New NHS plan promises faster, local care for Torbay and South Devon

Thousands of people in Torbay and South Devon are set to receive even more care at home and in their communities, powered by technology, in plans outlined in the government’s 10-Year Health Plan for England.

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust has welcomed the plan’s publication, which is a clear and ambitious vision centred around three big shifts to help the NHS get fit for the future: 

• From hospital to community: transforming healthcare with extended neighbourhood health centres, more GP appointments and round-the-clock mental health support - all designed to bring quality care closer to home.

• From analogue to digital: creating a seamless healthcare experience through digital innovation; AI-enhanced clinical services and specialist self-referrals via the NHS app, a digital red book for children's health information, and online booking.
• From sickness to prevention: supporting people’s health and wellbeing by making healthy choices easier to prevent ill-health.

The trust says the plan aims to empower people to take control of their health and wellbeing and is shaped by people’s experiences, including the 3, 400 pieces of feedback that were shared at 50 engagement sessions that took place in Devon last year.

It says it has been ahead of the game when it comes to providing the type of care outlined in the plan. A decade ago, it became the first NHS trust in the country to provide integrated health and care services, in partnership with Torbay Council, to support people to stay well and independent in their communities and when they need a hospital admission, getting them home quickly.

The Jack Sears Rehabilitation Centre in Paignton plays a vital role in helping people regain their independence following ill-health, while a new breakfast club at Newton Abbot Community Hospital  is helping vulnerable patients, particularly the frail and elderly to prepare to return home by rebuilding their confidence by encouraging them to serve cornflakes and make a coffee.

People are also being seen, screened and diagnosed and treated earlier for conditions including cancer, lung and heart disease thanks to significant investment in services such as the state-of-the-art Community Diagnostic Centre in Torquay, which is being delivered in partnership with InHealth, to provide more than 40,000 vital scans and tests a year.

This is helping to speed up treatment, reduce waiting lists and give people access to tests in the town centre rather than visiting Torbay Hospital so teams there can focus on more complex and urgent and emergency care.

The future of healthcare is also being shaped in Torbay and South Devon, from community physiotherapists pioneering the use of virtual and augmented reality to deliver rehabilitation directly into people's homes, to expanding the use of cutting-edge technology to deliver consultations in virtual wards which support patients remotely.

Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust is also on track to deliver a digital skills passport by 2026 - also outlined in today’s plan – which will allow the use of groundbreaking technology and treatments to be rolled out across the NHS.

The launch of a new single electronic patient record next spring will transform care for patients and staff across Devon’s acute hospitals and community sites. The One Devon EPR, Epic, will enable staff to access patients’ health and care information quickly and securely to give them more time to deliver higher quality and safer care.

Patients won’t have to remember their medical history or repeat the same information, making their care journey more joined-up. The MY CARE patient portal will also allow people to access information through a computer, phone or tablet.

Torbay and South Devon is a national leader in research and was the first NHS trust in the South West to take part in a personalised cancer vaccine trial, led by the award-winning consultant Dr Nangi Lo.

It hosts one of the highest numbers of cancer vaccine trials open or set up of any NHS trust in the UK, and two of its groundbreaking trials to detect cancer through blood and urine samples spearheaded the government’s commitment to screening, prevention and early detection of cancer.

Supporting people to manage their health conditions with the help of a health coach features in the plan, and the local award-winning Health Connect Coaching service has been empowering people living with long-term conditions to take control of their health for a number of years.

Professor Chris Balch, Chair, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We welcome the publication of the government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England. As the first Integrated Care Trust to be formed in England (in 2015), with a substantial proportion of our services delivered in the community we have long recognised the benefits of integration.

“I would like to thank everyone who took part in the Change NHS engagement earlier this year to help shape the national plan – our staff, volunteers, governors, patients, carers and the public.

"I can see many of the ideas, suggestions and concerns that people shared in those sessions that I attended, reflected in the published plan. We will also ensure that the local insights we received directly inform our local plans.

“Continuing these local conversations will be really important as we deliver the three shifts, moving more of our services out into the community (as we did with our urology services last year), implementing our electronic patient record next spring and supporting more prevention (such as our recently launched lung screening service and our award-winning Health Connect Coaching service).”

Adel Jones, Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, said: “It’s really positive to see the alignment between our longstanding focus on integrated community services and the shifts outlined in the government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England.

For a number of years now we have been developing health and wellbeing centres in our local communities which are working really well. We know there is much more we can do to develop our local community services further and we look forward to working with our dedicated staff and local people and communities to design services fit for all our futures.

 “As well as ensuring we deliver great care to our local people and communities, learning from the best and building on our own colleagues’ innovative ideas, it is vital that we make our NHS a great place to work and I’m glad to see this reflected in the plan.

"We take our position as the largest employer in Torbay and South Devon very seriously and we understand our role in supporting the health of our own people and in offering meaningful jobs and careers locally.

"For example, our innovative partnership with the Open University is now guaranteeing nursing students local placements which is widening opportunities for people who due to family, caring or personal circumstances are unable to travel to train and for the past 10 years we’ve worked with South Devon College to provide internships for students with an education, health and care plan (EHCP).”