Future Services

Mental Health and Wellbeing issues including Anxiety, Depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Anorexia, and Dementia are growing concerns in our area, but many of the participants in the engagement felt that mental health services are difficult to access. Participant from Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, recognised this gap and were glad of the opportunity to utilise space in the Health and Wellbeing Centre.  Community organisations also expressed the hope that there would be opportunities for groups supporting people with mental health issues and their carers.

Social Care Services for adults and children are provided by Buckinghamshire County Council (BCC) (which also leads Public Health and Health and Wellbeing). Social Care for adults includes help in moving out of hospital into your own home or a care home, day care support, home adaptations and equipment, help in your home, day centres, information and advice and support for carers. Some of these services may require a funding contribution from clients.

Again, participants in the engagement from community groups, councils and BCC agreed that Social Care services could be difficult to access in this area and there was support for provision of office space to help Social Care professionals join in providing coordinated care, particularly for patients discharged from hospital to care homes.

A Digital Health and Care Hub will help people to use information technology both t o find and communicate with health and care providers and community support and to make use of medical devices that monitor their health conditions. While information technology is increasingly used for health and care it is important that users should feel confident in using computers and devices. The Hub would give technology a friendly face, training people to use devices (including mobile phone apps) where necessary. It might also be possible to provide online consultant appointments, with the support of a nurse or paramedic, for example to check blood pressure or listen to heart murmurs.

Community Support Groups are crucial to healthy, socially connected lifestyles since, while health and social care professionals can advise on healthy, social choices, behaviour is  maintained by group norms and support. In our area, there are some 300 community organisations.

In 2018 the Friends met with some representatives of these organisations to discuss the development of Social Prescribing, many offered to befriend people referred by Link Workers. And, during the engagement process community organisations were keen to explore how they could support groups at the health and wellbeing centre. A Community Care Coordinator could provide GPs and other health and social care staff with 24/7 phone and email single point of access to organise specialist community support for patients. They could also encourage new groups at the Centre or in other community spaces to support health and wellbeing.

To join a local group that could help improve your health and wellbeing consult the Buckinghamshire Online Directory (BOD) at https://directory.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/