A New Era for Health and Care in Bolton
As part of this, a new NHS organisation is being formed called NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care.
This organisation brings together staff from all 10 Greater Manchester clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) – including Bolton – as well as Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership and Greater Manchester Shared Services, which will all disband on 1st July 2022.
It will be at the heart of a wider partnership called Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership which involves all the different organisations that support the health and social care of residents across the city region. These include NHS organisations, Councils, voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) colleagues and other key partners.
It also means there will be local integrated care arrangements in each of the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs, bringing together the same partners to ensure Bolton residents get the best possible services. In our area, this is called the Bolton Health and Care Partnership.
The partnership will help organisations work better with the public to keep everyone healthier; plan and deliver health services more effectively; make sure everyone is treated equally and fairly; help the NHS become as efficient as possible, and also help it contribute to the wider economy.
Dr Niruban Ratnarajah, outgoing chairperson of Bolton CCG, said: “We have achieved a lot over the past nine years and we will ensure this strong legacy is taken into the new NHS organisation and will continue to integrate care locally through our integrated care arrangements. Our aim is healthier lives and better health and social care services for all our residents across Bolton and we will work closely with the public in order to do this. The GP practices and primary care networks across our borough will continue to form the cornerstone of local health and care."
“Bolton CCG is proud to have overseen Bolton’s hugely successful Covid-19 vaccination programme, which has seen hundreds of thousands of people receive the potentially life-saving jabs.”
“It has maintained an “outstanding” rating since 2019, is ending on a sound financial footing and has made a significant contribution to the way we engage with our diverse communities in Bolton.”
“We have achieved a lot and we pledge to continue building on this work as we move into this exciting new phase.”
As part of the changes from July 1st, users of the CCG's website will be redirected to Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership’s new website which will offer more information on the aims and new ways of working for health and care in the city region. Patients will still be able to access information and help about their local services.
Clinical commissioning groups are NHS organisations set up by the Health and Social Care Act 2012 following the 2010 White Paper, ‘Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS’ which stated the Government’s desire to create a health and care system that has the patient’s needs at its heart.
The 10 Greater Manchester CCGs were formed between 2012 and 2013 and replaced primary care trusts (PCTs). They were led by GPs and clinicians whose experience in patient care helped to develop and deliver effective services for the public. Sir Richard Leese, chairperson of NHS Greater Manchester Integrated Care, said: “This is a significant step forward for how we ensure the people we serve across the whole of Greater Manchester get equal access to the best possible health and care services.”
“Thanks to the devolution arrangements given to our city region, we have already built a strong foundation of true partnership working and our teams will be no strangers to working together for the benefit of our people.”
“Our aims for the next few months will be ensure the integration of our neighbourhood teams, improve mental health services, support our GP practices, ensure people have access to urgent and emergency care, and reduce inequalities.”
“These are just some of the things which we in the NHS, and our partners, do to help all of us live the best lives we can.”
Greater Manchester Integrated Care Partnership is one of 42 integrated care systems being established across England on a statutory basis on 1st July following recommendations from NHS England and NHS Improvement and Royal Assent of the Health and Care Act (2022).
