Championing the voice of carers in local commissioning

A clinician at the Trust has been appointed to a new regional senate which will advise NHS England on commissioning local services.

Dr Syed Naqvi, speciality doctor in working age adults recently joined the NHS Yorkshire and Humber Clinical Senate Assembly. The senate is one of 12 regional organisations in the UK advising local commissioning groups (CCGs) to ensure they make the best decisions for local people.

In his role, Dr Syed will join other health and social care professionals in giving independent clinical advice and guidance on commissioning decisions. The senate will also play an essential role in the assurance process for NHS England on local commissioning decisions.

Dr Syed said, “This is the perfect opportunity to give feedback to CCGs, Healthwatch and NHS England on decisions they make, the impact it has on our services and most importantly the impact it has on service users.

“From a Trust perspective I can highlight the impact decisions will have on our organisation and also advise on how decisions we make might impact on commissioners. It’s a great way to open up dialogue and get people thinking about things from a different perspective.

“By joining the regional clinical senate I’m also able to advise from my personal perspective as a carer as well as from a clinical perspective. I would like to champion the help and support that carers deserve.

“As a trustee for Carers Wakefield and District I know that there are thousands of carers in the community who look after people who use our services. Whether this is as a formal or informal carer, they deserve as much support as possible in their role. If it wasn’t for them the burden of care on local healthcare services would increase dramatically.”

You can find out more about the Yorkshire and Humber Clinical Senate Assembly by visiting www.yhsenate.nhs.uk.