Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust seeks views to help improve its services and quality of care

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust is currently reviewing its strategy to ensure that the healthcare service the Trust provides meets the needs of the people it serves.

The feedback received through the survey, which runs until Monday 7 February, will be used to improve the experience for patients, highlight areas where the Trust performs well and identify the areas where it needs to improve.

HDFT cares for the population of Harrogate District, as well as across North Yorkshire and parts of Leeds through its acute and community services.

Care is provided from more than 180 locations across the area, including the Trust’s hospitals in Harrogate and Ripon and outpatient clinics, as well as in patient’s homes.

HDFT is also the largest provider of 0-19 children’s services in England providing care for half a million young people in North Yorkshire and across the North East in County Durham, Darlington, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on Tees, Gateshead, Sunderland and Northumberland.

Last year, HDFT has around 40,000 emergency department attendances, provided community services to over 400,000 people, undertook 118,000 visits to people’s homes, and delivered over 80,000 virtual outpatient appointments.

As well as seeking the views of people who have experienced HDFT’s services in the past, the Trust is also wanting to hear from anyone who might need help in the future.

The short, confidential survey, which takes less than ten minutes to complete, is available by visiting www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/HDFTStrategy

In addition, on the afternoon of Friday 4 February, HDFT in collaboration with Healthwatch North Yorkshire, will be holding a number of online focus groups via the Zoom video conferencing service.

The one hour sessions will give people the opportunity to learn more about why the Trust is refreshing its strategy, comment on feedback received to date, and have their questions answered.

Anyone interested in taking part in the focus groups can register their interest by emailing [email protected]

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Commenting on the survey, Matt Graham, HDFT’s Director of Strategy said: “HDFT’s last strategy was created in 2014 and during this time the Trust, the NHS, and our communities have changed significantly.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has meant that over the last two years we have had to adapt to the pressures we have faced and this has impacted upon the services we have been able to offer.

"It is important we now look to the future and create a strategy which delivers on our top priorities – to provide the highest quality of care for the people in our communities and the best possible experience for our patients.

“We need to get the perspective of our patients, carers and other members of the community so that we can understand what issues are important to them.

"We need to know their views on the services we provide, what they think we are doing well, what they think we need to improve upon, and what changes they would like us to make.

“We will then use this feedback to improve the care we offer over the next five years so that we are well placed to meet the opportunities and challenges of the future.”

To take part in the confidential survey, visit www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/HDFTStrategy

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