Second Cancer Listening Post held to improve services
2 March 2011
The Hunter New England Local Health Network will hold a second Cancer Services Listening Post in Newcastle on Tuesday 8 March to get feedback directly from cancer patients and carers about their cancer treatment journey.
Director of Cancer Services for Hunter New England Health, Dr Anthony Proietto, said the health service is committed to improving the experience of cancer patients who access services and one of the best ways to achieve this is to listen to the feedback of patients and carers.
“That’s why we are hosting a series of Cancer Listening Posts in 2011 – to give cancer patients past and present, carers and members of the community who have been affected by cancer to a chance share their experiences, feedback and ideas for improvement in a relaxed, informal setting,” Dr Proietto said.
”The experiences shared during the session will be used to help shape the next Hunter New England Health Cancer Services Strategic Plan, which we will start developing this year.
“We held our first Listening Post in Newcastle in February and really appreciate the input we received. We’re hoping to hear more patient and carer stories to help us develop the next strategic plan to will meet the needs of cancer patients and their carers.
“Over the years, we have used a range of methods to get feedback from patients and carers about their experiences,” Dr Proietto said. “This is one more way of reaching the people who have used our services to give them an opportunity to tell us face-to-face what works well and what are the issues they believe need to be addressed in the future.
“We know we won’t be able to fix every problem, but we do want to hear what the issues are so we better understand what patients and their carers experience along the treatment journey.”
Dr Proietto and other senior members of the HNE Health Cancer Network will attend the Listening Post to hear first-hand what patients and carers experience through their treatment journey.
“We want those attending to talk openly and honestly in a relaxed setting and so will keep each session limited to eight people. As a result, registration is essential,” Dr Proietto said.
Only registered attendees will be invited into each session. To register for the Listening Post, please call Hunter New England Health Cancer Network on (02) 4921 4159.
Details for the upcoming Newcastle Listening Post are:
Tuesday 8 March
Newcastle City Hall
Refreshments served from 6.15pm, with Listening Post running from 6:30 – 8 pm
Contact: Emma Gibbs
Phone: (02) 6767 7137 or 0428 114 767