Introducing the Barnet hospital Patient and Carer Advisory Group (BPCAG)
At Barnet hospital and across the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust group, patient and carer involvement is an organisational priority. We need to ensure patient and carer voices are at the heart of our organisation’s culture and values, and at the centre of our services, from planning to delivery. We know that those who use a service are best placed to help design it. Ultimately, we want our patients to have the best possible experience whilst we are looking after them, and we are committed to working in partnership with patients, the public and local communities to ensure that our services are both relevant and responsive to local needs.
To help us better involve our patients and carers, we have recently established the Barnet Patient and Carer Advisory Group (BPCAG). The group membership consists of the Barnet patient experience team alongside patient and carer representatives. With help from Healthwatch Barnet, 12 members of the local community came forward to join the BPCAG, who met for the first time in April.
It is important that we listen to and understand what the most pressing priorities are for our patients and carers, particularly as we navigate our way out of the pandemic
At the first meeting, the members shared what they hope to get out of their involvement with the group and discussed priorities for the group to work on. It is important that we listen to and understand what the most pressing priorities are for our patients and carers, particularly as we navigate our way out of the pandemic, and it was heartening to see that our priorities aligned. It was also clear that our members are passionate and keen to work together to improve our services. We can’t wait to get to know our members more and see how the group develops.
Meetings for the BPCAG take place online every other month for 1.5 hours and the next meeting is Tuesday 21 June. Recruitment for the group remains open at this time and so if you’d like to join the BPCAG, pick up an application form and more information. Or you can email to speak to the patient experience team.
Examples of the work members can expect to get involved with include:
- reviewing patient and carer feedback and discussing themes or trends
- developing plans to improve services
- producing patient and carer information
- ensuring Barnet hospital services are hearing from diverse patient and carer voices
- highlighting concerns for local communities
- developing patient and carer feedback opportunities.
Get in touch!
The patient experience team is always keen to hear from patients and their loved- ones, so if the BPCAG is not for you, but you’d like to share feedback of your experience at Barnet hospital, there are other ways to get in touch.
Follow the patient experience team on Twitter to hear more about the work the team and the BPCAG is up to: @barnet_ptexp
