Neil Tester Profile picture
Chair @HWHertfordshire. Former Director @RichmondGroupOC and Deputy Director @HealthwatchE. Own views. RTs = interest only. 🏳️‍🌈
Oct 21, 2022 11 tweets 11 min read
The annual @CareQualityComm #StateOfCare report’s out today, just in time to focus minds as decisions are made about future health and care funding. Here’s my thread, picking out some of the nuggets that have got me thinking. 🧵 1/10
cqc.org.uk/publication/st… Cover of CQC report: The state of health care and adult soci 2/10 Overall #StateOfCare message: gridlocked care, growing risks of harm and a need to tackle inequalities. Summarised here in the foreword. Stresses need for workforce investment at system level. Rightly says need to understand people’s experiences overall not in isolation. Text of first page of report foreword.Text of second page of report foreword.
Mar 12, 2022 24 tweets 11 min read
Last big #RaceAgainstHunger training walk today, b4 solo walk of full Marathon course on 2/4 for @TrussellTrust. Today doing 2nd half of course from Tower Hill, East around Docks then West to The Mall. Add on 2 miles to Baker Street and that’s 16-17 miles. trusselltrust.enthuse.com/pf/neil-tester… London Marathon course map. Old meets new(ish) as I approach Westferry from Limehouse via Narrow Street. First of these training walks when I haven’t had to wear a big coat. Skyscrapers behind old brick buildings.
Feb 26, 2022 32 tweets 14 min read
About to put these on for a @TrussellTrust #RaceAgainstHunger training walk, chosen in my Twitter poll. Before the 12 miles from the Marathon course start on Blackheath to the Shard via Woolwich, I’ll do 8 miles from Euston to Blackheath. Bring on 2 April.
trusselltrust.enthuse.com/pf/neil-tester… Walking trainers. It felt rude to take a photo so you’ll just have to believe me when I say I hadn’t got very far south of Euston when I saw possibly the most British thing ever: a town crier in full regalia and carrying a Waitrose bag. Stay tuned for more exciting megawalk updates…
Feb 9, 2022 12 tweets 7 min read
So the actual White Paper has now appeared: gov.uk/government/pub…. I’ll leave the experts to ponder the vagaries of what it might really mean for pooled budgets, single accountability etc, but here are some instant-ish thoughts. 🧵 1/10 2/10 Overall, don’t think anyone will disagree with most of the ambitions but I can’t see many people saying that this is the clear, funded, holistic plan that’s needed to realise the vision. I’d rather have a light shone on these issues than not. But solid action’s better.
Feb 9, 2022 7 tweets 5 min read
🧵 1/6 The Integration White Paper arrives today. We’re in the limbo of being told by this @DHSCgovuk press release what it’s going to do, while having to wait until this afternoon to see how it says it’s actually going to do it. I’ll be looking out for…
gov.uk/government/new… 2/6 Agree with Paul Najsarek of @Solace_UK that the voluntary and community sector is a key part of this vision. @NHSEngland ICS design framework recognises that takes funding. Will @DHSCgovuk @luhc act accordingly? Hope so. Not holding my breath. Surprise me! Paul Najsarek, Solace spokesperson for Health & Social Care,
Feb 7, 2022 6 tweets 3 min read
Thread 🧵 1/5
It’s never reassuring when people’s health needs have to wait in a queue behind political considerations. What’s trailed here will help but fundamentally people need the money unlocked so the NHS can move lists forward with the wider plans.
thetimes.co.uk/article/2a4afd… 2/5 People aren’t waiting for the right target to be set. They’re waiting for action and the help they need. They see Government providing the resources as the key. See this @RichmondGroup14 @BritainThinks research: richmondgroupofcharities.org.uk/sites/default/… Chart from p51 of report.
Feb 4, 2022 4 tweets 3 min read
Thread 🧵
This from @CAM_Paddison @NuffieldTrust is one of the best things I’ve read in ages. 1/4
nuffieldtrust.org.uk/news-item/digi… 2/4 Local population data on people with multiple conditions could provide a useful proxy to generate the focus Charlotte writes about. Resonates with @RichmondGroup14 work in this webinar series: and this report: richmondgroupofcharities.org.uk/sites/default/…
Feb 2, 2022 5 tweets 4 min read
Thread 🧵
Two months from today, I’ll be walking solo along the 26 miles of the London Marathon course to help @TrussellTrust in its #RaceAgainstHunger. Talk of #LevellingUp today, so I’ve been reflecting on links between food insecurity and health. 1/4
trusselltrust.enthuse.com/pf/neil-tester… 2/4 The UK Poverty 2022 report by @jrf_uk sets out the size and consequences of this problem. Strong resonance for me with the things I’ve worked on at @RichmondGroup14 in relation to health inequity and multiple long-term conditions.
jrf.org.uk/report/uk-pove…
Oct 22, 2021 15 tweets 14 min read
Today’s #StateOfCare report from @CareQualityComm assesses impact of the pandemic and the challenges for health/care integration. cqc.org.uk/publications/m…
Highlights issues CQC will need to focus on in its new ICS oversight role. Here’s a thread of what leaps out at me 🧵👇 1/15 Cover of CQC report: The state of health care and adult soci 2/15 Throughout #StateOfCare I can see signs of how closely @CareQualityComm has listened to what @RichmondGroup14 and other voluntary sector organisations have said consistently during the year. Also good to see insight from @ageukcampaigns @Rethink_ @RedCrossPolicy being used.
Sep 24, 2021 7 tweets 6 min read
These reports on NHS leaders’ perceptions from @NHSConfed are always enlightening. Today’s Manifesto For Recovery takes a wide look at recovery issues, with a strong inequalities focus. A quick thread on the bits that jumped out at me. 1/7
nhsconfed.org/publications/m… 2/7 Obviously I’m reading everything @NHSConfed’s published today from the standpoint of the multiple conditions challenge. The framing here speaks to the issues @RichmondGroup14’s recent #YouOnlyHadToAsk report highlighted. richmondgroupofcharities.org.uk/sites/default/… NHS leaders want to make sure that inequalities are not exac
Aug 10, 2021 8 tweets 4 min read
Thread: here’s what’s jumped out at me from a first read of today’s new @NHSEngland guidance on provider collaboratives. 1/8.
england.nhs.uk/publication/in… Document  Working together at scale: Guidance on Provider Co 2/8. Good to see the guidance discussing the links with cancer alliances and other clinical networks. @RichmondGroup14 members have been keen to stress throughout the ICS development process how important these networks are for a range of conditions incl stroke and respiratory. Provider collaboratives work across a range of programmes an
Jul 28, 2021 19 tweets 14 min read
1/18 I know you love a thread, so here’s one about today’s new report #YouOnlyHadToAsk from the Taskforce on Multiple Conditions, led by @RichmondGroup14 and @ImpUrbanHealth. Hear the voices of people living where multiple conditions meet health inequity. richmondgroupofcharities.org.uk/taskforce-mult… Image of report cover. ‘You only had to ask: what people w 2/18 My foreword highlights how rarely voices like these are *really* listened to. Yesterday Lord Stevens, in his farewell to @NHSEngland staff, said that the NHS is at its best when it listens hardest. If that’s the case, it needs to be all ears now. We all do. #YouOnlyHadToAsk Foreword. There are crucial decisions ahead for health and s
Jun 16, 2021 9 tweets 6 min read
1/9. The @NHSEngland design framework for ICSs has been out for under an hour, so this thread is what leaps out at me and I may gulp when I’ve read it in detail. But thanks to @DavidsonRoger for listening to what @RichmondGroup14 and others have fed in. england.nhs.uk/publication/in… Cover of design framework. 2/9. I particularly like numbers 5 and 6 in the list of partnership principles for ICS Partnerships. Text from p10 of document linked in first tweet.
Feb 11, 2021 10 tweets 7 min read
I know you’ve all been waiting for my thread on today’s @DHSCgovuk White Paper gov.uk/government/pub…
and the accompanying recommendations from @NHSEngland england.nhs.uk/wp-content/upl… Wait no longer 😀 1/9 Cover of DHSC White PaperCover of NHS England recommendations document 2/9 I’m not trying to cover everything in the documents but here are some thoughts on things others might not focus on so much. Good to see consistent messages about the strategic roles of the voluntary sector and local government. Detailed work needed to bring that alive. It’s about population health: using the collective resourcIn this paper we refer to health and care partners for breviA key responsibility for these systems will be to support pl
Jul 30, 2020 12 tweets 5 min read
Unusually, I didn’t live tweet from @MattHancock’s Future of Healthcare speech this morning. I wanted to think about the text afterwards, and the novelty of being IN A ROOM WITH PEOPLE made me want to pay real attention. A thread of my reactions. 1/11.
gov.uk/government/spe… Matt Hancock speaking at podium in front of background slide 2/11. This is all true but we need to acknowledge how little the system really knows about how people have experienced and are experiencing it. Nor can we make a final judgement on performance until we see the long-term impact of the needs that have been hidden and unmet. We’ve discovered things about our system that we could not
Apr 11, 2020 8 tweets 3 min read
Thread. 1/7

My walk in the park and woods today generated 7 haiku.

1.
Butterfly shadow
On my daily exercise
Announces it’s Spring. Trees by a winding river. 2/7

2.
A green parakeet.
An invisible virus.
Our world is so small. Plants growing in a stream in front of a willow tree.
Oct 15, 2019 12 tweets 11 min read
I’ve been through today’s @CareQualityComm #StateOfCare report so you don’t miss the bits that matter but don’t make the headlines. Here’s a link to the report.
cqc.org.uk/publications/m…
Buckle up for my annual thread. 1/11 Front cover of CQC report on the state of health care and adult social care in England 2018/19. 2/11 #StateOfCare identifies the challenges faced by people with multiple needs and describes people and their families needing to chase services to get the right care. @RichmondGroup14 work on multiple conditions has also found people feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. Page 15 of CQC report.Page 18 of CQC report.
Jun 3, 2019 8 tweets 7 min read
Good to see @didoharding @julianhartley1 work emerging today with the publication of @NHSEngland @NHSImprovement @NHS_HealthEdEng Interim People Plan. Thread shows where things that matter to people are covered in plan. #OurNHSPeople @HealthwatchE 1/7
link.medium.com/E5wR40HvdX Here’s a link to the plan: longtermplan.nhs.uk/wp-content/upl…
The introduction (pages 2 and 3) puts what people consistently tell @HealthwatchE about the need for joined-up staff in joined-up services at the heart of the plan. #OurNHSPeople 2/7 Pages 2-3 of Interim People Plan.
May 21, 2019 6 tweets 3 min read
Morning, Twitter. I’ve got some good news and some bad news. Good news: this week @HealthwatchE will start recruiting its first Director of Communications, Insight and Campaigns to transform these activities and make even more difference in health + care. Now the bad news... 1/5 2/5 We don’t have the money to have one of those and one of me. So today I’m coming out as a proud member of the redundant community. I’ll be around for a while yet but will be starting to hand things over to colleagues. If you’ve been meaning to ask me something, now’s the time.
Mar 7, 2019 7 tweets 8 min read
British Social Attitudes #NHS + #SocialCare satisfaction data analysis by @TheKingsFund @NuffieldTrust @RuthRobbo @jappleby123 @HarryAEvans @NinaHemmings92 is out. Won’t rehearse content but thread gives view from @HealthwatchE perspective. @danwellings @jacoblant #HealthForCare Here’s the link. And my subsequent comments on the #NHS figures are made against the background context that although there’s a statistically significant decline in overall satisfaction, which is concerning, it’s still quite high for individual aspects.
kingsfund.org.uk/publications/p…
Mar 1, 2019 4 tweets 4 min read
Wide press coverage this morning about @NHSEngland plans for the 4-hour A&E target, with @NHSEnglandNMD quoted on how @HealthwatchE and others are informing this work. We’ve been saying for a long time that there needs to be a new approach to targets. This short thread says why. When @HealthwatchE fed 85,000 people’s experiences into #NHSLongTermPlan development, this included 6,500 experiences of A&E. We gave our analysis to @CommonsHealth for its inquiry on LTP. The select committee has now published our evidence. Here’s a link.
data.parliament.uk/writtenevidenc…