How do we ensure the North West gets ‘world class’ health services?
The North West spends approximately £11 billion a year on NHS services and we therefore need to ensure that patients and the public are getting good value for money.
The key players in this are primary care trusts (PCTs) who are the leaders in their local health care system. It’s therefore essential that they have a clear understanding of the needs and expectations of their local population and plan and purchase healthcare services accordingly.
PCTs’ current strategic plans cover the period 2008-2012, and set out detailed proposals for improving local health and healthcare, including changes to existing services and the introduction of new ones, if these are needed.
The strategic plan tells the end-to-end story about how each PCT will move from assessing the needs of its population to commissioning services that improve health outcomes. The plan reflects local priorities agreed with local people and partners over a five-year period. It is a living document, that will change as health needs, priorities and resources shift so it will be refreshed annually and rewritten every three years.
The Strategic Health Authority, NHS North West, scrutinises the plans of each PCT to ensure that they are appropriate for local need, and also that PCTs are paying as much attention to promoting health and well being, and preventing ill health, as they are to services which look after people when they become unwell.
The key questions which PCTs ask themselves when planning local health services include:
- Are prevention and the promotion of health and well being really the core business of our organisation?
- Do we have a strategy for making the shift towards prevention?
- Do we understood the current needs, expectations and diversity of local people now and in the future?
- Is our organisation still relating to the public purely as recipients of services or do members of the public have the opportunity to get involved, and have a say in, our decision-making.
- Is our organisation enabling people to stay healthy for longer and to take more control over their health?
- What is our strategy for personalising our services?
- Are we sure that our partnerships are producing better results for the public and would the public agree if asked?
View health plans for your local area.