Chief Executive’s Message – Friday 11 November

November 11, 2022

Working in partnership. Working in systems. What does all this mean, I can hear you ask.

Working in partnership has never been more important in the NHS. It perhaps the only way, in the current climate, that we will be able to generate investment and develop innovative services. Partnership is no longer an option, in fact, it is now a national mandate. We are somewhat uniquely placed as we straddle two “systems” serving populations in both Ladywood and Perry Barr as well as Sandwell. The system structures are different, but the principles remain the same – what can we do to better support our patients, people and populations through collaboration. Can we greater than the sum of our parts as organisations?

One of the partnerships we are involved in is the Black Country Provider Collaborative that brings together the four acute and community NHS Trusts within the Black Country. Black Country Healthcare Foundation Trust (our local mental health and learning disabilities provider) will soon be joining the collaborative, I am sure. This partnership is now chaired by Sir David Nicholson, our chairman, and has enabled colleagues across the four Trusts to discuss a range of areas where collaboration could prove beneficial. The most progress is being made within the clinical networks where the collaborative has been able to support some important developments such as the introduction of additional surgical robotics, which will both attract more staff and improve clinical outcomes and length of stay. Clinical networks, within which our Trust clinicians are well-represented, are also looking at changes that could be made to clinical services that will benefit patients including in gynaecology, dermatology, colo-rectal, breast services and urology. Any new model of care will need a strong evidence base plus considered patient and staff engagement.

I am convinced that the best way to meet the current challenges in the NHS is through collaboration. No Trust can do everything alone and we can expect next to no additional central funding for the NHS in the medium term. We all benefit from learning from others, as well as being part of a network for support. We can go further and be brave enough to tackle some of the inequalities that patients experience in the Black Country through variations in services. I am really pleased to see how ambitious people are being in their thinking about the potential benefits of collaboration.

The collaborative does not replace the accountability that lies with each individual sovereign Trust – we need to ensure the right decision making and governance to take things forward. I am genuinely excited about the potential within the Black Country to join up services, support vulnerable specialties as well as making best use of resources through economies of scale. We have already demonstrated we can do this in some areas such as the Black Country Pathology Service, shared procurement functions, mutual aid and subspecialty partnerships. Please talk to your clinical or corporate leads if you want to get involved or have an idea to put forward.

Richard