Essex collaboration puts the patient first

Press release issued: 11 January 2013



Essex collaboration puts the patient first

David Albury (former Principal Adviser in the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit), Sir Peter Dixon (Chairman of Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust), Dr Robert Winter (Director of The Academic Health Science System for Cambridge University Health Partners), James Anderson (Managing Director of the Anglia Ruskin Health Partnership) and Professor David Fish (Managing Director of UCLPartners).

Anglia Ruskin Health Partnership, a new company to promote innovation within the Essex health and social care sectors, was officially launched last night [Thursday, 10 January].

The Partnership is formed of six NHS Trusts (Basildon & Thurrock University Hospitals, Mid Essex Hospitals, The Princess Alexandra Hospital, Southend University Hospital, South Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, and Barking, Havering and Redbridge University NHS Trust), Essex County Council and Anglia Ruskin University.

Anglia Ruskin Health Partnership serves a population of 1.5 million and the partners, in total, manage an annual budget in excess of £2 billion. The strategic body of Chief Executives of each of the partner organisations is committed to improving the quality of health and social care through innovation, research and education.

The official launch, held at the Postgraduate Medical Institute on Anglia Ruskin's Chelmsford campus, featured talks from some of the stakeholders as well as a keynote speech from David Albury, a former Principal Adviser in the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit.

Since being established last year, the Partnership has been investigating a number of projects to improve the quality of patient care in Essex through developing innovative practices and making more effective use of existing resources.
Managing Director James Anderson, the former Head of Operations at University College London Hospitals, said:

"The Partnership is building relationships with local government, the health economy, academia and industry with a view to improving the care we offer for our local population.

"One of the projects we are in the process of setting up is a pilot study for the use of assistive technology for patients with dementia. This technology includes sensors placed on beds and patients' front doors, and is designed to improve the care of patients in hospital and support independent living in their own homes.

"The Partnership is working together with acute trusts, mental health trusts, Essex County Council and Anglia Ruskin University to examine the benefits before taking it forward on a wider scale.

"Another project we plan to roll out in 2013 is the Graduate Development Programme, which is a way of better supporting nurses, midwives and social care workers as they move towards leadership roles, such as ward sister.

"The programme encompasses management shadowing, multi-disciplinary rotation, action learning sets and mentorships, and should mean that patients will benefit from being cared for by staff who have a much broader understanding of their health needs."

ARHP has also joined with a similar organisation, UCLPartners, based in London, to apply for status as one of 15 national Academic Health Science Networks. The two organisations are already working together, including on an innovative project to care for acutely unwell patients in hospitals.

This project has demonstrated reductions of up to 50% in cardiac arrests in hospitals where it has been trialled in London, and ARHP looks forward to bringing these benefits to patients in Essex.
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