Medequip to drive improvement in its community equipment services with user feedback
Seeking to drive constant improvement in the community equipment services (CES) it provides, Medequip has been working closely with Healthwatch Kirklees to engage with the people using its services in a variety of ways.
The objective is to give individuals a platform and a voice to express their experiences and be heard by the providers.
Community engagement is a priority for Medequip, partnering with independent organisations like Healthwatch and Community Catalysts to integrate co-production into every area of the business.
The key focus in Kirklees is to encourage a two way conversation and provide a better service to the people who rely on community equipment service to maintain their independence.
The first initiative promoted by Healthwatch Kirklees and Medequip was an ‘Independent Living Forum’, creating an opportunity for people to give feedback on Medequip’s services as well as providing a method for signposting the best ways to access assessments and equipment.
Forums proved a valuable initiative to start off the engagement process. However, both Healthwatch and Medequip were seeking a more sustained approach to encourage ongoing feedback, not just from individuals attending the events but also from the people reliant on Medequip services for their independence in everyday life.
Healthwatch Kirklees recommended that feedback be captured in a number of different ways. In addition to a detailed questionnaire, the organisation made the decision to promote a direct opportunity for people to give feedback on Medequip’s services by leaving a review on the Healthwatch Kirklees website.
These reviews were open to the Medequip team, who were able to respond directly to issues arising, answering questions and providing advice and guidance where required. Feedback so far has been extremely positive, with four and five star reviews and identification of a number of action points where systems can be enhanced and improved.
Matt Ward, Head of Retail & Marketing, Medequip, added: “Responses have been overwhelmingly positive but have also identified areas where Medequip can learn and improve. Most importantly, they have given us an opportunity to feed back directly to people, investigating any issues arising and benefiting from the positive and rewarding feedback.”
Importantly, community engagement has not been limited to the digital route. Medequip has also commissioned the Healthwatch Kirklees Engagement & Information Officer to spend a day each month with a Medequip technician out and about providing community equipment services across the borough of Kirklees.
This has opened up a unique opportunity to speak directly with people using Medequip services and their carers in their own homes. The initiative has proved invaluable, as well as gathering relevant feedback, this level of engagement provides a unique opportunity to share information on important issues such as support available to carers.
Clare Costello, Operations Manager, Healthwatch Kirklees, said: “Healthwatch Kirklees has worked closely with Medequip during 2022 to help them gather more feedback about the services they provide.
“Healthwatch engaged with people in a variety of ways to obtain reviews, which Medequip responded to, demonstrating that they are listening and responding to people’s opinions of the service they’ve received.”
Medequip has worked with key manufacturers to develop a detailed information leaflet that identifies the potential costs of running individual pieces of equipment.
