Health proposals are studied by local hospital campaigners

Health proposals are studied by local hospital campaigners

26 October 2016

HOSPITAL campaigners are studying a major new health report which was published yesterday.

While the eagerly-awaited Bengoa report makes no mention of hospital closures or major changes to services, the report is likely to have a significant impact on the delivery of healthcare in the East Down area in years to come.

The report is viewed primarily as a high level strategic document, outlining how services should be 

redesigned to make them fit for the 21st century.

The report places a renewed focus on prevention and keeping people well, better primary care and a reform of hospital services and was published alongside Stormont Health Minister Michelle O’Neill’s vision of health and social care across the Province over the next 10 years.

The Minister said instead of thinking about buildings and hospitals as the only place to deliver services “we will deliver care and support in the most appropriate setting, ideally in people’s homes and communities. In most instances, people should only have to go to hospital when they need treatment that can’t be provided in their community.”

One of the minister’s short term goals is addressing the issue of hospital waiting lists which affects many people across the district and there are also plans for additional GPs and nurses.

She said her report, which concentrates on transforming the health service, reconfiguring services and instituting immediate change, does not represent a “quick fix”, warning the reality is that the current health and social care model is unsustainable.

“The key will be working with and listening to staff and engaging with patients and carers in terms of designing services. What is clear is that we can’t continue to stand still, we have to reform the service,” the minister continued.

She also flagged up the need to reform community and hospital services to ensure they are organised to provide care when and where it is needed and to ensure administrative and management structures make it easier for staff to look after the public, patients and clients.

Her new plan sets out a range of priorities, including a new model of care involving a team of professionals based around GP surgeries where practice-based pharmacists will play an increasingly important role.

In terms of reforming community and hospital services, Ms O’Neill said the emphasis will be on building new services including the provision of ‘acute care at home’ where patients can be treated by doctors, nurses and other staff for a range of conditions.

She said there is a commitment to develop new ambulatory assessment and treatment centres in partnership with clinicians and patients to provide people with easier access to healthcare and diagnostic equipment such as X-rays and CT scanners to assess and diagnose conditions. The minister said the centres will avoid multiple outpatient visits and enable earlier diagnosis.

The minister’s vision says acute inpatient care will change with the focus on complex planned surgery and emergency care of patients who have had a stroke, heart attack or trauma, or those needing obstetric, neonatal or paediatric services.

“Across many different services there is very strong evidence that concentrating specialist procedures and services in s smaller number of sites produces significantly better outcomes for patients, as well as a much better and more supportive environment for staff,” the report continues.

“The role of our hospitals will fundamentally change as they will focus on delivering the highest quality of specialist acute care. However, not every service will not be available in every hospital”

Ms O’Neill said mental health is one of her priorities and wants to see an improvement in the services that are available in this discipline. She insists changing the health system “is the right thing to do, it’s the right time to do it and it is right for the people who use it.”