Engaging patients and the public in healthcare

The Healthcare Commission is carrying out a national study of how NHS and independent healthcare organisations engage patients and the public in their work.

Introduction to the study
Our annual health check of the NHS includes an assessment of trusts’ compliance with core standard 17, which requires that “the views of patients, their carers and others are sought and taken into account in designing, planning, delivering and improving healthcare services”. This will be our starting point for exploring how well trusts are hearing and responding to local people’s view and experiences.

In addition, NHS trusts, primary care trusts and strategic health authorities have a duty under Section 11 of the Health and Social Care Act to involve and consult patients and the public about how they plan and operate their services and develop proposals for changes.

We are also looking at how well independent healthcare providers engage with those who use their services. The national minimum standard C6 requires them to obtain and use patients’ views to inform how they provide treatment and care.

Aims and objectives

We will explore current practice in patient and public engagement in the NHS and the independent sector, with the aim of developing an assessment framework that can be used for assessment and regulation in the future. We will report on what good engagement looks like and the sorts of evidence that a regulator might use.  Although we will work with trusts to explore aspects of performance and better ways of assessing these, we will not be assessing individual organisations. The study will:

• Explore the range of approaches and methods that different types of healthcare organisations use to engage patients and the public.
• Explore the impact that engaging patients and the public has had on healthcare organisations, their service users and the services they provide.
• Comment on how effective and useful patients and the public find these attempts to engage them.
• Identify what helps and hinders organisations to engage effectively with patients and the public.
• Pay particular attention to how organisations engage with vulnerable and marginalised groups.
• Explore how organisations are developing their practice as the new Local Involvement Networks replace Patient and Public Involvement Forums.

We will identify a baseline of current practice and the range of approaches being used, and describe good practice to support local improvements. We will then develop an assessment framework for regulating patient and public engagement in the future and make recommendations to the Government and the new regulator of healthcare.

Working definition of patient and public engagement

Health services need to engage with people to meet their needs and priorities for better health and healthcare, and to reduce health inequalities. We think patient and public engagement  means consulting, involving and engaging with citizens, users and carers and their representatives and allowing them to participate in the work of healthcare organisations and services. This includes the commissioning, planning, designing, delivering and improvement of health services. Health services also need to communicate with citizens, users and carers across local communities to give them the information they need to contribute to decision-making, tell them how they can be involved, how their feedback is taken into account and what changes have been made to services as a result.

Study timetable

January–March 2008: consulting stakeholders and background research (scoping phase)
April–May 2008: identifying elements of the assessment framework
May–July 2008: interviews with trusts, independent providers and user groups
July–August 2008: data analysis and further development of assessment framework
September–December 2008: local visits and workshops to test assessment framework; analysis and discussion of findings with stakeholders
January–March 2009: producing detailed assessment framework, reports and recommendations.

Documents resulting from the scoping phase

Study specification (pdf 77kb) (opens new window)
Summary of stakeholder views (pdf 54kb) (opens new window)
Current practice in patient and public engagement (pdf 99kb) (opens new window)
Policy paper on patient and public engagement (pdf 134kb) (opens new window)

Feedback from Service User and Community Groups

We are asking patient, user groups and other voluntary organisations how they think health services can really listen to them and take account of their views and experiences. For further information and to complete the questions click here (opens new window).

Alternatively, for an easy read version of the questions, click here (doc 5249kb) (opens new window).

Any comments?

Please email lucy.hamer@healthcarecommission.org.uk or moya.berry@healthcarecommisison.org.uk  or telephone the helpline 0845 601 3012 with any comments, information or questions about the study. 

Keeping in touch

We are compiling a list of organisations and individuals who are interested in the study and in receiving progress updates. Please email us with your details if you would like to be added to it.

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