Patient and Public Engagement

Understanding and listening to patient and community views is a key part of the CCG's commissioning role. A process by which the views of patients, carers, the community and stakeholders are captured has been developed, so that the Board, Programme Boards and commissioning processes are well informed and appropriate action can be taken.

The importance of ensuring patient and public feedback and involvement is used in a meaningful way is a priority for MK CCG. The different approaches to patient and public involvement provide opportunities to gather a range of views and insight of the population in Milton Keynes. It is imperative that a clear process is embedded within the CCG to ensure feedback is incorporated into the decision making process.

The following diagram illustrates the process by which feedback and views captured through various engagement mechanisms feed into the decision making processes within the CCG. This also demonstrates the central role of the Public Advisory Forum in effecting it's duties and assurance role. This process will be embedded within the organisation to be functioning effectively by January 2013.

Local guides to engagement

Public and Patient Engagement : Getting it right. Principles of engagement

This short and practical guide to effective involvement, known as the "Golden Rules of Engagement", was developed by a partnership of health:mk, NHS Milton Keynes and LINk:MK through a series of workshops. Working together, staff and representatives of patients and the public considered the evidence from the work undertaken through Quality:MK over three years, learning what had gone well and what could have been done better.

Clinical Engagement: Driving Improvement

This short and practical guide published by NHS Milton Keynes, and distils the key points around clinical engagement gathered from a rich mix of evidence, both nationally and locally.

Setting up a Patient Participation Groups - a guide

NHS Milton Keynes in conjunction with LINks and Health:MK produced a useful step by step guide to setting up a patient participation group (PPG). Also available as a large print version.

Patient Information Forum - Commissioning 

Read this description of the new Commissioning process aimed at professionals in consumer health information available on the Patient Information Forum website. The text was written by Sue Lacey-Bryant, Head of Commissioning Support and Organisational Development at NHS Milton Keynes CCG.