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Class 1. The NHS and how we fit
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| Our Position in the NHS In July 2000 the Government published The NHS Plan. This sets out the Government's vision for a service designed around the patient and responsive to patients' needs. Part of the plan included changes to the way the NHS worked. In short, changes have been made to the NHS to facilitate a shift in the balance of power towards frontline staff and patients. The main feature of change has been giving locally based primary care trusts the role of running the NHS and improving health in their areas. This has meant abolishing all existing health authorities and creating new ones that serve larger areas and with a more strategic role. The Department of Health is refocusing to reflect these changes, including the abolition of its regional offices. All NHS organisations - PCTs, care trusts and NHS trusts - are now part of a single structure in which they are held accountable to strategic health authorities. Within this structure, organisations will have to work together to successfully achieve their functions. For example, several PCTs may decide to work together to provide certain services. There may also be occasions when relationships are formed on a larger scale. For example, the provision of a highly specialised service, such as specialist cancer or spinal injury services, may be done collaboratively across a population larger even than a strategic health authority. Relationships with other partners such as local authorities and voluntary and community organisations are also vital, particularly for PCTs as they work towards improving health and integrating health and social care. The National Health Service (NHS) is a very large part of the public sector. There are now over 300 Primary Care Trusts (PCTs); a full list can be found on nhs.uk, or you can contact other NHS organisations in Gloucestershire as shown below:
The strategic direction of the PCT is guided by the Department of Health and the principles set out in the NHS Plan. The Department of Health website has links to key national strategies that guide the NHS nationally. |
