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The H&W ICS Journey

 

Herefordshire and Worcestershire integrated care system, our journey

The Herefordshire and Worcestershire system has built a strong record of delivery and improvement over the last 3 years. The system has strong and stable leadership across our two places and our primary care networks, with excellent support from our local authority and voluntary sector partners. Governance structures and shadow functions have been established over the last 2 years to deliver national and local priorities and to improve local services and outcomes for our patients.

We have used our integrated work to deliver a successful COVID vaccination programme which has proactively targeted reducing health inequalities by working with patient representatives, communities, PCNs, Local authorities and NHS providers to increase uptake. By working collectively we have been able to develop mutual aid and secure Vanguard Theatres in both counties, which support our Reset and Recovery Programme.  With a commitment to improve clinical productivity through implementing ‘Getting it right first time’ and deliver an ambitious Best Use of Resources programme we are using our ICS structures to deliver the highest priorities we need to address for our population.

There is an ongoing commitment to collectively improve patient safety and quality. This has led to Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust exiting quality special measures in autumn 2020, and prior to this Wye Valley NHS Trust moving from Inadequate to Requires Improvement in 2016.  We still face significant challenges in our Urgent Care Services in both counties, and we will use our ICS structures to drive improvement to achieve better outcomes.

We are in a strong position to transition to the new ICS NHS Statutory body, having formally merged the 4 CCGs covering the area into Herefordshire and Worcestershire CCG in April 2020 after 2 prior years of them working together with single leadership and a single management team.  This timing, alongside parallel development of ICS arrangements has enabled us to create an organisational structure that had becoming an ICS in mind.  As such, many senior CCG roles already have system focus and key system leadership roles are supported by CCG directors. 

Supplemented by a clear commitment to system working in our NHS providers and the strong relationships with our local authorities, our system has strong foundations upon which to use collective resources to address local challenges and improve outcomes for the people we serve.

 

Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care System

mapICBv2

 

Population

HW ICS provides health and care services for 806,00 people across the two places as well as hospital services to 40 000 people from mid Wales. Challenges we face in our area include struggle for some citizens to access and travel to services (due to rurality), a low wage economy and a relative lack of social mobility. We also face an increasingly elderly population relative to national and regional averages.

NHS Organisations in HW ICS

  • A single CCG for Herefordshire and Worcestershire
  • Herefordshire & Worcestershire Health and Care NHS Trust providing Mental Health services in both counties and community services in Worcestershire
  • Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust providing acute services in Worcestershire.
  • Wye Valley NHS Trust providing Acute and Community services in Herefordshire
  • 80 GP Practices organised into 15 PCNs.

TimelineICBv2

This organisation ceased to exist on 30 June 2022, please visit our new website for NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board - Integrated Care Board :: Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care System (icb.nhs.uk)