Syndicated content feature in the CMS
This new feature will facilitate the publication of Advice and Information articles by Healthwatch England on the local Healthwatch websites.
Local Healthwatch will be able to review the content before publishing it.
The goal is for Healthwatch England to:
- Distribute advice and information of national interest across the local network.
- Ensure the national advice and information we publish is timely and up to date e.g. national information on COVID, diabetes, dentistry etc.
- Ensure our national advice and information is edited in one place and stays consistent.
- Ensure a good supply of content to the local Advice and Information tab of any local Healthwatch website, that would increase our national reach.
- Reduce the need for duplicating content on local Healthwatch websites and the burden on local resources.
- Offer local Heathwatch the option to promote our national advice and information.
Expected rollout date: October 2024
Accessibility improvements to the template
Our Healthwatch Drupal CMS website template meets level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.2 (WCAG 2.2).
Our template is tested every 12 to 18 months by an independent company specialising in accessibility. Over this period we also collect user feedback from our network regarding template errors that impact accessibility. The results of the testing and the errors reported by the network feed into a list of improvements.
Currently, work has started on making a set of improvements to the template identified through testing and reporting.
Expected rollout date: November 2024
Network site improvements
The Healthwatch Network website is a critical platform that connects all Healthwatch organizations and serves as a valuable resource for information and collaboration.
To ensure its continued success and relevance, it is essential to implement a digital development plan of the website, in conjunction with the development of the newsletters and social media channels. This is part of the Network Development Team (NDT) strategic plan which the Digital Team supports.
The digital development plan has focused on improving the network website's performance, functionality, user experience, accessibility, content management and search functionality. It has involved key Healthwatch stakeholders, a Network Working Group, content owners, publishers, and developers.
The project has had the following milestones:
- Website migration from Drupal 7 to 10
- Website content review
- Internal consultation
- Local Healthwatch consultation
- Website development
- Relaunch
Project completion date: September 2024
Have Your Say
The HYS module project aims to create a more streamlined process by reducing staff overheads by simplfying data handling, improving interoperability of the data outputs, and including the ability for Healthwatch to access contact details where they are supplied by the submitting user. The new HYS module replaces legacy HYS webform and distributes data to Healthwatch in a more secure way.
Project objectives
- Greater data availability
Improved data format with the new solution making data available by a CSV download on both the Network site and NDS with data being viewable through an interface on the NDS. - Easy to use interfaces
We have worked hard to make sure the system interfaces are simple and easy to use without the need for a lot of training. - Self-service solution
The solution is designed to be a self-service solution once you have an account on the platforms. - New NDS Activity Page
This page is designed to allow for easy collection of your HYS data. Along with this it provides supporting information on your activity on our National Reports Library (NRL) and Data Sharing Platform (DSP). - Improved Have Your Say form
The webform has been updated and made more accessible for users. The amount of text on the page has been reduced making the form appear smaller and less daunting with the hope it will improve the user submission rate.
We are at the pilot stage of this project but are fast approaching general rollout of this platform to all Healthwatch.
Project completition date: October 2024