Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2011/January 2012 | Page 100

FASHION HEALTH & BEAUTY

Health shake-up
The Island has geared itself for what is
undoubtedly the biggest shake-up of
the National Health Service since its
inception more than 60 years ago.
New Government demands appear
to provide the ultimate challenge
- making the Health Service more
efficient while continuing to deliver
a high standard of care, but almost
inevitably at no extra cost.
Even before a Parliamentary Bill
to implement the changes had been
passed, Island health authorities and
the IW Council, in line with the
rest of the country, had begun the
time-consuming and complex process
of trying to ensure they meet the
Government deadline of April 2013
for the project to be in place.
The whole undertaking represents
a delicate balancing act that will
directly or indirectly affect thousands
of Island patients. There will be
short and long-term programmes,
and in truth the changes will be a
never-ending challenge for those who
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are spearheading them.
As a result of the Government’s
new Health and Social Care Bill, the
IW Clinical Commissioning Group
(CCG) has been set up. The CCG
comprises an executive of six elected
Island GPs, working closely with a
team of professional NHS officers,
who will manage the Island’s annual
Health Service budget of just over
£200million. They will be responsible
for planning and buying the health
service for the Island.
Dr. John Rivers, a GP at Shanklin
Medical Centre, is chairman of the
Island CCG, and explained the
complexities of the shake-up, and what
it will mean to Island residents. He
said: “This is a lot of money and a lot
of responsibility. The Health Service
is expensive; in the UK it represents
about 9% of gross domestic product –
it is the biggest employer in Europe.”
“As the executive we are focussing
on providing the best quality care, but
at the same time understanding the

cost implications of it, because it is in
everyone’s interests that we spend the
money effectively, so we can afford to
provide the service in the future. We
are held to account, and explain what
we are doing and why we are doing it.”
He continued: “Here we face the
challenges of an increasing number
of elderly people, more technically
advanced treatments and drugs for
patients, all costing a lot of money in a
difficult financial climate.”
“In the future there may be some
difficult decisions to be made about
what can and cannot be provided on
the Island. But in the meanwhile we
are working with NHS services on the
Island including St Mary’s Hospital,
our main provider, to make services as
efficient as possible while maintaining
a very high quality.”
“We are trying to keep people well
with a good quality of life; keep them
out of hospital, or to be in hospital
for as short a time as possible. It is
good for them and good for the health