Residents are being invited to have their say on an NHS plan and the future of hospital services.

The Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) is responsible for developing a joint forward plan for the NHS over the next five years.

The ICB forms part of the Integrated Care System across Lancashire and South Cumbria, the formal partnership of organisations tasked with improving the health and wellbeing of the population. 

And as part of the plans, the board wants to improve the standard of care they offer so that all patients have equal access to the same high-quality care, no matter where they live in Lancashire and South Cumbria.

They also want to make sure very specialised services for rare and complex procedures are organised in the best way, so people have the best possible outcomes.

Local hospitals have already started to work together to come up with ways of providing services that better meet patients’ needs now and in the future.

This means that, depending on how poorly patients are or how serious their condition is, they may go to a different place to receive treatment. This could be in the community, at a local hospital or at a specialist hospital centre.

Hospital trusts are making changes to improve their services and they are now asking residents what they think about it.

Joining up how the different provider trusts work will have many benefits and will help the local NHS address the many challenges it is facing, such as waiting times, quality, staff shortages, and finances.

According to the health board, they aim to improve the quality and reliability of and access to the care they provide by standardising how they do things, sharing resources and learning from each other.

The NHS trusts involved are:

·       Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

·       East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

·       Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

·       Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

·       University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust.

Martin Hodgson, Chief Executive of East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust and chair of the trusts’ Clinical Programme Board, said: “We have some really good services in Lancashire and South Cumbria, run by highly skilled, dedicated staff.

"We are, however, facing some very significant challenges and need to work together to address these.

"By working as a network of service providers we have a huge opportunity to further improve health and care for everyone.”

Dr Gerry Skailes, Medical Director at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and the lead medical director of the Lancashire and South Cumbria Provider Collaborative, said: “We are starting to see excellent results from joining-up services across trusts, such as improved quality and reduced waiting times.

"For example, hospitals with shorter waiting times are offering appointments to patients whose nearest hospital has longer waits.

"Around 2,000 patients have chosen to travel further to have a quicker appointment.

“While we have been working in this way for some time, the way the trusts work together is being strengthened.

"Where services are not already joined-up, clinical teams are now considering what working as a network will look like for their service, and what the benefits will be for patients, their families and our colleagues.

"We are really keen for our patients and colleagues to get involved to help shape these services for the future.”

If residents would like to have their say on what is most important to them or share their thoughts on the general approach, they propose to take to improving clinical services in the area, they can go to: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/PatientCareSurvey/