Your experience counts
Why we need your help and why your participation in improving services is valued?
The NHS recognises that people who have lived experience of using mental health services and their carers are ‘experts by experience’ and as such have much to offer in terms of participating in the continual improvement of mental health services.
Working in partnership with NHS Staff
The experience that people have of using our services is greatly valued by the NHS. Our staff and managers want to learn from your lived experiences and from your perspective as this will help us all improve the services and the care we provide.
We want to work together in making changes happen.
Participation – keeping it real
Everyone’s experience and ability to participate is unique. There are many meaningful opportunities that suit a wide range of abilities and interests, by bringing people’s actual lived experience of care and treatment into focus we can develop improvements that will really make a difference.
The sort of things you can get involved with
Here are some examples of activities you could get involved with:
- service improvement focus groups
- local participation groups (discussing improvement ideas with others)
- designing and revising leaflets, patient and public information
- helping to review or design relevant internet pages
- providing feedback and opinion on the language we use in communications to ensure it is clear, understandable, kind and compassionate
- being engaged in staff recruitment; co-producing job descriptions with staff for new posts, helping design job advertisements, devising interview questions and taking part in Interview selection panels
- co-producing and evaluating User Satisfaction Surveys with staff
- sharing recovery stories and your lived experiences of using services to help staff improve their practice
- co-producing Recovery College courses with others
- taking part in peer support activities
- influencing and helping to deliver staff training and development
- suggesting areas of interest which could be improved or developed.
Expenses paid
You will not be left out of pocket through getting involved. Arrangements are in place to ensure that travel and other reasonable costs are reimbursed to you.
If you are commissioned to participate in a specific project you may be offered payment as an Expert by Experience, this can be discussed with you on an individual basis.