At the start of the coronavirus pandemic, we quickly adapted our services to keep people safe. We needed to listen to the people who used our services to make sure these changes were working, so in June, we launched our Pulse Survey.
Over the last 12 months, 4,000 people across the country told us about their care and how we can support them better. We've created a Year of Listening timeline showing the key moments throughout the pandemic to share our findings.
The timeline details what we've heard, how we've responded, and what we've learned during this challenging year.
Highlights include:
- Reducing visits to pharmacies via our move to fortnightly Medical Assisted Treatment (MAT) pick-up.. People told us they felt better able to manage their MAT supply which led to fewer cravings and less use of illegal opiates on top.
- Helping people find support online. As in-person meetings reduced, we helped people access the internet, set up sessions via Zoom and gifted mobiles and tablets to those most in need.
- Collaborating with The Salvation Army, homeless support services and hostels to gain a better understanding of people who were sleeping rough. We shared insights with the police and used feedback to inform the national advisory panel to the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
- Working in partnership with the University of Manchester. Through their support and analysis, we learnt how service user feedback changes over time.
- Relaunching our service user council as The National Lived Experience Group. The group continues to make sure the voice of people using our services informs decision-making.
We're still listening and responding. If you'd like to find out more about our Year of Listening or more details of our Pulse Survey, please email [email protected].