A Healthier Bedfordshire – working with you for life
Bedfordshire is a wonderful place to live and the people of Bedfordshire deserve better health and a world class health service. Our goal is to make sure that this becomes a reality.
A Healthier Bedfordshire paints a clear picture of our health and health services today, the challenges we face, where we want to be over the next five years and how we plan to get there. Our Progress Report sets out some of the improvements we have made last year and are making this year.
The challenges are great. During the first year of delivering our strategy, the additional cost of funding over performance in the acute sector and the changes in available funding in the NHS over the next four years have given us new challenges.
Despite the financial challenge, the demand for healthcare will keep increasing as our population grows and more people live longer. Health inequalities remain stubbornly persistent. It is not right or fair that people in some parts of Bedfordshire can expect to live up to eight years less than those in the most affluent areas. We must change this.
We have set ourselves ambitious goals and we will not achieve them by doing more of the same.
Our strategy is about leading change. We need to change how healthcare is delivered, with greater integration of service provision with our partners to deliver care closer to home and reduce the reliance on hospital care, when appropriate; to focus more on prevention; and to offer patients more choice.
Our strategy sets out how we will prioritise and shift investment, over time, from hospitals to communities to make this happen.
Our strategy is about partnerships. We will work more closely with our partners to plan and deliver services. We will work with our residents to support and empower communities and individuals to improve their health and well being.
At the heart of our strategy is the prize of securing a healthier Bedfordshire for all, helping people to enjoy a longer life and a better quality of life. Together we can do it.
A Healthier Bedfordshire has started and will continue to address these challenges.
Sarah Boulton
Chair
NHS Bedfordshire
Andrew Morgan
Chief Executive
NHS Bedfordshire
Dr Paul Hassan
Chairman
Professional Executive Committee
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the new NHS White Paper affect your strategy? How do you know you are doing the right things? What will happen when PCTs are replaced by GP commissioners? Go to our FAQ for the answers to these and other common questions.
Consultation information
We held a formal public consultation on our strategy in 2009. You can read a summary of the feedback we received in our consultation report. We always welcome your views. If you have any comments, suggestions or questions about any aspects of health and health services in Bedfordshire, please contact us. We look forward to hearing from you.
Consultation report
Consultation document
Consultation leaflet
A Healthier Bedfordshire Strategic Plan (Year 2)
A Healthier Bedfordshire initiatives
Watch our video,
A Healthier Bedfordshire - working with you for life