Volunteering with Healthwatch Dorset

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1 Volunteering with Healthwatch Dorset As a Healthwatch Dorset volunteer you have the chance to participate in a wide range of activities as part of a team that has the role to listen and the power to influence change within the health and social care system. Not only will you provide invaluable support to Healthwatch Dorset projects and reports, you will help make a real difference to the way local health and care services are set up and run. How much time is involved as a volunteer with Healthwatch Dorset? As a Healthwatch Volunteer you can undertake as much or as little as you like from a range of specific roles. Volunteering your time should not be taxing but rewarding, to benefit both you and the wider community. How much time you want to give to volunteering with us is up to you. Some roles are flexible and can fit around your schedule: others have specific timescales. We will always work closely with you to ensure your volunteering role fits with your other personal and social commitments. The benefits of volunteering with us Volunteering with Healthwatch Dorset offers a range of benefits. You can: ü Become involved in making a difference in your local community ü Enjoy the experience of volunteering as part of a friendly team and meeting new people ü Use your experience with Healthwatch to seek work in health and social care or other fields of employment or training ü Increase your confidence and gain new skills ü Use your skills and experience to contribute to the success of Healthwatch across Dorset, Poole and Bournemouth. Want to talk to us about volunteering roles? If you have any questions or you would like to find out more, please call us on or enquiries@healthwatchdorset.co.uk. 1

2 Healthwatch Dorset Champions The one thing we ask all our volunteers to do is to act as Champions for Healthwatch Dorset. That is, spread the word about Healthwatch, when appropriate, in their own community and among their own friends and colleagues. As a Healthwatch Champion we ask you to: Receive regular updates from Healthwatch Dorset about our current work and activities. Promote Healthwatch Dorset and its role within your local community and among your friends and colleagues, when appropriate. Help people to understand what Healthwatch Dorset is and how it might be able to help them. Share information about Healthwatch Dorset. Encourage people to fill in feedback forms and share their views and experiences (both good and bad) of local health and social care services with Healthwatch Dorset. Let Healthwatch Dorset know of any instances locally where health or care services are performing particularly well or poorly. Attend Healthwatch Dorset volunteer training and group support sessions as appropriate Personal Qualities for the role ü Good listening and communication skills ü Committed to helping people have a voice ü Able to encourage people to speak up about their views and experiences ü Non-judgmental and respecting of others ü Able to separate own experiences from other people s issues Duration/Commitment: this role is very flexible and how much you do is up to you. Other activities you could get involved in Pop Ups Members of the Healthwatch Dorset team host regular Pop Up events across the county as a chance for members of the public to hear about the work we re doing, share views about areas of health and social care they think we should focus on, meet the team and share any experiences of health and social care in Dorset. 2

3 Enter And View Enter and View is the opportunity for our authorised Healthwatch Dorset representatives to go into health and social care premises to collect the views of patients, relatives and staff at the point of service delivery and observe the nature and quality of services. Legislation allows local Healthwatch organisations to undertake Enter and View visits in NHS organisations, GPs, dentists, opticians and community pharmacists. We are also permitted to conduct the visits with bodies or institutions which are contracted by local authorities or the NHS to provide health or care services such as adult social care homes or day-care centres. Enter And View Authorised Representatives are volunteers who are trained to work in small teams to visit and observe health and social care services, gathering the views of patients, residents, relatives and carers. Purpose of the role: To enter and view health and social care services and to report back observations to Healthwatch. Healthwatch has an important statutory power that entitles authorised volunteers to enter and view health and social care services as they are being delivered and to then report back on them. What will you be doing? As a Healthwatch Enter and View volunteer you will be asked to: Participate in enter and view planning and review meetings With another volunteer(s), enter and view health and social care provision premises while services are being delivered Observe services and collect views of service users, their carers and families, staff Contribute to a written report about what was observed which includes any positive and/or negative feedback Attend Healthwatch training and group support sessions as appropriate Personal Qualities for the role (PLEASE NOTE: volunteers for this role should be aged 18yrs+) ü Good listening and communication skills, patient and compassionate ü An ability to separate your own experiences and views from those of others and demonstrate impartiality ü Able to work as part of a team ü Non-judgmental and respecting of others 3

4 Other information DBS check: Due to the nature of the role you will need to have completed an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check before taking part in Enter And View visits. When and Where: Visits can be undertaken at any time services are being delivered but will usually be conducted weekdays between and 17:00. Duration/Commitment: The time commitment is likely to vary depending on the location and type of visit(s) being undertaken. Project Volunteers Our Healthwatch Dorset Project Volunteers are keen to help us to develop our health and social care projects. Conscientious and organised, they help us compile research and feedback from members of the public and support us with health and social care consultations. This is a great role for an analytical and organised person who wants to get involved with our work but who might not necessarily want to interact directly with members of the public or out in the local community. What does this role involve? Helping us prepare for surveys, consultations and visits by preparing documentation and other resources as needed Helping to compile research and consultation results Contributing and inputting into reports and publications Gathering information, facts and figures as required Conducing basic research with guidance from Healthwatch Dorset The ideal person for this role: ü Is passionate about improving local health and social care services ü Has good listening and communication skills ü Has use of the internet ü Has a good understanding of how to search for and analyse information ü Is flexible and reliable ü Is non - judgemental and committed to equal opportunities ü Has basic literacy skills (e.g. can take notes) ü Is willing to ask for support when needed ü Is comfortable communicating by and volunteering from home. 4

5 PLACE Assessments Good environments matter but don t just happen. Patient-led Assessments of the Care Environment (PLACE) help hospital organisations understand how well they are meeting the needs of their patients and identify where improvements can be made. PLACE assessments are undertaken annually across all hospitals, hospices and independent treatment centres proving NHS funded care across the UK. Healthwatch Dorset s volunteers support NHS Trusts in the county by taking part in their PLACE assessments each year and the results are published by Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), the organisation responsible for ensuring all health settings conduct the assessments. Note: PLACE assessments are run by the NHS Trusts themselves. If you volunteer to be part of them, you will be supported in that role by the Trust, rather than Healthwatch. Reading Group From time to time we are asked to review documents for other organisations (including the NHS and local councils) and say how appropriate we think they are for the general public for example, whether or not we think they re written in plain language and avoid jargon. Our Reading Group operates through . 5