Patients in South Devon set to get integrated care after hospital acquisition
Thousands of patients in South Devon are to benefit from more integrated health care after a hospital acquisition was approved by Monitor.
South Devon Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has acquired Torbay and Southern Devon Health and Care NHS Trust as of today.
The 2 trusts, which already work closely together and share some back office functions, will jointly provide acute, community and social care services.
Whilst Monitor has approved the transaction, it has also asked the trust to continue making improvements to how it manages patient flow in both A&E and for routine procedures, and to strengthen its plans to integrate care.
Miranda Carter, Executive Director of Provider Appraisal at Monitor, said:
South Devon Healthcare provides valued services for patients across South Devon and Torbay, including general, elective and emergency care. By integrating these services with Torbay and Southern Devon’s community and social care services it will be able to provide local people with care that is more convenient, closer to home, and with a greater focus on keeping people healthy and out of hospital.
This is a good example of the kind of innovative change that will help trusts to improve care for patients, whilst also offering better value for money services and meeting the challenges faced by the NHS.
Now that we have approved this acquisition we expect the trust to press ahead with plans and ensure services integrate smoothly for patients and staff.
From today the trust is called Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust.