Working voices Feedback – Open House Event – NHS England 1

Working Voices Feedback

‘Open House Event’

NHS England

Dawn Pearson Project Manager

Working voices Feedback – Open House Event – NHS England 2

July 2014

1. Background

West and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Commissioning Support Unit (CSU) was

appointed by NHS England in December 2014 as part of the CSU Field Force Programme

to deliver a project which would provide bespoke support to the 68 clinical commissioning

groups and nine area teams across the North of England. The ‘Working Voices’

programme will support Clinical Commissioning Groups CCGs and Area Teams on the

delivery of Patient and Public Participation (PPP). The programme will be tested and

delivered until March 2015 and a number of learning tools and packages to support future

delivery will be developed.

2. About ‘Working Voices’

Traditionally engagement has attracted retired people, those in long term unemployment

and those frequently accessing services. This is because the majority of engagement

activities take place between working hours 9am to 5pm.

Efforts have been made to open up engagement outside of working hours with limited

success so Working Voices, takes the opportunity to participate to the workforce rather than

them expecting to come to us. This is a model based on the community asset-based

approach, an approach that has worked successfully in engaging with communities and

harder to reach groups through partnership with the voluntary and community sector.

As well as providing CCGs with platforms to increase participation, it will help to provide

richer data to further inform the commissioning cycle. Working Voices will give employees a

voice in designing services, ensuring that future services meet the needs of the working

population and in turn support employers with identifying solutions to reduce time off work

and manage and maintain a healthier work force.

The CSU will work with 3 local CCG’s to engage local employers and identify national

organisations with larger workforce to develop engagement tools in the workplace. The

project will be delivered in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce, Third Sector and

Healthwatch.

3. ‘Open House’ event

The NHS England Open House Event took place on Tuesday 17th June in York. The event

was one of 4 regional events and the target audience were predominantly community

Working voices Feedback – Open House Event – NHS England 3

representatives, members of the public, voluntary and community groups, Healthwatch and

local Clinical Commissioning Groups from the North of England.

Working Voices was invited to host a workshop as part of the event. This was one of a

number of workshops available on the day with the intention to inform and engage

attendees.

4. Delivering the Workshop

The workshop was delivered using a presentation and table discussions in addition there

were a number of outcomes we wanted to achieve. The session consisted of:

4.1 Presentation: Working Voices (10 minutes)

The presentation was delivered to help participants understand what ‘Working Voices’ is

and how we were starting to deliver working voices across the region. This included an

update of the three CCG pilots:

North Leeds CCG

Bassetlaw CCG

Wakefield CCG

The workshop also presented four case studies; each case study was based on a specific

work place scenario and a sound bite was used to bring the case study to life.

4.2 Table discussions: 4 tables (30 minutes)

Participants used the 4 case studies to provide 4 table discussions. Each discussion

focussed on one case study, and five questions were used to support the discussion, these

were:

What does good engagement look like?

What would good communication look like?

What are the incentives for employers/employees?

Where are the potential partnership opportunities?

What is the potential for working voices, the challenges and solutions?

The table discussions were managed through a facilitator and the feedback from these

conversations were recorded on flipchart paper.

4.3 Learning outcomes from table discussions:

From the workshop we wanted to achieve the following outcomes:

To use the findings from the workshop to help the team deliver work place

initiatives that work, are engaging and demonstrate good practice.

To ensure our thinking is in line with participants

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Offer an opportunity to become part of an advisory group to continue discussions,

help shape the project, identify synergies, opportunities and offer solutions.

Identify the areas where partnerships can be harnessed and beneficial to

‘Working Voices’.

5. Case Studies: Feedback from the table discussions.

The case studies used in the table discussions are described below and the feedback we

received follows each case study.

5.1 Case Study 1: Robert (Bob)

5.1.1 Feedback from the table discussions on case study 1 - Robert.

Drivers are on the road a lot and away from home – communication is difficult. There

has to be a time when they are at the office and could be talked to then?

Could there be a written form for drivers to drop in at the office when they come in for

jobs etc.

Create booklets with health tips for drivers.

Education of the workforce is important – ensuring have vaccinations etc.

A method has to be in place for when people are back at base – written via post or

email. Use text based engagement rather than conversation.

Robert runs a haulage company delivering fresh goods from farm to factory. The

family business has recently expanded and there are now 15 drivers and 10 part

time office staff.

“This is a family business which has 15 drivers and 10 office staff working shifts –

most of us are related somehow and that can be a really big issue. If one family

member gets a cold, it’ll be all of them and that can impact on the business. I also

worry about keeping everyone happy and healthy longer term because we’re

dependent on each other in more ways than usual.

Our offices are in a port cabin and we find it difficult to hold any meeting, we use our

mobile phones a lot to communicate and a notice board outside the yard.

For me, Working Voices was a way to start getting some health information through

the door. That old adage about truck drivers living on junk food isn’t too far off the

mark – and the stress of working against the clock can take its toll. We also meet a

lot of people living in remote farms, most of whom do not have a clue about what’s

going on in the town.

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For deaf employees – emails, leaflets and texts would be better rather than phone

calls. A lot of clarification is needed on information as they can’t necessarily access

additional information – access for all.

Incentives may be negotiating links with health centres – taster sessions.

Improved health and reduced costs perhaps for a small initial outlay.

Positives for Bob may be a healthier workforce with less time off. He’d be healthier

himself and thus be able to manage better – healthy mind, healthy body.

Use payslips as a mechanism to share information.

Issues of male engagement – egg

Less likely to query Mental Health issues than a physical problem.

Engagement in the local pub – places they’ll be anyway other than work.

Healthy staff are more productive and have better relationships at work.

Drivers can have obesity problems.

Incentive – once turn 50 have a medical every year – fitness incentives.

Broadcast local health info over the radio.

Utilise existing PH and health and wellbeing links.

Stigma of certain terminology – be thoughtful and directed.

5.2 Case Study 2: Anna

5.2.1 Feedback from the table discussions on case study 2 - Anna.

Use different languages for those in the community.

Online mechanisms to engage.

Have factory visits.

Have consultation space so that employees can book their appointment during

working hours over Skype.

My name is Anna. I am from Lublin in Poland and I work at the factory near my house.

I put shortbread and cookies in boxes at the factory. I like to work at the factory,

because most of the people, even my supervisor, are Polish like me, and I don’t

understand English too good. I work from 8 in the morning to 6 in the evening.

Sometimes I would like to see the doctor but it is difficult because I have to be at the

factory and I have little time, I can’t ring for appointments when I need to. I have three

children, Paulina, Daniel and Marta, and I have been to the emergency hospital with

them – once when Paulina fell and hurt her leg. They were nice at the hospital but

some people at work say they make changes there – and now I worry I don’t know

what to do if one of my children is sick. Me and my husband Karl don’t understand too

good what they write about it.

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Incentive of bringing health messages into the employer.

Need time through the employer otherwise there is no time! Need to be paid to do it.

Are we expecting the employer to put money into it? If not who?

A Strong Polish community is likely to need help with communication – practices

would not help – there needs to be support here and in practices as society becomes

more diverse.

There are two universities with a large population of students. A city may have a

higher population 8 months of the year.

What about Anna’s partner? Are there open sessions? What about the rest of the

family? Have an advocate in the family/community as well as at work.

Do large organisations have their own agenda for allowing employees to access

healthcare? They are only interested in making money.

Poor example of telecoms usage.

There are concerns around organisations associated with the NHS having services

moved out of the NHS – how do service users, wheelchair users, working voices

feed into this direction?

5.3 Case Study 3: Leanne

5.3.1 Feedback from the table discussions on case study 3 - Leanne.

Engagement is two way and needs feedback.

There should be a named point of contact – this isn’t consistent across areas.

I’m Leanne Brody I’m in charge of the day shift at a local company providing call

centre services to clients all over the country. We don’t know how lucky we are to

have the NHS in the UK – my mum’s has COPD for about three years now. The

care she’s had has been pretty good overall. She lives with us and I help her the

best I can to manage it.

Caring for my mum has made me realise how important your health is, how

important the NHS is and that us patients get to say what we think about it. There’s

loads I’d like to say about the treatment my mum’s had – both good and bad. So

I’m always filling in those surveys from the doctor. And my friend Julie works at the

hospital, so I’m always reading about it in the papers.

My colleagues say that what I don’t know about local health services isn’t worth

knowing! I even looked into joining the patient group at my local surgery, but they

meet at lunchtimes and there’s no way work will give me the time off. It’s a shame

really because I think I could help make a difference.

Working voices Feedback – Open House Event – NHS England 7

Ideas for communication – digital, face to face, designated computer in workplace,

helpline.

Complaints should be called ‘feedback’.

Front line staff need to know information to filter to patients.

Local issues are important – bottom up not designed at the top.

Confusing with so many health organisations.

Employer incentive may be less absence, better health for employees.

Nominated person to talk to without going to doctors.

Early diagnosis.

Good publicity.

Quick access to information at a convenient time.

Opportunity to say what they feel.

Put details in the signature of contacts.

Link4life – contact

VCS volunteers.

Challenges of monitoring/finance/engagement.

‘What’s in it for us?’ – support, training, agenda at management meetings – become

part of the culture.

Need the flexibility of face to face, Skype, WebEx etc.

Employee and employer have different objectives – different audiences

Communications need to be tailored to the audience – snappy and quick, at times

convenient to them.

Incentives for the employer may be reduction in absenteeism, improved health of

staff.

Incentives for employees is that they may be reluctant to engage in their own time.

5.4 Case Study 4: Zubair

Zubair is the manager of a small supermarket chain, Zubair’s Minimarts.

“As a business, we’re doing well. We have five stores in the area, each employing

about 60 people. Many of them work part time because they have child care or

carer responsibilities, we also consciously employ people who have been

unemployed for a long time.

Our biggest problem is planned staff absence. It’s all completely valid but seldom

because the member of staff is ill; it’s often for things like hospital and doctor’s

appointments for members of their family. It makes shift planning really difficult and

can create unexpected gaps, which puts pressure on other colleagues. We were

struggling with this, but saw Working Voices as an opportunity to investigate the

NHS and influence local service delivery.

In addition we provide a service in the heart of a local community; we want to know

our customers and often get to know what’s going on locally and how people are.

We have a number of older people who come in every day for a few bits and a chat,

we get to know so much about people I could write a book on health services, it

seems like we could have plenty to say or talk to people about given a chance.

Working voices Feedback – Open House Event – NHS England 8

5.4.1 Feedback from the table discussions on case study 4 - Zubair.

Partnerships with the voluntary sector – training for health checks, link to Public

Health

Access/reasonable adjustments – maintain people in work

Mindful employer – staff. More productive if healthy.

Flexibility in engagement – not always needs to be face to face.

Link within the family.

Enable employees to have time in their working day to engage.

Communications/terminology needs to be tailored to the needs of the organisation.

Part of the organisational culture – talk about health and wellbeing.

Healthier workforce to be able to manage the business – incentive.

Investment in meaningful conversations.

Incentive for employer – relationship with providers of health e.g. GP practices.

6. Next steps

The feedback we have received from the ‘Open House’ event will be used to help us

mobilise working voices. Initially we will use the ideas and suggestions at a local level with

the three pilot CCGs moving to the national pilots as we progress. The feedback offered

insight and ideas that we can build on to help us further engage the workforce and

employers. We will be sharing this report with the Programme Board for Working Voices.

In addition we have also managed to identify a number of people who have an interest in

Working Voices who will join our advisory panel. The advisory panel will act as a sounding

board for ideas and ensure we gain feedback on our plans and initiatives. We have

identified 4 people from the event who would like to be part of this group. These four

people have already been asked to help us select our five national employers using a

scoring system.