NHS delivers on winter plan as care coordination centres go live in the East Midlands
| Five state of the art NHS care coordination centres today go live across the East Midlands, less than six weeks after initial guidance was issued by NHS chiefs.
The innovative, around the clock care coordination centres were just one of the measures announced as part of NHS winter planning in October alongside falls response teams, new hubs dedicated to serious respiratory infections and additional bed capacity. Each of the five integrated care systems in the East Midlands (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire) now have a dedicated 24/7 operation where teams, including senior clinicians, can track data in real time to help them make quick decisions in the face of emerging challenges. Coordination centre staff will monitor a range of live data including A&E performance and waiting times, staff sickness rates, ambulance response times, bed occupancy and OPEL status. For example, data will be used to see where hospitals can benefit from mutual aid, or if ambulances can be diverted to another nearby hospital with more beds. Teams will also be able to monitor bed tracking dashboards and forecasting models and stay across capacity in social care and primary care demand. Sites will be able to plan for particular pressures over weekends, bank holidays and other events that can affect services, such as large public gatherings and events. Jess Sokolov, Regional Medical Director for NHS England in the Midlands, said: “These care coordination centres are just one part of our wide-ranging preparations for winter, but will play a vital role in the sharing and use of live information to drive smarter and faster decision-making by NHS teams in the East Midlands “From Derbyshire to Northamptonshire, we have clinicians across the region working around the clock monitoring data from frontline services to help spread resources and make the best possible decisions for both staff and patients.” Many regions and local teams stood up operational control centres during the pandemic and last winter creating a proven track record for a national rollout, enabling teams to maximise capacity for patients and rapidly escalate emerging risks. Centres will be open seven days a week and are fully staffed between 8am and 8pm, with on call arrangements overnight. |