ICS NEXT STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT FOR OUR HEALTH & CARE PARTNERSHIP
19 March 2021
We’re delighted to let you know that Coventry and Warwickshire has been officially designated as an Integrated Care System by NHS England.
This is the next stage of development for our Integrated Care System. It means that the health and care organisations in our area will be better able to join forces and apply our collective strength to addressing our population's biggest health challenges, many of which have been made worse by Covid-19.
Our response in Coventry and Warwickshire to Covid-19 shows just how much we can achieve when we work in partnership towards a common goal. You can find out more about what the Partnership has already achieved on our website.
Our Independent Chair for the Integrated Care System, Professor Sir Chris Ham, said “Our designation as an integrated system is welcome recognition of excellent work across Coventry and Warwickshire to improve health and care for the people we serve. By joining up care for patients and working together to prevent illness, we are demonstrating the benefits of partnership working.
We aim to support people to start well, live well and age well by using all the resources in the NHS, local government and the voluntary sector. Our staff are our greatest asset as we have seen during Covid and they will continue to lead our work as we build on improvements already made.”
To further support our partnership working and bring our system together the three Integrated Care Boards in Coventry and Warwickshire, who are responsible for commissioning the majority of health services in our area, will also be merging on 1st April to become a single commissioning organisation.
NHS Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board will be in the best position to deliver system wide programmes in a joined-up way, while still being able to address issues at a local level through the ongoing development of our four strong “Places”, Coventry, Rugby, South Warwickshire and Warwickshire North.
Phil Johns, Accountable Officer for Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board said “We’re excited about the next steps on our journey to becoming an Integrated Care System. Merging the ICBs means that we can more effectively support our partners to improve the health and wellbeing of our population. As much as possible we will align our own staff to the different ways of system and place based working an ICS will require going forwards. This will mean we can continue to focus on improving healthcare whilst being in the best possible place to manage the transition to ICS.”
To read the national NHS release about the roll out of Integrated Care Systems, click here