News
Check here for the latest news and updates, which we'll add below. For a monthly summary of what's happening, take a look at our e-bulletins and sign up to receive our e-bulletin direct to your email every month!
Shining a light on transitions services
Young people's transition from children's to adult services could be improved if teaching about transitions was included within all nursing training...
Project to seek views on the future of Ward 6
Healthwatch County Durham has been asked to gather the views of patients and the public regarding the future of Ward 6 at Bishop Auckland General...
Last chance to have a say on GP appointments
The Clinical Commissioning Groups in County Durham have asked us to look into how well the new "care navigation" service in GP practices is working...
Learning from women’s experiences of breast screening
According to recent figures, almost one in four women in County Durham do not attend breast screening when invited to do so. Regular breast screening can help identify breast cancer early – and the earlier the condition is found, the better the chances of surviving it. So, we’ve been trying to find...
Offering GP's an independent view on services
GP practices are the frontline of health services, so it’s important they work well for everyone who needs them. That’s why we’re offering all GP practices in County Durham the opportunity for us to visit them and speak to patients independently about how they find their services. The idea is to...
Getting results for stroke patients in service shake-up
We’re pleased to announce that the local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have accepted all the recommendations we made in our recent report about the design of new stroke services. This report was based on the views of more than 150 service users and family members and so this should help...
Help us reduce barriers to cervical screening
It is estimated that cervical screening (smear tests) prevents up to 75% of cervical cancers from developing* - however, 1 in 4 women aged 25-64 don’t attend for screening when they are invited. A recent survey suggests reasons for not attending nationally include embarrassment about body shape and...
Easy-read health check letter launched for people with learning disabilities
Young people and adults with learning disabilities who need more health support are entitled to an annual health check. However, accessing services isn’t always easy, so we’ve been working with service users, the region’s CCGs and Durham County Council to reduce barriers to people having these...
