This in from the IW NHS, in their own words. Ed
It has been announced today that the Chief Executive of the Southampton, Hampshire, Isle of Wight and Portsmouth (SHIP) PCT cluster will be Debbie Fleming, who is currently the Chief Executive of Hampshire PCT.
NHS Isle of Wight Chairman, Danny Fisher, was a member of the interview panel. PCTs are due to be abolished on 31 March 2013 and the aim of the clustering is to ensure PCTs continue to be resilient during the transition, as well as help secure the right conditions for the establishment of successful GP consortia, Health and Well Being Boards and future arrangements for public health.
Other appointments to follow
The appointment was confirmed by Sir David Nicholson, chief executive of the National Health Service.
The appointment of finance directors and the remainder of the cluster executive teams will follow shortly.
Board will oversee management
NHS Isle of Wight Chief Executive Kevin Flynn said: “The clustering of the commissioning activities of Primary Care Trusts will provide stability and help to ensure their activities are resilient until they hand over those responsibilities to GP Commissioning Consortia in April 2013. Uniquely NHS Isle of Wight as a Primary Care Trust provides a wide range of services to Islanders and visitors and will continue to do so.
“The Primary Trust Board will continue to oversee the management of the NHS on the Island and I will remain the ‘accountable officer’ for the NHS on the Island for the services we provide. We will continue to work collaboratively with our colleagues in Southampton, Hampshire and Portsmouth on the commissioning of healthcare. I would like to warmly congratulate Debbie on her appointment as chief executive of the new SHIP cluster and we look forward to supporting her in that roll.”
Cluster will affect 100 IW staff
Circa 100 NHS Isle of Wight staff including two Executive Directors – the Director of Commissioning and Director of Public Health and Chief Medical Adviser for the Island – are affected by the decision to cluster the commissioning activities of Primary Care Trusts in advance of their abolition.
Around 3,200 staff work on the Island in areas providing health services and they along with the other Executive Directors at NHS Isle of Wight form part of the ‘provider services’ on the Island which must become a Foundation NHS Trust by April 2013. NHS Isle of Wight, with the support of the South Central Strategic Health Authority and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, has been undertaking a provider options appraisal to help determine the shape and size of a Foundation NHS Trust for the Island.
More information can be found online.
Island GPs have decided that there will be a single GP Commissioning Consortia for the Island and elections were held recently to the Consortium’s Executive Board.
