Follow up with your integrated care board

Writing to your local ICB about our Can't Wait campaign is a great way to make sure the needs of people with Parkinson's are understood and considered. If you haven't contacted your board yet, you can do this by filling out our form. 

If you haven't had a reply in 2 or 3 weeks after filling out the form, you can contact them to ask for a reply. You can find your ICB on the NHS website. 

You can use our template below to get started or simply fill out our follow up form. If you feel comfortable, you can even add in some of your own personal experiences.

Follow up template

Dear [name] 

On [date] I wrote to you about the needs of people with Parkinson’s that must be prioritised in [local area] and I have not yet heard back from you. 

I know you must be busy, but I wanted to follow up and reiterate the importance of people with Parkinson’s being able to access health and care services.

[Enter your own thoughts or story here if you feel comfortable]

I would really appreciate your response on workforce planning so that people with Parkinson’s can access a relevant healthcare professional when they need to.

I also mentioned in my letter how important it is for health staff in our local ICB to be trained to recognise and understand the symptoms of Parkinson’s. I believe it is also crucial that they should be aware that people with Parkinson’s must take their medication at specific times.

I hope you will review my original letter and get back to me soon. I am happy to discuss this with you further. 

Yours sincerely, 
[name]

If you still haven't had a reply a month after your follow up, you can contact your local MP. You should introduce yourself, explain what you wrote to the ICB about, and say you're concerned that you haven't had a response.

First of all, that's fantastic! Please let our team know by filling out our form or emailing [email protected]. 

If they:

• offer you a meeting: you can read our tips on how to prepare to meet your ICB or MP
• outline a plan: share it with us by completing our form, so we can let our local teams know
• say they are looking at this issue: you could write back asking for a clear timeline and follow up with them in around 3 months' time. Set a reminder in your calendar, so you don't forget
• send a negative response: you may want to escalate your campaign by writing to your MP. You should respond to the ICB too and ask them why they aren't prioritising people with Parkinson's, as this can help in your future campaigning.