Grahame Snelling

Grahame Snelling, Chair, Healthwatch Kingston

“As Head of Prevention and Integration at the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, from 2009 until 2013, I worked closely with NHS colleagues to complete the development of the Integrated Service for Disabled Children based at Moor Lane.  From 2011 onwards, I again worked with CCG colleagues to establish joint children’s health commissioning arrangements.  I have been Chair of Kingston Healthwatch since August 2013 and will step down from that role on 31 August 2018.

“Over the last five years, Kingston Healthwatch has established itself as an effective local health and social care consumer champion.  This means that we have participated in key commissioning, planning and scrutiny groups – acting as a critical and evidence based friend, to influence and shape local provision wherever possible.  Sometimes it’s the patient experience that makes all the difference in achieving a positive heath outcome, and our role has been to ensure that the patient, service user or carer voice is strongly heard, especially when change is ahead.

“There is a good spirit of working in partnership and being innovative which means that there is a genuine commitment across the landscape to putting patients first.  The feedback we get from our surveys suggests that local people highly rate the care they receive although there is always scope for improvement – often in areas outside of clinical practice that can make a difference to emotional wellbeing.

“My proudest moment was establishing the integrated disabled children’s services, which demonstrated for me the importance of joined up thinking and multi-disciplinary working. It was not always an easy ride, and the benefits took time to accrue, but I felt proud of what was achieved.”