The Dual Petition - The Duel For The Voice

By the end of this week Userwatch hears the petition group in Birmingham UK asking for both a "Patient Constituency" in the newly proposed mental health Foundation Trust and an independent User Voice with democratically accountable features will be delivered to several chosen parties .

One of them is intended to be Dr Lynne Jones M.P. and apparently others will include the Health Overview Scrutiny Committee at Birmingham Council as well as Monitor the independent regulator for Foundation Trusts .

Interestlingly enough some current members of the User Voice in-house mechanism at Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health Trust reportedly agree that they need to become independent. The model exists for a transfer of management from the local mental health Trust that employs them to an arms length source of financing from the local Primary Care Trusts.

The Primary Care Trusts are an arm of the NHS which purchase services from Local Hospital Trusts and they have seperated administrative powers . This is route by which Derbyshire Voice is financed successfully and it has a robuster model of representation of the patient-voice and interests ..