Local Healthwatch will provide you with information and advice to help you make independent, informed choices about your health and social care. It will also gather your views and ensure they are taken into account when local health and social care services are designed and delivered. Local Healthwatch will:
• provide information and advice to people to help them access health and social care ser
vices that meet their needs.
• help improve services by:
o promoting and supporting the involvement of people in the monitoring, commissioning and provision of local care services;
o obtaining people’s views about their health and social care needs; and
o write reports and make recommendations to providers to help improve services and to Healthwatch England and the Care Quality Commission to develop policy, standards, guidance and regulation.
• help commission and decommission local services by:
o taking part in decision making about health and social care services on a new health and wellbeing board
• signpost people to the provider of NHS complaints advocacy so that people can make complaints about NHS services
