South Lanarkshire University Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) officially launched Care Opinion at the start of the year, providing an online space for patients, service users, families, and unpaid carers to post their feedback and experiences.

Recent statistics have shown that, in its early stages, the HSCP has far exceeded the national average with record levels of engagement.

The Partnership’s Chief Officer, Professor Soumen Sengupta, emphasised that a strong start bodes well for the future, galvanising a culture of transparency and transformation across a diverse range of services.

“Care Opinion is enhancing our understanding of people’s experiences with health and care,” said Professor Sengupta. “This is crucial as it helps us build on our strengths while also identifying areas where things may not be working as expected, allowing us to make targeted refinements and improvements wherever appropriate.

“These are exceptionally challenging times, but our staff and partners remain resolutely committed to delivering compassionate care. The early uptake of Care Opinion is helping us further concentrate our focus on those at the heart of all our efforts and I would encourage members of the public to continue their dialogue with us.

“In these exceptionally challenging times our staff and partners remain resolutely committed to delivering compassionate care. The positive reception to Care Opinion reinforces the importance of the lived experiences to our services and I really appreciate members of the public continuing their dialogue with us.

“Huge thanks to everyone who has engaged with us already – and I look forward to more people doing so in the future.”

Fraser Gilmore, Executive Director & Head of Care Opinion Scotland, added: “A massive congratulations to South Lanarkshire University HSCP. All of the hard work in the coordinated effort to launch Care Opinion is definitely paying off, with a record number of people sharing their valuable feedback with services.”

In the first quarter of 2024/25, South Lanarkshire University HSCP received 171 stories from members of the public. 92% of these stories were completely positive (well above the national average). These stories have received 218 responses from staff and services, with a 99.4% response rate thus far and 91.2% of stories being responded to within 7 days. Moreover, these stories have been read more than 7,463 times.