Young people across the South West wanting to take
part in the consultation on proposals to change children's heart
services will be able to respond via a new text service set up by
Safe and Sustainable - the NHS consultation on children's
congenital heart services.
Safe and Sustainable is also launching a young person-friendly
summary of the consultation document - 'Better care for your heart
- a summary' - which is designed to provide easy to read
information about the proposals for change.
Fiona Smith, Adviser in children and young people's nursing at
the Royal College of Nursing and a member of the Safe and
Sustainable Steering Group, said: "This review is about providing
the best services for children and young people. Who better to tell
they us what they think than the young people using this service?
This is a very real consultation and the NHS want young people,
whether someone with a congenital heart condition, brother, sister
or friend, to have their say. The summary launched today is
designed specifically for young people and the text service is free
of charge so get texting and tell us what you think!"
Responding to the consultation couldn't be easier with the new
text service - young people can text 'HEART' to 85001 free of
charge and will be sent a question asking them for their view on
the proposals for change.
Texting 'HEART' is just one of the ways young people can take
part in the consultation. Young people have been invited to
discussion groups in London, Birmingham and York and will have the
chance to attend a number of focus groups around the country. They
can also attend any one of the consultation events taking place in
12 locations across England and Wales. Alternatively, they can fill
out a response form online or write in to the freepost address at
the bottom of the response form.
For a copy of the young person-friendly summary and for further
information on the consultation please visit www.specialisedservices.nhs.uk/safeandsustainable.
