Get Involved
- How you can get involved
- Becoming a Member
- Experts by Experience
- Patient Public and Community Voice Partnership
- Events
There are a number of ways in which you can get involved. Whether you’d like to give up some of your time and become a volunteer, join the Experts by Experience programme, or simply leave us some feedback on your experience – there are lots of ways for you to get involved. With your help we can improve our services and ensure the needs of everyone in the community are met.
Whatever level of expertise and knowledge you have, or how much time you can spare, your contribution will be invaluable. All you need is an interest in healthcare services provided by your local Trust.
You can also email swbh.engagement@nhs.net or speak to a member of the team on 0121 507 2671.
Here’s what you can do:
- Become a member of our Patient Public and Community Voice Partnership Advisory Group
- Become a Volunteer – (click the link or email swbh.volunteer@nhs.net)
- Join the Experts by Experience programme
- Become a member of our Young People’s Advisory Group
- Midland Metropolitan University Hospital (MMUH) Community Ambassadors
- Community Partners Panel
As a member you will receive regular updates from the Trust on health and care information within Sandwell and West Birmingham. You will also be invited to take part in surveys, focus groups and events and have the chance to shape the Trust’s services by becoming the public voice at the heart of our organisation. By working together we can provide outstanding care.
Anyone can become a member as it’s designed to fit around you. You could simply spend a few minutes each month taking part in surveys, reading up on the latest news or give your views on topics that matter to you. You can do these on your mobile or laptop, in person and at a time that suits you.
Members will receive:
- A quarterly e-newsletter with information about local health care
- Invitations to special events
- Invitations to take part in consultations that shape the future of the services we provide
- Invitations to complete surveys from time to time
- Be asked your views on a range of topics you are interested in
- Hear feedback on how your views and experiences are being used
- Invitations to meet the team and learn more about the work of the Trust
- Invitations to condition specific briefings with our clinical teams
- Invitations to question time events
Sign Up Now
To sign up let us know which services and departments you’re interested in below, and email us at: swbh.engagement@nhs.net
What are you most interested in?
- Midland Metropolitan University Hospital
- Birmingham Midland and Eye Centre
- Women and Children
- Surgical
- Medicines and Emergency Care
- Imaging and Pathology
- Long Term Conditions (for example, Diabetics, Rheumatology etc.)
- Primary Care, Community and Therapies (for example our GP practices, community services, Physiotherapy etc.)
- Experts by Experience programme
- Young People’s Advisory Group
- Patient, Public and Community Voice Partnership
- Midland Metropolitan University Hospital Community Ambassadors
- Community Partner’s Panel
- Changes to the way we provide services
- The work of the Trust
Once signed up as a member you will receive confirmation of your request via email.
You will be invited to a “Welcome to Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust” briefing session, where you will get a chance to meet the team and ask any questions you may have.
Your views, your influence, your experience
The Experts by Experience programme is involved with our Trust in many different ways. We are keen to recruit more people to join the programme in Sandwell and West Birmingham.
What is the Experts by Experience programme?
People who join the programme have personal experiences of using our services or caring for someone who has.
Are you interested in getting involved?
Email: swbh.engagement@nhs.net
Who can join the Experts by Experience programme?
- A carer of child or young person (CYP) who uses health services
- An older person or a carer of older person living with dementia
- A person who has used maternity services in the past four years
- A person or carer of a person with a learning disability/autism
- A person or carer of a person with a physical and sensory impairment
- A young person with experience of using health services
- A carer who has supported a person through end of life care
- A person living with and beyond Cancer
- A person or carer of a person with Sickle Cell and Thalassemia
- A person or carer of someone living with a long term condition
- Anyone with recent experience of using our services
What do Experts by Experience do?
Working closely with our Patient Experience Team, members from the Experts by Experience programme will be invited to take part in a range of activities such as:
- Taking part in staff recruitment
- Project work, co-producing the planning, design, delivery, development and review of services
- Evaluating services and quality assurance
- Staff training
- Peer training in Recovery College
- Engaging with the public at events on a stand or co-delivering a workshop
- Attending meetings to give feedback
- Taking part in research
How will we support you on the programme?
If you would like to discuss the role in more detail email: swbh.engagement@nhs.net or by calling the team on 0121 507 2671.
We will ask you a bit about yourself and the sort of activities you would like to be involved in. We will go through our Agreement Form with you. Once Experts by Experience are registered with us, we contact them by email or telephone when new opportunities are available, to see if they might be of interest.
We provide training for certain roles (for instance recruitment training). We also arrange for any reasonable adjustments people need, to help ensure that opportunities are open to as wide a group as possible.
The Patient, Public and Community Voice Partnership is a smaller group which consists of patients, carers, communities and organisations who give a little more of their time on a regular basis, helping to shape services. If you are interested in knowing more about this role, please contact the team.
From giving their views and feedback on a range of topics, to participating in the redesign of services, or helping us develop patient information documents. Members currently meet virtually, and take part in surveys, focus groups and events. They are an important part of the public voice which is at the heart of the organisation. By working together we can provide outstanding care.
We are currently recruiting new members.
If you are interested in getting involved then email: swbh.engagement@nhs.net
Location: Engagement Team, Communications Department, Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, Trinity House, Ground Floor, Sandwell General Hospital, B71 4HJ.
As we continue to lay out our plans and goals for care at the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, we are endeavouring to get as much feedback as possible. This includes from colleagues, stakeholders and those in the local area – both people and businesses.
Here you can find a list of current studies and outreach programmes we invite you to be a part of. See how you can directly get involved below. Click the bars to expand.
Have your say about wayfinding at the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital. We want to hear your views about what would work best when it comes navigating our new hospital which is currently being built in Smethwick. Whether that’s the use of maps on your phone, signage around the site or volunteers being on hand to point you in the right direction. Email us with your views here: swbh.engagement@nhs.net
Proposed Changes to Day Case Surgery Your views matter. In preparation for the opening of Midland Metropolitan University Hospital we are proposing to provide general surgery day cases in a different way. See below: You can read more about the proposal in the following document: SWB Surgery Day Case Following consultation with our community around day case surgery, see our detailed report here: 
