaign to advocate for the preservation of an independent public voice in health and care.Blog -
Our insights into people's experiences of using community-based care.