New way of thinking to deliver health services

A senior health official said her organisation was working to provide an effective service, despite increasing financial pressures.

The chief officer of Newark and Sherwood Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Dr Amanda Sullivan, gave a presentation to members of Newark and Sherwood District Council environment and leisure committee.

She said they had been looking at ways of running health services effectively, while needing to find savings of more than £30m next year.

“There is more that the NHS can do to be creative and use funding differently than we have in the past,” she said.

“If we carry on more or less the same as we have been doing then it won’t work.

“We are in a position where there is more we can do within certain limits. It does, however, mean delivering healthcare very differently.”

She said there had been consultation on what were regarded as lower priority issues, such as the future of IVF treatment and ending prescriptions for paracetamol, gluten-free products and more expensive medicines.

GPs now encourage patients needing paracetamol to buy it over the counter.

Looking again at axed free bus service

The CCG plans to make IVF treatment available on the NHS for women aged 25 to 34 instead of the present 18 to 42 age range.

It is proposing an upper age limit of 40 for men.

The proposed changes were questioned by Nottinghamshire County Council health scrutiny committee and there will be a second round of consultation.

Dr Sullivan said they were still looking at ways of reinstating a free bus service from Newark Hospital to King’s Mill in Sutton-in-Ashfield, which ended in January.

“We are trying to see if there are ways it can be combined with existing transport or bring in a charge to subsidise it but there isn’t a particularly obvious solution at the moment,” she said.

Dr Sullivan said they were encouraging the 14 GP practices in Newark and Sherwood to work together more to cut administration costs and avoid duplication of work.