Errol discusses Enter and View visits

One of the ways our volunteers help us is with our Enter and View visits. This year Healthwatch Surrey have focussed these visits on care homes, visiting to gather information about services and collect views of service users, their carers and relatives, as well as staff.

As well as giving residents an opportunity to share their general views of the care home, our focus is on finding out whether residents and families are aware of or have used any feedback mechanisms.

We then compile a report and make recommendations to the care home. Our reports can be found on our website: Our insight reports – Healthwatch Surrey

Our volunteer Errol explains more about his involvement with these visits:

“As a former director of a 5 home nursing group I was excited to learn from Healthwatch that they visited homes, unfortunately with covid the visits were put on hold.

Imagine my happiness when the restrictions around covid were lifted and I signed up to become a visitor to the homes designated for a visit under the very knowledgeable and lovely Katherine, a member of the Healthwatch Surrey staff team.

Healthwatch made the discussions simple in that a questionnaire was given to the volunteers which greatly helped.

I found that many residents were very happy to discuss their experiences living in the home with most of the interviews undertaken by 2 volunteers, with one  leading the discussion and the other writing the residents views.

If there was a relative visiting, we would also ask if they wouldn’t mind talking to us about their thoughts on the home, staff etc.

To finish I look forward to my visits and the comradery with Katherine and my fellow volunteers and of course the after visit discussion’s at a local spot.

I look forward to my next visit.”