The NHS Black Country ICB has launched a public consultation, in the hope that people with lived experience can inform a five-year plan as well as deepening and strengthening the public-NHS relationship.
The Black Country ICB is developing the plan in collaboration with local trusts and will encompass everything from how the local NHS bodies interact with each other, local authorities, the voluntary sector, and the community, all the way to how said methods of working will contribute to improved health outcomes and tackle inequalities.
The plan will also set out how allocated resources will be used to meet national targets, ensuring local NHS services are at the appropriate level and are benefiting as many people as possible, as much as possible.
The public consultation will be open until the end of January, with the plan scheduled to published later this year.
NHS Black Country ICB’s CEO, Mark Axcell, said: “The NHS is now working on a plan with local partners setting out our ambitions for health in the Black Country, and our plans to meet them, over the next five years.
“We want to help everyone have improved health, now and in the future. However, we recognise that health is more than the healthcare system. It is not just about NHS hospitals, doctors or nurses, health is about people’s lives and can be determined by people’s financial and social circumstances. We want to consider all these issues as we look to the future.
“That’s why we would like to hear what is important to local people who use our services and those working in them, to show why change may be needed and what it should like. This will help us in developing our plan, which will make a real difference to your health and wellbeing, and how you receive care.
“This is a unique opportunity to shape something new so we would love to hear your views.”
To learn more about the plan, click here.
