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| Section 2 | Chapter 2: Access to Services/Transport | ||||
Background Access to health services is often defined as choice of providers and ability to see a health professional within a certain timescale. However for people living in rural areas access to services can be defined more geographically in distance to services and time taken to travel to those services. Distance from services and lack of availability of both private and public transport can mean that some people living in rural areas may not make use of the health services that are available1, and that they need to access. This is sometimes known as ‘distance decay’ where uptake of services, screening etc decreases with increasing geographical remoteness from the service. New ways to access advice on healthcare via the internet and telephone helplines e.g. NHS Direct can be advantageous for people living in rural areas, however the reconfiguration of out of hours services may be problematic for some people who are unable to access Primary Care Centres and Walk In centres. Accessibility planning in collaboration with other agencies is also an
important part of planning and will be an ongoing process to ensure that
the whole of the local population have good access to available services2. Q1.
c) Do you work in partnership with local ambulance services/acute
service providers? Are all forms of transport provision embraced in the
commissioning process for PTS from the local Ambulance Service NHS Trust?
Q4. Is the data being collected and analysed at a level that will enable the PCO to: a) Define how many of its patients live in rural communities and the proportion of practice populations designated as ‘rural’? b) Systematically review geographical access to Community Hospitals, Out-of-hours Centres, Dental Access Centres, Minor Injuries Unit, GP Premises and larger Acute services sites? Q5. Have you assessed the characteristics of the demand placed on services by temporary residents i.e. migrant and/or seasonal workers, tourists, or travelling families? Q6. Is there a plan in place to allow migrant workers, temporary residents, tourists etc easy access to health services? Q7. Does the PCO work in partnership with local practices to develop facilities that are accessible to rural communities.
Aims and Objectives : Joint Worcestershire Health and Passenger Transport Group aims to create a sustainable, efficient and accessible travel network enabling access to health and social care, employment, education, retail and leisure facilities. The network is based on sound needs assessment and promotes real travel choice, including cycling and walking. Contact details: Alec Kendall, Holderness Area Rural Transport (H.A.R.T.) The project became operational in September 2003 and is funded by a wide range of funding streams. Aims and objectives To provide transport to healthcare facilities from rural, sparely populated
communities in North and Mid Holderness in Yorkshire. To encourage more
elderly people and people with mobility problems to travel and access
key services. Contact details: Co-ordinator and fundraiser: Caroline Wegrzyn Further details about these projects can be found on the database of good practice in rural health and well being at: http://www.ruralhealthgoodpractice.org.uk 1. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2004) Rural Services Review, Defra Publications. 2. Health Inequalities Unit (2004) Accessibility Planning: An Introduction for the NHS. Department of Health. |