Who we are
Our team
Chloe
Patient Voice Manager
I hope that sharing some of my story can help others to come forward with their stories. I want to say upfront that I might not be here today if it wasn't for the NHS, and over the years I've met some amazing staff who cared a lot about their patients, including me. I've also had several bad experiences in NHS care, and my most recent hospital stay was by far the worst of these.
I want to be clear there were some fantastic staff on the ward, but they couldn't be there 24/7 of course, and when the bad staff were all working on a shift, bad things happened. They often restricted our basic human rights, and put me and other patients in danger and in pain. I don't want to say more than that here as I don't want to trigger anyone. But I know what it's like to be scared to complain, to not know who to trust any more, and to feel it's pointless even saying anything. (After I got out, I did finally decide to report the ward to the CQC and they launched an investigation.)
If you're a patient and you're reading this, I just want to tell you that things can get better and sharing your experiences can help protect other patients.
Ash Ryan
Founder
After a decade in the private sector, I decided to return to education to transition my career into public policy. While I was saving up to study, I worked in a Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), where I supported a director who was passionate about patient engagement in healthcare.
In 2017, I began reading for a War Studies BA at King's College London, and I am now reaching the end of my final year of studies. Alongside my degree, I have explored my interest in policy by completing the one-week Early Diversity Internship Programme with the Civil Service, and through competing in the annual Policy Idol contest at the Policy Institute, King's.
In February, my pitch was awarded the prize for best analysis at Policy Idol 2020, making it one of four pitches (out of 120 entries) to receive a prize. My proposal was personally commended by Charles Clarke, former Home Secretary, and by Jo Johnson, former head of the No. 10 Downing Street Policy Unit. My proposal, which I wrote about for the Policy Institute here, became Open Source Policy's first project (Project Spotlight).
I founded Open Source Policy because I believe in the power of good policy to make a difference to people's
lives, and because I believe everyone's voice deserves and needs to be heard equally. Everyone can have a good idea - no matter what your background is, by speaking up you can make a real difference to other people's lives.
"As an informal advisor and mentor to Ash, founder of Open Source Policy, I am in no doubt that she would be an asset in your programme.
She has taken research, personal testimonials, and innovation to solve an issue that is neglected within the mental health space. Her recent success at this years' policy idols is testament to how great her idea and initiative is but most importantly why greater initiatives needed to be taken to empower patients to be involved in their care.
I believe her background in War Studies provides a unique perspective on policy and problem solving - both of which would be incremental in the entrepreneurship space.
I'm delighted to recommend her to you."
-Meg Zeenat Wamithi
Multi-Award-Winning Mental Health Campaigner and Consultant
Founder and CEO of My Mind Matters Too
Genevieve Ryan
NHS Partnerships Manager
I graduated from the University of Manchester after completing a masters degree in neuroscience, and joined the NHS graduate management training scheme in 2015 in General Management.
Since then I've worked in commissioning and operational management roles successfully delivering quality and cost improvements, as well as completing a masters degree in Healthcare Leadership.
I'm a big believer in the importance of working with service users and staff to improve services. I believe the more we manage to act by the ethos of 'no decision about me, without me' the better our Healthcare services will be for all.
You can connect with me on LinkedIn.
Karmah Boothe
I'm Karmah Boothe Change Catalyst/Social Entrepreneur in my spare time and Head of Strategic Partnerships and Commissioning in my most productive time. I am passionate about children, young people, families and communities and have a desire to make a difference. I have meandered across public and voluntary sector roles with a specific aim of improving lives of people.
I quickly realised that being on the frontline created change for one or two but being in the bureaucratic boardrooms catalysed action for the many. My aim as a Commissioner is to design services that make a difference and improve outcomes.
My career in commissioning was birthed when on placement as a Graduate Trainee in Birmingham. I supported the commissioning and procurement of Birmingham City Council's first Mystery Shopping of public services as well as leading on the development of Local Involvement Networks supporting the implementation of the Local Government and Public Involvement Act (2007). Both services were set up to connect peoples voice to improve care. I realised that this was the place where I could influence the design of services. I moved to Childrens Services Commissioning where children's emotional wellbeing fell into my portfolio.
Mental health has always been prevalent in the work that I have done. Having first-hand experience of family and friends who have suffered from poor wellbeing and mental health alongside frontline experience of working with young people discharged from tertiary care into residential children's homes. My passion was further ignited when I became Children's Mental Health Commissioner in Birmingham. The role provided an opportunity to transform mental health services for people aged 0 to 25 years old.
Having both strategic and operational experience I respect and understand the power of patients voice. I am firmly believe that when voices are heard they can create cataclysmic changes to system and most importantly to the care of patients. The 0 to 25 service was a prime example of when strategy and operation partner with patients voice the cliff edge of service provision can be blurred.
Birmingham South Central CCG alongside partners Birmingham Cross City CCG and Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG embarked on an ambitious journey and became one of the first localities to address the cliff edge transition experience young adults faced when became 18. Within this programme understanding what matters to children, young people and their families was a priority. As programme lead I was committed to ensuring that as a Commissioner I understand what matters to patients, public, professionals and partners. As a family/friend, I understood the lived experiences of groups seldom heard and wanted to ensure that Birmingham was proactive in lifting the script and paving the way for powerful patient voice.
I was instrumental in developing creative engagement and communication opportunities to ensure that patients, public, professionals and partners were involved in the design and procurement of the new service. In addition, I ensured that the weight of the patient's voice was equal to or exceeded that of professionals. The five-year contract let had 20 per cent of the contract value based on user experience. The 0 to 25 service was a programme that followed best practice and innovated significantly. You can read about our engagement approach in this report.
My appetite for service users' voice has been a golden thread throughout my life.
You can connect with me on LinkedIn.
Strategic Advisory Group
We are currently in discussion with organisations throughout the health and social care ecosystem, and many individuals are acting as informal advisors, offering insight, advice and guidance.
Looking forward, we will continue to develop a network of strategic advisors to create a more formal mechanism for seeking robust strategic input from a diverse group of people. If you are a patient with a strong interest in how we develop as an organisation, or you work in health and social care, academia, a think tank, politics, or policy, and want to help guide and advise Open Source Policy as we work to turn our vision into reality, please get in contact.
David Gilbert
I am the Director of InHealth Associates, a former mental health service user, and author of The Patient Revolution - How We can Heal the Healthcare System. I have 35 years experience of working with, and for, patients. I was the first Patient Director in the NHS at the Sussex MSK Partnership (Central), and have been Head of Patients and the Public at the Commission for Health Improvement, and Patient and Public Involvement Director at NHS Croydon. I have also worked at the Kings Fund, OPM and Consumer Association.
I set up InHealth Associates ten years ago. I was co-founder of The Centre for Patient Leadership that originated the notion of patient leaders and patient leadership and was awarded 'star leader' status in the HSJ/NHS England Patient Leader Awards.
A leading thinker and doer in the field of patient and public engagement and a respected strategist, facilitator, researcher, trainer, writer, connector and communicator, I have worked with over a hundred local, national and international organisations to help develop effective ways that patients can be true partners in health and healthcare.
I am a published poet and Writer In Residence at The Bethlem Gallery. I live with Susan and my two children, Samuel and Adam, in North London.
You can connect with me on my website.