14.05.18
NHS Providers and Confederation join forces in new Community Network
NHS Providers and the NHS Confederation have joined forces to establish the Community Network.
It is hoped that the network will be an influential voice for the community services sector, promoting for community services to play a leading role in the development of integrated systems.
According to the NHS Confederation, it will make the case for sufficient funding and investment to be made available to support ambitions to strengthen community services, as well as there being a strong emphasis on promoting the link between community services and the rest of the health and care system.
The two organisations believe that community services have a more prominent role to play in the move to deliver more integrated care for the public.
Community services have over 100 million contacts with patients every year, and there are 136 NHS providers registered to deliver community health services.
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, explained: “Community health services are a vital and often overlooked part of our health care system.
“If the NHS is to survive and thrive these services will have to play an even greater role in the years ahead as we provide more care in patient’s own homes and reduce the huge rise in demand for hospital care.”
He said that the network will ensure that the potential of these services is understood and that the potential is realised, both nationally and locally, for the millions of patients who rely on them each day.
Chief executive of NHS Providers, Chris Hopson, added: “The drive to deliver more integrated care for the public offers a great opportunity to develop community services and put them centre stage.
“For too long these vital services have been overlooked and they have not been prioritised at a national or local level. This has to change and now is the time to put community health services and the prevention agenda at the heart of our health and care system.
“Our new network will support community services and work with them to focus on key policy issues that enable the delivery of high quality community care.”
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