2gether NHS Foundation Trust declares compliance with Healthcare Commission’s Standards for Better Health

At the Trust Board meeting on Friday 25th April 2008, 2gether NHS Foundation Trust Non Executive and Executive Directors considered if they had received sufficient assurance to declare full compliance with the Health Care Commission’s Standards for Better Health.

David McGrath, Director of Corporate Affairs said, “Using the guidance from the Healthcare Commission, the Trust Board has been given assurance by the evidence contained within the assurance framework that the organisation is fully compliant with the core standards of the Annual Health Check”.

Shaun Clee Chief Executive, said,  “Since last year’s Annual Health Check colleagues have undertaken a significant amount of work to ensure that we are continually improving our performance. The Trust has put in place a rigorous system to assure the Board that it meets the core standards and, in all of the 24 standards, we can declare full compliance. This is excellent news for the Trust and for the population of Gloucestershire, who can have confidence that the Trust is committed to providing the very highest quality health care. I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to all of our colleagues for their commitment and hard work and in particular to the Clinical and Managerial Directors who have provided the leadership and support to achive the necessary standards.  Our commitment to continual improvement is reflected in the ongoing work we are undertaking to address the developmental standards”.

To complete the self-assessment, the Trust  has closely reviewed its’ policies, procedures and practices and included comments from the Trusts’ Council of Governors, Patient and Public Involvement Forum, Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Safeguarding Children Board as a guide to help improve our services and consider areas for future development.

The annual health check is designed to give the public a more accurate picture of their local NHS healthcare organisation. Each Trust is measured against a set of 24 standards within the seven core categories below:

Safety
Clinical and cost effectiveness
Governance
Patient focus
Accessible and responsive care
Care environment and amenities
Public health

In the autumn of 2008, the Healthcare Commission with announce the results of the overall annual health check, rating the performance of all NHS Trusts to indicate whether their services are excellent, good, fair or weak.