Section titled module-2
An eight-week public discussion on Healthy Weston Phase Two closed on 14 August 2022, with 890 people sharing their views.
As part of this discussion, we wanted to find out:
- What is the best way of sharing information about the next steps for Weston General Hospital?
- Do people understand that services will remain available for people of all ages at Weston General Hospital? Are people happy with or concerned about developing more services for frail and older people at the hospital?
- Are people happy with or concerned about the possibility of having more planned surgery available at Weston General Hospital? What could we do to encourage people from a wide area to see the hospital as a positive place to have planned surgery?
- What could we do to help reduce any negative impacts for people who transfer to another hospital for ongoing care after an accident or emergency?
- Do hospital trust staff have any specific concerns and any suggestions to address these ?
Key learnings:
- There was a lot of positivity about the plans for Weston General Hospital. People think we are on the right track to redevelop and sustain a thriving local hospital. There is more we could do to communicate clearly because one quarter of responses were not clear about some of the plans. People wanted to be involved and wanted us to extend how we communicate.
- People’s main concerns were about how we put the plans into practice, including ways to help people with travel, make sure care stayed joined up, address staff shortages and get funding. People were particularly concerned about the physical, emotional and financial impact of additional travel for those transferred to another hospital for unplanned care and their loved ones. They thought that older people, children and those reliant on public transport may be particularly affected. People proposed having a free shuttle service between hospitals and campaigning for improved public transport.
- People want us to consider in detail the impacts of the plans for loved ones and carers.
- There is work to do to build up the reputation and trust in Weston General Hospital amongst the public and staff, People suggested that an extensive promotional campaign might showcase the hospital facilities and teams.
Read more about what people told us:
If you require an accessible or translated version of these reports, please email bnssg.healthy.weston@nhs.net or call 0117 900 2633.