Page 10 - Community Health magazine - issue 38

Helping you

to help us

A staggering 2,500

health visiting
A major drive has been launched to reduce thousands of appointments are
missed NHS appointments, so we can deliver vital support missed every month.
to families who need us. Jane Barlow reports on one
service making inroads.

very month in Kent, a staggering 2,500 Health Visiting Programme Manager Sonia is why we want to dig deeper to tackle the
health visiting appointments are missed Hedegaard, who is leading the work, said: root causes. By understanding these, we can
E– and a chance is lost to help a family “Improving outcomes for children is what support people to take control of their care
who might need us. is most important. Early intervention can and help reduce health inequalities.”
We’ve probably all done it, missed make a big difference, so we needed to This new drive is already reducing no-
an appointment, but the reasons why look at why so many appointments are shows and seeing last-minute cancellations
appointments are missed are often more not attended. filled, meaning other families have
complex than simply forgetting. “Missing appointments is not something appointments quicker.
Making our services accessible for most people do intentionally; some people In health visiting, we’ve managed to
everyone is important if we are going to may miss appointments due to having reduce ‘do not attends’ and ‘was not
tackle health inequalities – the reasons why caring responsibilities, forgetting their brought’ from 11.5 per cent to 7.7 per cent,
people have different or poor experiences appointment, work commitments and for something we want to replicate in other
of care – and reduce waiting lists so we can many other reasons. Kent Community Health NHS Foundation
help people faster. “Every appointment freed up could be Trust services.
That’s why our Health Visiting Service, used to see other clients, but only if we
which has about 24,000 contacts each know about it in advance. This work has How you can help
month, is trying to understand why people the potential to make a huge difference
might miss an appointment – and what we freeing up more time to care and helping Let us know if you cannot make an
can do about it. us deliver for families.” appointment or if a time, date or location
In response, we are sending letters or Our Health Visiting Service delivers is not convenient. Please respond to letters,
text reminders to parents and carers, and the Healthy Child Programme, reply to text messages or phone calls and
making it easy to cancel or re-book. We’ve which includes antenatal, give us as much notice as possible.
reviewed clinic times and venues, we’re not new birth, a six-to- You can visit www.kentcht.nhs.
booking appointments too far ahead and eight week review and uk/kentbaby to get in touch
have launched short-notice lists, to quickly development checks at with your local health
fill slots others cancel. the ages of one and two. visiting team.
Evidence shows 10 to 20 per cent Our health visitors work
of patients from the most deprived with children aged up
backgrounds are most likely to miss to five.
an appointment. As part Senior Engagement
of identifying health and Partnership
inequalities, we’ve Manager Juliette Wales
been making sure is part of the team
people from deprived looking into why families
backgrounds, those might not attend
who need carers, or take their child to
people with mental an appointment.
health conditions and She said: “Reasons for
vulnerable patients missing appointments can
are contacted and vary hugely – which
booked into last-
minute slots.

www
.kentcht.nhs.uk
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