News and reports

Part of the local Healthwatch programme is to undertake ‘Enter and View’ visits.

Mandated by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the visits enable trained Healthwatch staff and volunteers (Authorised Representatives) to visit health and care services - such as hospitals, care homes, GP practices, dental surgeries, and pharmacies.

Part of the local Healthwatch programme is to undertake ‘Enter and View’ visits.
Mandated by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the visits enable trained Healthwatch staff and volunteers (Authorised Representatives) to visit health and care services - such as hospitals, care homes, GP practices, dental surgeries, and pharmacies.
Enter and View visits can happen if people tell us there is a problem with a service, but equally, they can occur when services have a good reputation.
During the visits, we observe service delivery and talk with service users, their families, and carers. We also engage with management and staff. The aim is to get an impartial view of how the service is operated and being experienced.
Following the visits, our official ‘Enter and View Report’, shared with the service provider, local commissioners and regulators outlines what has worked well, and gives recommendations on what could have worked better. All reports are available to view on our website.

In response to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, Healthwatch Hammersmith and Fulham (H&F) conducted engagement work to investigate and better understand the experiences of H&F residents. There was a particular focus on the impact on access to healthcare services and appointments, as well as on physical and mental health and wellbeing.

Social prescribing is a community-centred, holistic approach to health that offers a non-clinical intervention for people dealing with issues such as social isolation and loneliness, housing issues or financial pressures, that may impact their health and wellbeing. ​

The social prescribing service was selected as a topic for further investigation by Healthwatch, primarily as the service represents a great opportunity to improve health and wellbeing of residents, and considerably reduce pressure on and better support primary care. We wanted to better understand how the service was working from a patient perspective and use the patient voice to shape the service’s ongoing improvement journey.

The growing number of unpaid carers and the significance of their contributions to health and social care has been acknowledged by both national and local government. Due to this, Healthwatch H&F set out to understand the experience of carers through interviews that used qualitative and quantitative methods.

We are delighted to publish our Annual Report for 2023-24. Read about the work we carried out throughout the past year and the impact we made in the local community!

Healthwatch H&F is marking World Immunisation Week with a community outreach event to provide residents with more information about vaccines and give children the opportunity to get their MMR vaccines if required.

From 22 April until 30 June 2024, the seasonal COVID-19 booster will be available, free, for those who are at greatest risk of becoming seriously ill from the virus.

We're looking to hear from young people aged 10-18 that can share their views on vaccines 💉 By completing our questionnaire, they'll be in for a chance of winning a £20 voucher!

NHS England has today announced the rollout of ‘Martha’s Rule’ in hospitals across England from April, enabling patients and families to seek an urgent review if their condition deteriorates.

Healthwatch Hammersmith and Fulham has extended the deadline of its cost of living and health survey to Sunday 19 November, 5pm. This is to hear from more young people aged 18-24 as this is an important cohort that we have not heard enough from so far.

The campaign aims to spread public awareness of the different roles within a GP practice's scope that can best help patients. From the GP themself, to a physiotherapist, to a clinical pharmacist, getting a person to the best possible help can look different than just seeing the GP.