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Throughout the National Health Service (NHS), patient and public experience is gaining momentum, yet the views of children and young people under the age of 16 years have been given little weight: of 38 national surveys, only one sought the views of those under the age of 16 years.1 Healthwatch is the new independent consumer champion created to represent the public's views; of the 75 Pathfinder projects, only five mention children.
The importance of using children's views in designing NHS services was emphasised by The Kennedy Report 2010,2 the NHS Outcomes Framework 2012–20133 and the Children and Young People's Healthcare Forum report.4 The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RPCH) Youth Advisory Panel recently said: ‘Politicians are always saying “no decision about me without me”, but children and young people are constantly missed out of official surveys asking people what they think of their healthcare’. This year's Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) Annual Conference showcased some examples …
Footnotes
Contributors FCWD was the main writer of the editorial. RCPCH president HC has read and commented. Original work cited was performed by RCPCH and Picker Institute (with large project board) on behalf of DOH (England).
Funding The project was enabled by a grant from the Department of Health (England), to the Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health research department.
Competing interests None.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.