Healthwatch Surrey

We were very pleased to welcome Zoe Harris, Volunteer Officer with Healthwatch Surrey, to our June ‘Dinner without Dinner’ meeting by videoconference.  She was our very first speaker to present to the Club in this way.  Zoe made it very easy for us to cope with this new environment and we learned a lot about her organisation.

Healthwatch Surrey is an important, but little-known, element of the health and care spectrum.  It is in fact an independent, not-for-profit organisation and channels to the public health authorities the views and experiences reported by local people about the health and care services.  The aim is to achieve positive changes in the system.  It is a statutory requirement that every local authority should establish and fund a Healthwatch.

Volunteers from Healthwatch Surrey visit organisations and individuals to gain information.  There is a helpdesk to provide info about local services and how to access them. Contact details: telephone: 0303 303 0023 (local rate number),  Facebook: @healthwatchsurrey,  email: enquiries@healthwatchsurrey.co.uk.  You can also contact Healthwatch Surrey through Citizens Advice Bureaux.

The service relies heavily on volunteers and more are needed.  The work is varied and hours spent volunteering can be minimal.  Training is given.  If you would like to volunteer, go to the ‘Get involved’ section of the Healthwatch Surrey website and complete the ‘expression of interest’ form: https://www.healthwatchsurrey.co.uk/get-involved/volunteer/.