Jackie Brunton at Blackpool Victoria Hospital
A national survey has shown that cancer patients feel there has been an improvement in the care offered by Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and its partner organisations.
As part of the National Cancer Patient Experience Survey, people were asked a range of questions such as whether they were getting their cancer tests at the right time and if they were being involved as much as they wanted in decisions about their care.
They rated their overall care on a scale of 0 (very poor) to 10 (very good), with the national average being 8.7.
The Trust and its partners, Blackpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Fylde and Wyre CCG, have seen an improvement at 8.8 from 8.6 in 2015. Results show improvements in areas of information and support being provided.
Jackie Brunton, Lead Nurse for Cancer and End of Life Care for the Trust, said: “I am pleased to see improvements as the teams work hard to ensure people have the care and support needed before, during and after treatment.
“Any cancer diagnosis is life-changing for patients, their families and loved ones so it is vital that they feel well cared for and supported during this time.”
The Trust and CCGs have been fortunate to have a funded Macmillan Cancer Support initiative called ‘Living With and Beyond Cancer’ (LWBC).
This project will continue through to 2018 and is led by the Trust, Blackpool Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Fylde and Wyre CCG.
Hannah McKearnen
Jessica Jones, Macmillan Clinical Transformation Lead for the Trust, said: “It is great news that more people are living longer and surviving cancer but unfortunately not everyone with cancer is living well.
“Patients and their carers can struggle with trying to get the information and support they need. Many have problems with the after effects of cancer and have difficulties in getting back to work.
“The project will continue to develop the services and information and the feedback we receive from the survey is invaluable and encourages us and also guides us on improvement areas.”
With support from Macmillan Cancer Support, the Trust and CCGs have recently been able to recruit a Service User Involvement Coordinator, Hannah McKearnen.
Jackie added: “Hannah will be supporting the teams to ensure we have patient’s central to advising and guiding on the services we develop and provide and also opportunities for people to support us and help others.”
If you are interested in volunteering opportunities or if you have personal experience living with cancer and would like to get involved then please do contact Hannah at hannah.mckearnen@fyldeandwyreccg.nhs.uk