NHS foundation trust governors: tell us about your role
Monitor has launched its 2014 survey of NHS foundation trust governors.
Monitor’s survey will examine NHS foundation trust governors’ experiences as representatives of patients, staff and other members, and find out whether they feel well-equipped to do their role.
The role of governors
Governors are elected to a foundation trust’s Council of Governors by trust members. As part of the Council they can hold the trust’s board to account.
Part of a governor’s role is to be involved in hospital activities like approving the appointment of a new chief executive, or engaging with the local community about hospital plans. To help them do this confidently, governors should get relevant training and support from their trusts.
Understanding governors’ perspectives
The health sector regulator has today sent an online survey to NHS foundation trusts so that governors can share their views on their role and their training. Governors are encouraged to use this to give us feedback on any extra support they feel would be useful.
Identifying gaps in the training and support
Monitor plans to publish the results, which will help NHS foundation trusts and training bodies to identify any gaps in the training courses or support they offer governors. Findings will also be compared with previous years to see if the way governors carry out their roles has changed.
Suzie Bailey, Development Director at Monitor, said:
Governors offer foundation trusts vital insight into the opinions of patients, service users, carers, staff, other members and the public. It’s an important role working with foundation trust boards to understand the needs of patients and the local community when planning for the future.
We want to make sure that governors have the right level of support to do their role well. I encourage all governors to give us their feedback, as it will help to identify where they could use extra support to make sure their trust is well-led for its patients.
The survey is now open for 6 weeks. Results will be published early next year.