End of an Era - Halton and St Helens PCT

Locally four consortia representing GPs from across the two boroughs have beencharged with the responsibility to drive forward the Government’s ambitions.Already they are working on several ambitious schemes to improve services andcare they deliver to patients.Under the new arrangements the PCT will form part of a new ‘Mersey’ clustertogether with Liverpool, Sefton and Knowsley PCT’s.Dr Steve Cox, Local GP and Medical Director with NHS Halton and St Helens said‘This is a fantastic opportunity for colleagues within general practice to work withcolleagues in the PCT, to develop patient services. The NHS reforms have beengreatly welcomed by GPs who believe that GP Commissioning Consortia canmake a real difference.”Andrew Burgess, Chief Executive of NHS Halton and St Helens said “Todaymarks the end of an era. I shall be sorry to see our community services go butappreciate that it must happen and I wish them well. I am very excited by thefuture and the opportunity for us, as commissioners, to drive improvements inhealthcare. However, it is critical during this period of complex change that wecontinue to deliver high standards of care for our patients and this remains ourcentral priority.”The newly extended Ashton, Leigh and Wigan Community Healthcare NHS Trustwill change its name to Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Trust to reflectthe fact that from 1 st April it incorporates community service providers fromHalton and St Helens, Ashton, Leigh and Wigan, Warrington and Trafford will beresponsible for delivering a network of high quality patient focused NHS serviceswithin the communities they live.Its creation is the direct result of far reaching Government reforms which requireall PCTs across the country to divest themselves of responsibility for theprovision of services.Heading up the newly extended community NHS Trust is Dr Kate Fallon, ChiefExecutive. She said “I am delighted to be able to welcome colleagues from