12 April 2017

The following message is from our colleagues at Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG)

NHS Shropshire CCG has made further progress to ensure local NHS services deliver improved outcomes for patients.

The CCG launched reviews of some of the services it commissions in February to ensure that everybody in Shropshire has access to healthcare that is safe, high-quality and affordable for the future.

The first stage of the reviews has centred on gathering evidence from across Shropshire about what services work well and what might need to change. Since the last Governing Body meeting in March, progress has been made in the following areas:

Midwife-Led Units (MLUs)

A review is under way into the future clinical sustainability of Shropshire’s rural midwifery service. Details around how the CCG plans to engage and get the views of the wider public and, importantly, staff who work in this service, are being finalised. The scope of the review will consider factors including safety, clinical outcomes, finances, staffing and how the MLUs are currently being used.

Community Services Review

A community services review is underway looking at a number of areas with a focus on minor injuries units (MIUs) community beds and Diagnostics, Assessment and Access to Rehabilitation and Treatment (DAART) centres. Early engagement work has taken place with clinicians, providers and key community groups, with further work planned over the coming months.

The importance of care delivered outside an acute hospital setting is high on the agenda, and Shropshire’s clinicians have been discussing how they could best deliver this through greater partnership working and more joined-up care.

Elective Orthopaedics

The CCG wants to explore, where appropriate, other alternatives to surgery such as physiotherapy that deliver better outcomes for some patients.

The aim of the review is not to reduce access to orthopaedic services, but to use the opportunity to improve patient outcomes from therapy interventions such as physiotherapy. With the input of patients and clinicians, the CCG wants to develop an integrated, specialist local service available across the county.

Thresholds to surgery won’t be reviewed. Where surgery is the most appropriate option this will continue to be available for patients.

As these reviews progress, the results of the clinicians’ discussions will be shared with GPs and other NHS staff in the county, and with patients, carers and the wider public. Shropshire CCG is committed to hearing a range of views before any changes are made.

Dr Julian Povey, Chair of Shropshire CCG said: “Whilst these reviews are still in their early stages, I am pleased with the progress we have made so far.

“There are a number of stages to the review process that we need to follow to ensure that the CCG bases any decisions on what is best for the patients we serve, in terms of health outcomes and providing value for money.

“We are in the process of finalising our plans to engage with the public and all organisations that play a part in providing healthcare across Shropshire. We will continue to work with NHS service users from across Shropshire to ensure that patients’ voices are heard during this process.”