UHBW and NBT set out their shared clinical vision

The delivery of seamless, high quality, equitable and sustainable care is the shared vision at the heart of the first Joint Clinical Strategy between North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT) and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW).

Published today, the document is the result of over 12 months’ work of clinicians from across both organisations seeking to build on what they have achieved together to date by working more closely together in the future.

Shared values and a mutual commitment to outstanding patient care has been central in developing the principles and commitments outlined in the strategy.

The sole focus of both organisations is to do what is right for patients and their families by making the most of their combined resources to ensure seamless and, above all, outstanding care to all who need it.

The strategy sets out how the trusts will seek to do this over the next three years.

Stuart Walker, Interim Chief Executive at UHBW said: “There is a genuine commitment to combine our skills and expertise to organise services around people and not organisational boundaries. Creating services that eliminate barriers, gaps and delays in patient care; remove ambiguity for patients and make our services the highest quality with the best outcomes for everyone.

“Our Joint Clinical Strategy takes us a step closer to achieving this and is a significant milestone in our partnership working. It will help guide us in our thinking and decision making as we move towards forming a Hospital Group that enables deeper collaboration to flourish.”

Tim Whittlestone, Chief Medical Officer at NBT said: “We already work closely together – for instance on the new Elective Centre and our *ECMO service – but both feel we can do even more in the future as we continue to develop towards forming a Hospital Group.

“By collaborating more in this way, we aim to ensure patients receive better, faster care and in a way which means they have a positive experience of it.

“One of the most common responses we get to how we could improve is ‘I wish I only had to tell my story once’ – this strategy will help deliver that.”

Clinically led, this strategy complements both trusts’ existing strategies, the Joint Clinical Strategy can be found on both organisations’ websites – UHBW and NBT.

*ECMO is a supportive measure that uses an artificial lung (membrane) located outside the body (extra corporeal) that puts oxygen into the blood (oxygenation) and returns it to the body.