Who is representing you in the Suffolk LINk?

Many of you have taken part in the recent Suffolk LINk Executive Board election 2009 and may have seen the list we recently published in the Suffolk LINk bulletin (Issue 1) as to who was elected into the various seats. There were fourteen district seats to represent Forest Heath, Ipswich, St Edmundsbury, Mid Suffolk, Babergh, Waveney and Suffolk Coastal (2 per district).

There were also seven specialist seats to represent older people, younger people, the mental health sector, disability sector, black and minority ethnic communties, voluntary sector and the carers sector.

So what does the Executive Board do for you?

The Suffolk LINk Executive Board exist to work on your behalf in investigating health and social care issues that the community have raised with the LINk. If a concern is brought to the attention of the LINk our Executive Board members will research the issue in depth to establish if the concern is justified. They will then take this concern to the service provider who has 20 days to respond to the request for information or take action.

Should the response be deemed inadequate the Executive Board can take the concern to the Health and Scrutiny Committee at the County Council or, depending upon circumstances, as high as the Department of Health. The LINk also aims to develop working relationships with other relevant organisations such as the Care Quality Commission (CQC), who regulate service providers, to carry public opinion into services that you use. Furthermore Executive Board members have the power to perform Enter and View inspection visits at premises that provide health or social care services.

Elected members have provided a biography detailing some of the reasons as to why they nominated themselves to represent you on the Suffolk LINk Executive Board. Please click on a name to read their full biography.