The health priorities for North Somerset for the next two years have been laid out to ensure services are ‘future-proofed’.
Three clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), which buy and plan health services, merged last year to form a single organisation covering North Somerset, Bristol and South Gloucestershire.
One of the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) CCG’s key projects has involved redesigning health care services under the banner Healthier Together.
More than 300 people from the health and social care sector, councillors, volunteers and patient representatives gathered to hear leaders outline the vision for healthcare.
Julia Ross, chief executive of the BNSSG CCG, said: “We were delighted to have such a great number of staff and colleagues from partner organisations come together at this milestone event in our work to improve local health and care.
“The NHS has stood the test of time so far, but if we want it to be here for our children and our children’s children we need it to adapt and be responsive to people’s needs now and in the future.
“Healthier Together is our local plan to ensure our services are future-proofed.
“To be successful we need commitment from all our partners and the public, and this event really demonstrated that.”
The Healthier Together partnership has identified health and care areas to prioritise over the next two years.
These include mental health, maternity services, urgent care and prevention. It will also focus on acute care, primary care, and a digital transformation.
Working as a network across boundaries is also one of the focuses of Healthier Together.
Ron Kerr, chairman of Healthier Together, added: “We are focused on making substantial improvements for local people and to ensure the sustainability of our health and care services.
“It is encouraging to see the breadth and depth of work which has taken place already in support of improving services.
“As we start to move our plans into action, we will look to involve members of the public who use services to support design.
“We don’t have all the answers yet and want to work with the public to find the best solutions to the changing and increasing needs of our communities.”
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