In this area you can read all about what Hampshire LINk has been doing:

• The Newsletter page has links to all our previous newsletters
• The Public Engagement page lists all the reports from our public consultations in the current year
• Our Annual Reports can be found on the Annual Report page.

Some of the projects Hampshire LINk is working on are:

Care Homes Feedback Mechanism Project and working with the Care Quality Commission (CQC)

This project involves setting up a feedback mechanism from residents, family, friends and staff at care homes in Hampshire regarding their perception of standards of care. This will entail informal visits to homes, following introductory letters to care home managers. It will raise the profile of the LINk but more importantly provide a method of independent communication.

If any worrying issues are brought to light whilst on the visits or from feedback gained the LINk may need to undertake enter and view visits and these issues will be brought to the attention of the CQC.

The work will be ongoing and dependent on volunteer participation working through a planned schedule of tasks. Two members of the Hampshire LINk Management Board team, one locality volunteer and a host member of staff form the initial working party to provide a toolkit for further locality volunteers to take part.

We hope to achieve a toolkit of templates designed to enable informal visits. CQC will support the LINk by offering the opportunity to shadow a CQC inspection, providing advice and to attend progress meetings.

Patient Participation Group (PPG) Liaison Project

In the light of Government plans and proposed legislation regarding PPG’s it will become increasingly important to make contact with these groups. With the help of Locality Volunteers, work has begun on identifying existing PPG’s across Hampshire, making contact and representing the LINk, evaluating quality and supporting new ones. The West Hampshire area is being progressed now with plans to spread out to the remainder of Hampshire this coming year.

Pharmacy/Phlebotomy Survey

Thanks to those for completing this survey. We received more than 700 replies and are currently working through the collation and analysis of these.

Western Wards of Fareham GP Services Project

This engagement exercise resulted in more than 600 survey responses following a series of drop in events for people to discuss their concerns about a possible GP Surgery closure. 

Hampshire LINk gained 300 new members from the engagement work and are currently evaluating the response.