Following an independent review of five services across the region’s hospitals, health partners across South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw have given the go ahead for further work to look at improving the way they are delivered, now and in the future.
Recommendations from the review, published in May 2018, proposed that to continue providing high quality services, hospitals in Barnsley, Bassetlaw, Chesterfield, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield must work together even more closely in a variety of different ways. This included ways for the hospitals to work together better with the development of hosted networks. It also included transforming the way we use our workforce, to make the best use of the staff we have at the moment, and to ensure that people receive care as close to their own homes as possible. Only if these suggestions will not support services enough should options to reconfigure some parts of the services be considered.
Professor Des Breen, Medical Director for the South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Integrated Care System, said: “We have some excellent services and staff who are dedicated and skilled, and who continue to deliver good care in the face of tremendous pressure.
“As a partnership, we asked for this review so that we can make sure our services are of the safest and highest quality, both now and in the future. It was published in May and over the summer we took the time, as partners, to digest the report and its recommendations. We also carried out extensive conversations with members of the public to better understand some of the issues outlined in the report as well as gathering people’s thoughts on what the independent review suggested.”
Feedback gathered has been used to inform a Strategic Outline Case which is the response of the region’s health services to the recommendations and proposes more detailed work to understand how the five services – urgent and emergency care, gastroenterology and endoscopy, maternity, acute stroke and hospital services for poorly children - could be strengthened for the future.
Professor Breen continued: “I would like to be clear that there are no current proposals to change any of the services in any of our local places. On Friday, 19 October, all partners came together as a Collaborative Partnership Board and agreed that further scoping work should take place.
“We know there are different ways of working that would not change the way patients access their care and we are keen to explore these so that we can continue to deliver the best care for everyone in South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw. Over the coming months we will be working with our local hospitals, staff, patients and the public to develop our thinking further. If any proposals to change services are made, we would not expect proposals to be put forward until this time next year, if at all.”
“As of this month, national NHS bodies have transferred greater control to us as an Integrated Care System and with that comes more local say over how our health and care services are delivered. As part of this, I would encourage members of the public to continue being involved in our work as it progresses so that we are developing health and care services for and with, local people.”
To keep up to date on health and care services in South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw as part of an Integrated Care System, please visit: www.healthandcaretogethersyb.co.uk – you can also subscribe to receive updates by emailing helloworkingtogether@nhs.net