Universal Healthcare Innovation and Change Labs support NHS/SOEPS/22.847 CAN

On 11 February 2021, the Department of Health and Social Care published the White Paper Integration and innovation: working together to improve health and social care for all, which sets out legislative proposals for a health and care Bill. The White Paper intrinsically recognises the requirement for adoption of a population health approach aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of local populations and reducing health inequalities. The CQC will be responsible for assessing ICS's progress .

The national Universal Healthcare Network consists of a membership of senior NHS Leaders, Community and Think Leaders from across the country. It mobilised in September 2021 to house attention to a specific issue, (Universal Healthcare) and potential approach to address it, which was not deemed to be taking place anywhere else. This is evidenced by the relationship established with the National Healthcare Inequalities Improvement Programme, which has committed to be part of the oversight infrastructure for the work.

The Universal Healthcare Network is unique in the range of expertise it brings together which resulted in three clear provocations on Universal Healthcare which are not being addressed by the mainstream inequalities agenda, or the NHSE Core20Plus Collaborative or High Impact Improvement Network. The proposed Innovation and Change Labs and Inquiry work are being presented at the High Impact Improvement Network and the Core20Plus Collaborative as it is deemed to complement the national programme but is distinctly different (and unique) from any other initiative being undertaken or proposed at this time.

Specialist expertise is required from London South Bank University as a member of National Universal Healthcare Network and which owns the Intellectual Property (Universal Healthcare Innovation and Change Labs) to seek to address this issue. In discussion with the National Universal Healthcare Network, LSBU developed a comprehensive proposal on how participating ICS', (West Yorkshire, Bradford) and (Sussex, Hastings) could be supported to implement a methodology and approach to designing services in a different way which would secure universal healthcare and reduce inequalities.

The CEOs of West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and Sussex Health and Care Partnership consider this proposal as a lever, (amongst others) to achieving progress against this ambition at pace.

London South Bank University would provide support on implementing an approach and methodology, (Universal Healthcare Innovation and Change Labs), which is the Intellectual Property of the University.

This will involve a process of 'data mining', designing and rapidly testing innovations with local communities (prototyping), catalysing culture change through by learning together across the Community of Practices established for this work, (West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and Sussex Health and Care Partnership) and 'checking and challenging' the dominant narrative that shapes the context for the NHS's work on Universal Healthcare by bringing the learning from the Communities of Practices into a national context, (Universal Healthcare Network) and NHSE/I to inform policy and practice.

The 'check and challenge' process will also ensure that prototyped initiatives are worked up into business cases to be presented to the Integrated Care Board for decisions on what will continue to be sustained and embedded. Additional information: Please note: NHS England and Improvement have announced that the Sussex Health and Care Partnership, which is made up of all health and care organisations across East Sussex, West Sussex, and Brighton and Hove, has successfully met the criteria to become an Integrated Care System (ICS). An ICS is a way of working across health and care organisations that allows them to work closer together, to take collective responsibility of the health and wellbeing of populations across large areas.

It is not anticipated that the statutory responsibility or accountability of the individual health and care organisations working as an ICS will be affected, save for the expectation that CCG organisations will be abolished and functions transferred to the ICS. As a result of these intended healthcare reforms, the Contracting Authority currently NHS East Sussex CCG may change during the life of the contract.