#Spare5 update from Healthwatch Wirral

News Newsletter - 22 February 2023

The start of 2023 has been busy at Healthwatch Wirral, from sharing the #Spare5 message at multi-agency meetings, outreach, and the Patient Experience Hub at Arrowe Park to conducting Enter & View visits and carrying out interviews for the Healthwatch England Maternal Mental Health and Unmet Social Care Needs Project.

We were delighted to be invited to local Chinese New Year Celebrations. This has offered a great opportunity to reach out to diverse members of our community who may not be aware of the services, groups and activities available across Wirral. Encouraging the #Spare5 message & working closely with all local organisations is vital to ensuring we hear about everyone’s experiences of health and social care, especially those whose voices are heard less often.

Pictured above: Micha from Healthwatch with attendees at Wirral Chinese Cultural Association (WCCA)’s New Year celebration at WMO and Wirral Chinese Association (WCA) Celebration at WC

Throughout January we worked alongside local organisations and NHS services to finalise our contribution to the national Healthwatch England Maternal Mental Health research project: our focus has been on people who have experienced mental health difficulties after a traumatic birth experience. We are extremely grateful to all of our participants for talking so openly about their experiences, as well as our partner organisations who helped to connect us with participants.

All these interactions have offered an opportunity to #Spare5 and share additional information and resources and also link groups and services together. For example, information given at a recent meeting of Mums Matter at Wirral Mind has resulted in further venues and support services being explored to run & develop the groups.

Staff have also been out and about in the Healthwatch Wirral resource vehicle at Enter and View visits, as well as taking part in a partnership road trip with Wirral Community of Practice & Churches Together. January’s visit was at Bee Wirral and was an exciting opportunity to learn more about the exciting work happening locally, as well as sharing the #Spare5 message and encouraging everyone to share their feedback about health and social care services.

Above right: Laura Peter with Lisa Shannon from Mums Matter at Wirral Mind
Above left: Micha Woodworth with Rachael McCoosh, Lisa Heath and Tom Faulkes from Bee Wirral, and Alex Fisher from Churches Together

In February we have deliverd #Spare5 training to local Disability Employment Advisors from the Department for Work and Pensions. This was an interactive session discussing experiences and barriers for their customers and collecting feedback around health and care services.Also … looking how they can help direct to services across Wirral as part of #Spare5.

Below: Disability Employment Advisors at the #Spare5 Training Session