Deaf and hard of hearing people urged to give feedback on care by CQC
The CQC, the regulator of all health and social care services in England, has teamed up with Disability Rights UK to help make this easier.
It has recently launched SignLive on its website, where people can provide feedback in BSL. People can also get in touch using the RelayUK app, for those preferring to communicate by text.
It is essential for people to share their experiences of healthcare provision right across the region, to inform CQC’s monitoring of local services and to ensure people are receiving safe and effective treatment.
'Learn from experience'
CQC’s chief inspector of Adult Social Care Kate Terroni said: “We are committed to addressing health inequalities and reducing barriers to care.
“The lived experience of people who are deaf and hard of hearing, and the wider community, is significant in understanding how care for them can be improved. We want to learn from their experience and drive these improvements and ensure people received good, safe care.”
Head of Advice & Information at Disability Rights UK Michael Paul said: “We have a long and successful relationship with the Care Quality Commission in encouraging disabled people to share their experiences of care services they use. We’re really happy to again work together to reach more disabled people, and ultimately improve care services for disabled people and everyone else.”
Because We All Care
It is estimated that one in six people are deaf or hard of hearing, which represents approximately 11 million people. This is expected to rise to 15.6 million by 2035.
There are 151,000 people in the UK who use BSL and, of these, 87,000 are deaf.
Feedback can also be given through your local Healthwatch.
The Because We All Care campaign aims to help services identify and address quality issues and support patients by encouraging people to share feedback on individual experiences of health and social care services in England. The campaign was first launched by CQC and Healthwatch England in July 2020 and more than 50,000 people so far have shared their ideas and experiences of how care can be made better.
Everyone has different experiences of care, so we want to hear feedback on health and social care from everyone. Tell us about your care to ensure services work better for us all.
