Our IBD Patient Panel

There are plenty of opportunities to play an active role within the IBD community and help shape services for IBD patients. The views of patients are represented by a patient panel who meet regularly to discuss topics relating to care within Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals. The panel is led by patients who use the services at our hospitals and supported by members of the clinical team such as IBD specialist nurses, consultants and dieticians.

The patient panel provides the IBD team with feedback and suggestions for improvements based on patient feedback. The panel also fundraise for the Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals IBD patient fund. They do this through events such as an annual cake sale or engaging in their own personal fundraising. This has helped pay for courses for clinical staff and equipment for staff/patient education, helping to improve the quality of care patients receive in our hospitals.

What is an Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Panel?

  • We are a group of people with Inflammatory Bowel Disease who use the same hospital services and who believe that by talking to, and working with, Inflammatory Bowel Disease NHS professionals they give the patient’s perspective, which will be considered when making decisions on how to improve services.
  • As a panel we use general email to communicate, but if you do NOT want to be part of a group email, please let us know and we will email you individually.

What do Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Panels do?

  • The primary purpose of an Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Panel is to discuss ways local Inflammatory Bowel Disease services could be improved and take action to try to ensure any recommendations are acted upon.
  • Hold Regular Meetings – minimum of 3/4 times a year. Lasting 1 to 2 hours. They are expected to attend at least 3 online or in person.
  • Work together to improve services by providing the Inflammatory Bowel Disease team with feedback on current service provision based on recent experiences in clinics including procedures.
  • Act as independent resource for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Services. This will usually involve supporting the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Department to secure additional resources from the Hospital Trust or Primary Care Trust; for example, to obtain funding for an additional Inflammatory Bowel Disease nurse/dietician. Patient support undoubtedly strengthens a Business Case for service development.
  • Provide the patient’s perspective on proposals for service re-organisation and future developments including research proposals.
  • Pro-actively offer suggestions for future developments and service improvements.
  • Help inform, empower, and support the patient, the family, and carers of Inflammatory Bowel Disease sufferers.
  • Help raise awareness of Colitis and Crohn’s Disease locally, including open days, and information leaflets.
  • Help represent the diversity of Inflammatory Bowel Disease patients; looking beyond the Patient Panel’s membership (surveys etc.); supporting ongoing recruitment of new panel members (and, where appropriate, their carers) who also currently use the hospital’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease service.
  • Ensuring that confidentiality and trust is a top priority.
  • Assist the Trust in meeting its patient and public Involvement requirements.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Panel Restrictions

  • The panel is not a means for individual panel members to access personal clinical advice outside of the usual route
  • Non-professional members must never give medical advice or opinions on care
  • Members must never breach confidentiality.

We need you

The IBD Patient Panel has been supporting IBD Patients for the last 10 years. We consist of like-minded patients that are willing to give up an hour or so of their time 4 times a year to work with the IBD specialist team to improve services and give them feedback on how things are going and even help them with new ideas.

Due to members leaving the area we are desperately in need of new members who will also no doubt bring new ideas and fresh support to the team.

We are not a formal panel, but we get things done. 

If you would like to contribute to the work of the IBD patient Panel please don’t hesitate to get in touch. You can do this by emailing the Panel Chair John Humphries: pch.ibd.patientpanel@gmail.com