NHS Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit

16 April 2024

Scaling non-medical prescribing services for enhanced patient care

Our Medicines Management and Optimisation team has improved patient care by improving processes and automating tasks to ensure timely…

9 April 2024

Supporting hospital transformation programmes to embed equality, diversity, and inclusion considerations

Between 2022 and 2023, our Inclusion Unit provided a bespoke ‘due regard’ support package to the Lancashire and South…

2 April 2024

Ensuring Care Quality Commission readiness through collaborative intervention at Portway House

Our Nursing and Urgent Care Team’s intervention significantly transformed a care facility, enhancing staff morale, competence, and confidence, ultimately…

14 March 2024

The digital transformation of Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust website

Our Communications and Engagement team helped Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust achieve a digital overhaul, enhancing website usability, functionality,…

20 February 2024

Enhancing stroke risk management by developing a comprehensive reporting dashboard

The implementation of the cardiovascular disease prevention dashboard markedly enhanced stroke prevention strategies, offering healthcare providers critical data on…

8 February 2024

Transforming tobacco control: How our data analytics improved health outcomes

The development of interactive dashboards and comprehensive data analysis significantly helped NHS Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care System to…

2 February 2024

Reducing the use of Lorazepam at a dementia nursing care home

Our Medicine Optimisation Care Home team successfully reduced the reliance on regular Lorazepam prescriptions in elderly residents of a…

2 February 2024

Achieving operation excellence and strategic impact

Our adoption of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS) Procurement Excellence Programme has significantly increased operational control.…

29 January 2024

Understanding performance drivers across urgent care pathways

Our Business Intelligence team in partnership with Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board, revolutionised data management and decision-making processes within the urgent care…

17 January 2024

Improving frailty care through data innovation

We developed an innovative, interactive dashboard that has significantly enhanced the delivery and effectiveness of frailty care in Lancashire…

22 December 2023

Improving workforce sustainability at an NHS foundation trust

Our Organisational Development team implemented a dynamic five-year integrated workforce plan at an NHS foundation trust, resulting in a…

19 December 2023

Supporting the transition to an integrated care board

Our Digital Transformation team’s expertise in programme management significantly enhanced an integrated care system’s readiness for the 2023 integrated…

13 December 2023

Enhancing programme management office functions at Lancashire and South Cumbria integrated care system

Our Digital Transformation team’s in-depth review and strategic guidance significantly improved Lancashire and South Cumbria integrated care system’s programme…

13 November 2023

Navigating winter challenges with a proactive resilience strategy

Our strategy in navigating winter challenges enabled real-time monitoring and prompt adjustments in urgent and emergency care capacity, significantly…

10 November 2023

Enhancing equality impact assessments at Terrence Higgins Trust

The Inclusion Unit’s workshops significantly improved Terrence Higgins Trust’s approach to equality impact assessments, fostering deeper engagement, understanding, and…

9 November 2023

Driving healthcare transformation through data-driven intelligence

We achieved a system-wide enhancement in healthcare service delivery, decision-making efficiency, and operational effectiveness through advanced data management and…

3 November 2023

Examining health inequalities among people with learning disabilities in Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland

This study revealed significant health disparities among people with learning disabilities in Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland, prompting targeted prevention…

13 October 2023

Empowering Rose: Court of Protection and exemplary application of the Mental Capacity Act

We supported an integrated care board (ICB) to assess the mental capacity of a patient with complex issues, represented…

13 October 2023

Strengthening Dudley Integrated Health and Care Trusts operations through programme management

Our programme management capabilities significantly enhanced the operations of Dudley Integrated Health and Care Trust, ensuring timely project completion…

10 October 2023

Supporting an integrated care board’s achievement of the race equality code quality mark

Our collaboration resulted in Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board (ICB) becoming the first Integrated Care Board in the…

27 September 2023

IT integration and facility upgrade for the Shawbirch Medical Centre

Our Digital Transformation team seamlessly transitioned Shawbirch Medical Centre to their new facility, introducing advanced IT systems, successfully integrating…

25 September 2023

Digital roadmap for implementing a primary care network clinical system hub

We helped implement a clinical system hub which led to significant cost savings, enhanced efficiency, and halved GP time…

21 September 2023

Stopping over medication of people with a learning disability, autism or both (STOMP) 

We tackled overmedication in individuals with learning disabilities and autism by upskilling primary care pharmacists, facilitating structured medication reviews,…

25 August 2023

Preventing cardiovascular diseases through lipid therapy modification 

We adopted a systematic strategy to identify primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease which resulted in enhanced lipid…

17 August 2023

Improving the safety of patients prescribed clozapine

Our partnership with a local mental health trust resulted in advancements in addressing inadequate clozapine documentation, leading to improved…

14 August 2023

Improving outcomes for vulnerable residents in Lancashire and South Cumbria

Our Business Intelligence team’s data-driven approach led to: improved care access, lowered acute service demand, and empowered patients, making…

2 August 2023

Inhaler prescribing errors: Identifying risks and improving patient safety

We improved patient safety and raised awareness across GPs, hospitals and community pharmacy of the risks of prescribing inhalers…

31 July 2023

Improving epilepsy services and reducing health inequalities

We brought together patients, experts and care system partners to identify areas of concern which contribute to premature avoidable…

18 July 2023

Bespoke coaching to support staff through new or difficult situations 

We supported staff through challenging situations, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, organisational change, and developing communication skills which resulted…

17 July 2023

Understanding mental health attendance in Emergency Departments

Our dashboard on mental health attendance in Emergency Departments empowered commissioners and providers to identify care variations, establish baselines,…

5 July 2023

NHS-funded nursing care reviews

Efficiently completing overdue NHS-funded nursing care reviews within budget, our team ensured individuals’ health and social care needs were…

26 June 2023

Enhancing elective surgery outcomes

Our expertise in information governance has played a crucial role in improving surgical outcomes through the Surgery Hero project,…

22 June 2023

Patient flow efficiency in five acute and community trusts

We successfully improved patient flow efficiency in five acute and community trusts, achieving zero ambulance delays, reducing handover times,…

22 June 2023

Medicines Safety Assurance Tool (MSAT), developed in 2014 and still in demand

We introduced the MSAT in 2014 which has since been further developed and fully utilised supporting organisations with systematic…

15 June 2023

Increasing patient referrals to the National Diabetes Prevention Programme

By implementing effective strategies, we increased patient referrals to the National Diabetes Prevention Programme. The number of primary care…

23 May 2023

Supporting the delivery of the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICS green plan 

Our support in developing the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICS green plan resulted in a robust and deliverable plan that…

12 May 2023

Support for ICB’s ledger build: Streamlining the transition to an integrated single financial environment

We streamlined the transition to an integrated single financial environment for 11 clinical commissioning groups to integrated care boards…

9 May 2023

E-learning product on net-zero carbon emissions target

Our e-learning product on net-zero carbon emissions raised awareness amongst staff of both organisational and national net-zero targets and…

3 May 2023

Using geo-spatial analysis to determine the impact of a hospital service reconfiguration

We provided detailed geo-spatial analysis that was central to determining the impact on patients in a complex hospital service…

28 April 2023

Positive impact of physiotherapy pilot programme 

We increased the coverage of physiotherapy services from approximately 3% to 15% and improved communication and reporting, resulting in…

14 April 2023

Risk and governance processes review and recommendations

We provided specialist support to an acute trust to accelerate improvement by developing a risk management program to reduce…

11 April 2023

From strategy to execution: Delivering a comprehensive digital transformation investment plan

We prepared a comprehensive three-year Digital Transformation Investment Plan that seamlessly integrated into the full Integrated Care Board (ICB)…

3 April 2023

Enhancing clinical audit processes: A review of an acute trust

We made a significant impact on an acute trust’s clinical audit processes by providing a thorough diagnostic report and…

30 March 2023

Improving risk management in an Acute Trust: A case study of streamlining internal processes

We undertook a diagnostic review that optimised the underutilised features of a risk management system and simplified data capture,…

23 March 2023

Transforming healthcare: Developing Integrated Service Models for the Shrewsbury Health and Wellbeing Hub

We supported the development of a new Health and Wellbeing Hub in Shrewsbury by designing and agreeing on integrated…

20 March 2023

Evaluating a digital tool to manage caseload and care in community mental health​

We helped reduce mental health crisis rates and optimise user flows by introducing a new data capture tool, evaluating…

16 March 2023

Maximising value for limited funding: Efficiency analysis for COPD pathway

By analysing the results from stakeholder decision conferences along with the STAR tool, we empowered ICSs to efficiently allocate…

14 March 2023

A pledge to being green: NHS Midlands and Lancashire staff share personal and professional pledges…

Empowering NHS Midlands and Lancashire (NHS ML) staff to make personal and professional pledges for a sustainable future A…

9 March 2023

Our Way Of Working: Embedding a new agile and flexible organisational culture at NHS Midlands and…

Through extensive engagement and consultation processes, and a robust communications strategy, we successfully fostered a culture of agility and…

6 March 2023

Implementing the NHS smoking cessation service at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

We provided support to the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, enabling them to become an early adopter of…

3 March 2023

Developing shared values for a new PCN

We helped a primary care network create and establish a new set of shared meaningful values developed by staff…

26 January 2023

Using automation to reduce waiting lists across two ICSs

Using a combination of automated chatbot, robotic process automation and human call agents, we helped trusts within two integrated…

17 January 2023

Prioritising health and wellbeing to improve morale and performance

Our health and wellbeing strategy has proven to have improved the morale and performance of our staff. It was…

16 January 2023

Bringing partners together to ensure data protection for lung health checks

We helped a programme targeting ex-smokers with lung health checks to complete information governance procedures and ensure personal data…

13 January 2023

Raising awareness of health inequalities in the Midlands

We raised awareness of health inequalities among the 11 integrated care systems in the Midlands through promoting the government’s…

3 January 2023

Discovering the requirements for implementing a common electronic patient record

Through over 330 hours of focused work on engagement and gap analysis, we identified and consolidated the requirements for…

16 December 2022

Empowering people living with pain to explore alternatives

We helped the Black Country Integrated Care Board deliver an engagement campaign to help people living with chronic pain…

15 December 2022

An innovative, accessible website for Norfolk and Waveney ICS

Our team delivered an innovative, interactive and accessible website to inform and educate patients and the public about the…

8 December 2022

Improving the quality of care at a nursing home in Lancashire

Our Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes team conducted structured medication reviews of patients at a nursing home, avoiding potential…

28 November 2022

Utilising independent sector capacity to reduce waiting lists

We procured independent sector hospital capacity to divert patients at the point of referrals from NHS trusts to prevent…

9 November 2022

Improving communications reporting through an interactive, visual dashboard

Our interactive visual dashboard helped the NHS Leadership Academy report more easily and more clearly engagement with their website…

8 November 2022

Streamlining the month-end close process at an NHS trust

We reduced the month-end process by four days at an NHS trust and introduced new process to streamline payments…

31 October 2022

In-house team applies learning from SEO training to improve performance of new websites

We created a range of bespoke materials to deliver SEO training to the Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board…

25 October 2022

Delivering elective care planning support to every ICS in the country

We helped NHS England roll out a programme of planning support for the increase and improvement of elective care…

21 October 2022

Developing an accessible, user-friendly new website for Lincolnshire ICB

Designing and developing a new website for the Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board, we created an interactive platform for the…

14 October 2022

Safety Siren monitors quality at the system level

We developed an alert which scans a whole health system for areas of health quality concern that need to…

29 September 2022

Monitoring urgent care and COVID-19 data through OTiS Tactical

Our flexible OTiS Tactical tool is helping integrated care systems to monitor emerging pressures on urgent and emergency care…

23 September 2022

Digital leadership for Lancashire and South Cumbria’s New Hospitals Programme

We have been supporting the Lancashire and South Cumbria’s New Hospitals Programme to design and deliver digital infrastructures to…

21 September 2022

Bringing back staff to continuing healthcare

A project to bring back a considerable number of staff to complete outstanding continuing healthcare assessments attracted skilled people…

15 August 2022

Improving health outcomes using our population health management tool

Using our population health management tool, we have helped identify people with clinical and social issues across Lancashire and…

2 August 2022

Implementing financial reporting tools at the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust

Our support has resulted in a significant improvement in the quality of financial information held. Background The Finance Department…

22 July 2022

Pharmacy support to Lancashire and South Cumbria COVID-19 vaccination programme

We provided insight to clinical enquiries, produced reports and worked to develop standard operating procedures to help improve patient…

20 July 2022

Improving high-dose opioid prescribing

We helped Greater Preston and Chorley & South Ribble Clinical Commissioning Groups significantly reduce high-dose opioid prescribing, bringing it…

18 July 2022

Cost saving and wider expertise with HR services at scale

We provide a centralised HR function to five integrated care boards which ensures that better quality and a wider…

8 July 2022

Digitally enabling blood pressure monitoring at home

We helped the Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System increase patients measuring their blood pressure at home, delivering a…

7 July 2022

Improving medicines safety in Wirral care homes

Our medicines management and optimisation team improved safety and care for elderly Wirral care home residents, helped to prevent…

1 July 2022

Facilitating wellbeing conversations with health and care staff: Be Well Midlands

We helped health and care leaders in the Midlands to take a transparent, collaborative approach to uncovering opportunities for…

1 June 2022

Enabling remote healthcare monitoring in Black Country and West Birmingham

We designed and implemented a programme of transformation to enable remote monitoring across healthcare in the Black Country and…

27 May 2022

Improving care for people with learning disabilities and autism

We codesigned and delivered a transformation programme for the improvement of care for people with learning disabilities and/or autism.…

24 May 2022

Achieving the best from primary care network pharmacy teams

We provided a tailored package of strategic and operational support to a newly formed pharmacy team at a primary…

18 May 2022

Discovering efficiencies and service improvements in Leicestershire

We helped an NHS trust analyse and visualise data on key performance indicators with the aim of releasing efficiencies…

17 May 2022

Recovering hospital utility costs

We are helping hospital trusts identify the potential to recover energy costs from telecom devices mounted on the roofs…

10 May 2022

COVID-19 vaccine safety at primary care network vaccination centres

We ensured that vaccination centres functioned with safety at the highest level by training staff and providing ongoing senior…

25 April 2022

Helping a COVID-19 vaccination programme provide an efficient and equitable service

Our business intelligence experts helped the Lancashire and South Cumbria COVID-19 Vaccination Programme to provide an efficient and equitable…

7 April 2022

Informing COVID-19 vaccination centres’ geographical planning

Our dynamic heat maps showed where vaccine uptake was lower, where there was a higher concentration of social care…

5 April 2022

Increasing the uptake of health checks for patients with severe mental illness

We helped integrated care systems increase numbers of annual physicals health checks for patients with severe mental illness by…

4 April 2022

Helping North Staffordshire Trust pay suppliers

We quickly mobilised financial services helping an NHS Trust to process and pay supplier invoices. Background In April 2021,…

31 March 2022

Integrating data for the Combined Intelligence for Population Health Action (CIPHA) platform

We helped key stakeholders in the Cheshire and Merseyside health system see combined intelligence reports on capacity and demand…

22 March 2022

Support to tackle bullying, harassment and discrimination in the workplace

We facilitated the design of and implemented a bespoke online tool to make it easier for staff to report…

18 March 2022

Success in setting up community pharmacy services

We helped commissioners with medicines management expertise in setting up and maintaining community pharmacy services, freeing up capacity across…

15 March 2022

Embedding equalities and inclusive decision making in the LLR system

We helped an integrated care system implement a framework for making decisions that addresses bias and improves how equality…

10 March 2022

Improving equity and equality in maternity and neonatal care

We combined national metrics and local NHS, council and third sector data to help health systems understand where there…

2 March 2022

Improving use of medicines across Merseyside – Pan Mersey Area Prescribing Committee

We had another successful year in 2020/21 at the Pan Mersey Area Prescribing Committee promoting the safe and efficient…

11 February 2022

Assessing demand for COVID-19 LAMP testing

We helped an integrated care system to evaluate demand and capacity for COVID-19 LAMP testing to ensure labs could…

7 February 2022

Evaluating the national Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes programme

We evaluated the impact of the national Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes programme. Background The national Medicines Optimisation in…

7 February 2022

Taking an integrated approach to equality and inclusion planning

We helped the council and clinical commissioning group in Trafford to develop a joint five-year equality, diversity and inclusion…

4 February 2022

Leading a hospital transformation programme

We developed a strategic outline case setting out the ambitions and next steps in one of the NHS’s largest…

2 February 2022

Incontinence medication reviews offer major patient benefits

We enabled medication reviews of patients with long-term prescriptions for urinary incontinence medication which enabled clinicians to recommend ‘drug…

2 February 2022

Boosting GP community pharmacy consultations

Our work supporting implementation of the GP Community Pharmacy Consultation Service in the East of England led to a…