Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust and St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust are planning to come together formally as one organisation.
It follows over 18 months of close partnership working, to make sure that Southport and Ormskirk District General Hospitals could continue to provide a wide range of health and care services to patients and local people.
There has been recognition, for many years, that because of the geography, population size and the split of services across the Southport and Ormskirk hospital sites, that its services are not sustainable as a standalone Trust. There is a need for change to make sure that local patients have access to the same services available elsewhere.
One Team, One Trust
We will have a shared vision to deliver the highest quality, five-star patient care for communities across Mersey and West Lancashire, working closely with our partners across the system to provide equally high standards of health and care, regardless of where people live.
This work will ensure our hospitals in Newton, Ormskirk, Southport, St Helens and Whiston, as well as our community services, continue to play pivotal roles in our local areas for many generations to come.
We are incredibly grateful for the work of so many colleagues and are extremely proud of how people have worked together to bring this collaboration to fruition, which has seen staff and carers share best practice, collaborate on projects, and begin improving services and care for the communities we serve.
We strongly believe there is a bright future ahead as we become one team, one trust, working together for all our patients.
We will deliver:
- New, exciting, visions and plans for our new organisation which engage our people and patients.
- More job opportunities, patients seen and treated, and investment where it’s needed most.
- Better outcomes for our patients and communities, better access to our services, and a better patient experience.
This is the beginning of an exciting new journey, and we are confident that our dedicated, talented, and innovative staff will quickly become one team and drive positive changes forward.
We are committed to listening to our patients, our communities, and our staff, and involving you in shaping the health and care services we will need to meet future demands.
Thank you for your continued support.
The services we provide
As one NHS organisation, we will serve a population of over 600,000 with a combined workforce of around 9,000 dedicated and skilled staff delivering acute hospital care, intermediate care, primary care, and community-based services.
We will also continue to provide regional services for burns, plastic surgery, and spinal injuries, to more than four million people across Mersey and West Lancashire, Cheshire, The Isle of Man and North Wales.
We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to excellent local healthcare, and the current hospital sites will remain central to the success of our single organisation.
The benefits for people using our services
Our local population continues to grow, and we know that people are living longer and, in many cases, with more complex health conditions than they have done in the past.
As you are probably aware, the demands on NHS services are increasing and now remain high all year round, rather than solely during winter. The way we work and provide services in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic has also changed.
Across the country, there are challenges in recruiting the colleagues with skills and expertise that we need to provide the very best services. Coming together as one organisation means we are no longer competing for the same pool of talented people across our trusts.
We have already seen many benefits of our collaboration, and we are incredibly proud of the learning and knowledge that has been shared to ensure the highest standards of care for local people.
By combining the best of our organisations, and becoming one team, one trust, we will have:
A wider range of local health and care services
Delivering a wider range of services for local people at local hospitals in Newton, Ormskirk, Southport, St Helens and Whiston will reduce the need to travel further afield for treatment.
Improved quality of care
With shared learning and greater access to a wealth of expertise and knowledge across one organisation.
Standardised, five-star, care
Having standardised systems and fewer geographical boundaries will enable us to deliver consistent and excellent health and care services for patients across parts of Mersey and West Lancashire.
This means everyone will have equal access to high quality services and reduce variations in people’s care and experiences.
Digital transformation
Joining IT systems and processes will improve patient care and make things easier for all our staff.
More research and innovation
We will have the ability to expand our clinical trials and attract more investment into the local NHS for research.
Greater resilience in service provision
We will be able to optimise the capacity of all our sites and facilities to reduce waiting times and provide greater access for patients.
Greater patient choice
We want to give our patients more choice over where they attend for diagnostic procedures and treatment.
Better continuity of care
As well as integrating our services better so you only have to tell your story once, we want to improve the continuity of care by having larger clinical, nursing, and therapy teams – and more permanent staff, who are attracted to work in a larger organisation.
The benefits for our staff
Improved staff experience
By providing a variety of services and locations, we will create greater career development opportunities for our colleagues.
Improved recruitment and retention
As a large organisation with a workforce of more than 9,000 staff, there will be more attractive and varied work, training, and career opportunities.
Colleagues will be able to work in larger teams, with more opportunities to progress, and to practise their chosen specialism.
Improved development opportunities
We want to improve the way our colleagues can develop in their roles and their careers. We’ll improve opportunities by giving people chance to work in different clinical areas, and participate in training, research, or educational roles.
Greater investment
As a larger organisation we will be able to attract more capital investment to improve our environments for patients and staff.
Improved health and wellbeing
The wellbeing of our colleagues is vitally important to being able to provide the highest quality care for our patients. Being a larger organisation will mean we can offer more initiatives and support to all our staff, regardless of their role.
Creating a culture of One Team, One Trust
We have already started conversations to understand what is important to our colleagues, so that we can build a shared future that they are proud to be part of.
What happens next?
We will continue to update you on progress, in the meantime if you have any questions about our future plans please contact
St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust: communications@sthk.nhs.uk
or Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust: soh-tr.communications@nhs.net