1. Accessible Information Standard

    Report -

    How do GP practices in Islington make their services accessible to patients with a communication support need?

  2. How do our GP practices make their services accessible?

    News -

    Our volunteers visited all the GP practices in the borough to get a sense of how easy it is for them to meet the Accessible Information Standard.

  3. Helping local residents from refugee and migrant communities use their smartphones to stay healthy

    News -

    An innovative partnership to improve wellbeing launched yesterday.

  4. Meet Seraphine

    Blog -

    Seraphine joined Healthwatch Islington as a volunteer during the pandemic

  5. Women at the Islington Bangladesh Association are using their smartphones to stay healthy

    News -

    Women who participated in the Log On project told us what they have learned.

  6. Personal Health Budgets

    Report -

    Gathering views from speakers of English as a second language

  7. Community feedback on Personal Health Budgets

    News -

    A Personal Health Budget allows patients with long term health conditions to take greater control of their healthcare and support.

  8. Community research 2018

    Report -

    Self-care, social issues affecting health, and care delivered closer to home

  9. Local organisations publish joint report showing how their communities experience health services

    News -

    Diverse Communities Health Voice gathers the views of black and minority ethnic communities that don't speak English as a first language.

  10. Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington 2016/17

    Report -

    207 local residents gave us their views on pharmacy, lifestyle and well-being, A&E, interpreting services, and GP referrals.

  11. Emergency department, general practice, or pharmacy services?

    Report -

    A number of people use hospital emergency departments when they could be seen by a GP or in their local pharmacy. What factors influence how we decide where we need to be seen?

  12. Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington 2015/16

    Report -

    Local residents gave us their views on hospital appointments and patient choice, GP services, and keeping fit and healthy.

  13. Sexual health services

    Report -

    We asked local partners Community Language Support Services and Jannaty Women's Network to gather views from their clients on sexual health services.

  14. Access to primary care and social care services for Latin American Over 50s

    Report -

    We worked with the Latin American Women's Rights Service (LAWRS) and the Coalition of Latin Americans in the UK (CLAUK) to gather views from Islington residents

  15. Interpreting services in GP practices

    Report -

    A mystery shopping project

  16. Experiences of Deaf service-users in local hospitals

    Report -

    Deaf service users raised a range of concerns about experiences in local hospitals.

  17. Women from the Islington Somali Community are using their phones to support their wellbeing

    News -

    Women who participated in the Log On project tell us how their smartphones are helping them to feel connected.

  18. Social care and disability - then and now

    Blog -

    A new blog about the experience of care services from the perspective of a long time Islington resident with disability

  19. Seven things Deaf patients told us about GP services

    News -

    We held a focus group with Deaf patients in December 2108. We discussed GP services broadly. We also gathered views on urgent and same day services in particular.

  20. Social care and disability - then and now

    Blog -

    A second blog about the experience of care services from the perspective of a long time Islington resident with disability

  21. Bright Beginnings

    Report -

    Healthwatch Islington was commissioned by Manor Gardens Welfare Trust to provide an independent evaluation of the Bright Beginnings project.

  22. Local residents with learning disabilities talk about services provided by Whittington Health

    Report -

    We spoke to 28 learning disabled residents and support workers to capture their views on emergency care, the use of digital technology, and health services located in the community.

  23. NHS funded social prescribing and navigation services are not reaching migrant communities in Islington

    News -

    Residents that don't have English as a first language are not using NHS commissioned social prescribing and navigation services. Community organisations are having to bridge this gap.

  24. Social prescribing and navigation services in Islington

    Report -

    We spoke to 154 residents from migrant communities about their experiences of social prescribing and navigation services

  25. Social prescribing in action: how Islington Bangladesh Association supports clients who struggle to access health and care services

    News -

    Social prescribing is a means by which people can be referred to non-clinical activities designed to support health and wellbeing.

  26. Social prescribing in action: helping refugees from East Africa and other Arabic speakers

    News -

    Social prescribing is a means by which people can be referred to non-clinical activities designed to support health and wellbeing.

  27. Community organisations are supporting their clients to be 'social prescription ready'

    News -

    Social prescribing is a means by which people can be referred to non-clinical activities designed to support health and wellbeing. But sometimes clients' basic needs must be satisfied before social prescribing can be effective.

  28. Mental health and wellbeing for the Deaf community November 2019 meeting

    Report -

    A summary of this meeting

  29. Our position on Patient Transport Services

    Response -

    We'd like to see clearer eligibility criteria, and better access to the service for patients with communication support needs.

  30. Mental health support services for migrant communities in Islington

    Report -

    We interviewed 73 residents from migrant communities who were living with mental health issues find out what their experiences were of accessing the support available in the borough.

  31. More mother tongue counselling services are needed to support migrant communities in Islington

    News -

    The coronavirus pandemic means that many of us are isolated from friends and family. Mental health support has never been more important. Our latest report investigates how well these services meet the needs of migrant communities in Islington.

  32. Local residents share their views on mental health support services

    News -

    In stressful times services that support our mental health are even more important. We spoke to residents from Islington's migrant communities to better understand their experiences.

  33. Healthwatch supports community organisations to go digital in the fight against coronavirus

    News -

    Healthwatch has been providing digital training and support to local voluntary organisations to help them to better support their volunteers and the communities they serve whilst social distancing measures are in place.

  34. Our annual report 2019/20

    Report -

    Last year, we engaged with over 2300 residents. 650 people shared their stories about health and social care, and we made 25 recommendations to services about the improvements that people would like to see.

  35. Why are so few people from black and minority ethnic backgrounds taking part in Covid vaccine trials?

    News -

    The biomedical research team from University College Hospital wants to better understand the reasons why BME people are underrepresented in vaccine trials.

  36. The impact of Covid-19: Community feedback on life during lockdown

    Report -

    We surveyed 200 local residents, 180 of whom were from migrant communities. We asked them about their experiences of lockdown, and of the coronavirus pandemic more broadly.

  37. Living in Islington: Resident views

    Report -

    The Fairer Together Partnership has been established to bring together a range of organisations in Islington to confront the challenges local people are facing.

  38. Providing information and support to migrant communities in Islington affected by Covid-19

    Report -

    We supported 680 residents from migrant communities with a range of issues related to the pandemic, and helped 1698 local people get access to reliable information about coronavirus.

  39. Wide-reaching phone campaign from local organisations helps residents stay informed about covid

    News -

    We supported 680 residents from migrant communities with a range of issues related to the pandemic, and gave over 1600 people access to reliable information about coronavirus in their first language.

  40. Our position on digital inclusion

    Response -

    Digital can be for anyone, but it isn’t for everyone.

  41. Healthwatch volunteer wins prestigious local award

    News -

    Our congratulations go to David Mallory, who has been recognised as a champion among Digital Champions

  42. Health and care services accessible to all

    Response -

    By not making our services inclusive we deny access to people who are entitled to health and social care support, and we unintentionally discriminate.

  43. Islington residents tell us what they think about remote health appointments

    Blog -

    Although more face-to-face appointments will be available once the pandemic is over, video and phone consultations are likely here to stay. We can help services understand the impact of this change by sharing our feedback.

  44. Carers Survey 2021: Feedback from local residents with a caring role

    Report -

    During January and February 2021, we spoke to 44 carers over the phone about their experiences and the services with which they engage.

  45. From Digital Exclusion to Inclusion

    Report -

    We know that there is a huge digital divide in Islington and that this is likely to exacerbate existing inequality if we don’t take joined-up action.

  46. What are people telling us about e-consult?

    News -

    For patients who are comfortable using computers e-consult can be a convenient and user-friendly method of getting in contact with the GP surgery. For patients who struggle with or cannot use computers, e-consult can be a serious barrier to access.

  47. Community organisations work together to help residents make informed choices about the COVID-19 vaccine

    News -

    Our Diverse Communities partnership has been helping residents with disabilities or those that don't have English as a first language to get the answers they need.

  48. Our annual report 2020-21

    Report -

    We engaged with and supported 2,189 residents with issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic this year. 781 people shared their experiences of health and social care.