- Annual Members’ Meeting highlights progress made across Bolton NHS Foundation Trust despite continued NHS pressures.
- Improvements in patient care, safety and access, including thousands of hospital admissions avoided through community care.
- Plans made to improve quality, performance and sustainability over the next three years.
This week we held our Annual Members’ Meeting (AMM); an opportunity to reflect on the past year, share our performance and discuss our priorities for the future with the public, our governors and our members.
As an NHS Foundation Trust, the Annual Members’ Meeting is an important part of how we remain accountable to our members, patients, staff and local communities. It provides an opportunity to be open about our achievements, the challenges we have faced, and the steps we are taking to improve services for the people of Bolton.
Despite continued pressures and challenges across the NHS, we have also made a number of improvements over the last 12 months that are making a real difference to patient care and experience.
Looking back – our highlights
- Improvements in quality, including reductions in falls and hospital cardiac arrests, and the elimination of Category 4 inpatient pressure ulcers.
- More than 4,400 hospital admissions avoided through community-based initiatives, including Hospital at Home, IV therapy services and the launch of Call Before You Convey with North-West Ambulance Service (NWAS).
- Expansion of robotic-assisted surgery, introduction of AI-supported prostate cancer diagnosis, and the rollout of our electronic patient record across outpatient and community services.
- Reduced waits for treatment through the introduction of new diagnostic services at the Community Diagnostic Centre.
- Enhanced support for children and families through partnership working across Bolton’s Family Hubs and Early Years settings.
- Continued investment in our estate and facilities, including the opening of a new Intermediate Care Unit, progress on major redevelopment projects such as maternity and laboratory services, and improvements to wards and clinical environments.
Professor Fiona Noden, Chief Executive of Bolton NHS Foundation Trust said:
“When we stop to look back on the past year, there is a great deal to be proud of. However, we know we are not where we want to be.
“I genuinely believe we have a real opportunity over the next three years. I want people in Bolton to receive care that is amongst the best in the NHS.
“We serve over 300,000 people, and nearly half of them live in the most deprived communities in the country. Our ambition is simple: better, fairer outcomes for everyone.
“We are committed to delivering outstanding care, supporting our staff, and working with partners across Bolton to improve health and wellbeing for our communities. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to the progress we have made and look forward to building on these achievements in the year ahead.”
Where we go next
Our three-year plan to improve the quality of care we provide, enhance patient experience, strengthen operational performance and ensure our services remain sustainable for the future is already underway. We’ve already made some difficult decisions and significant changes.
We’ve reduced our reliance on temporary staffing and changed how we work across many of our services. We’ve also strengthened our data and coding so that we’re getting an accurate picture of the work we do and the people we serve.
These foundations will help us to redesign our services so that we improve how the whole organisation works; from quality, urgent and planned care, outpatients, community services, income, workforce and our corporate services and estate.
In practical terms, that will mean fewer people being admitted to hospital when they don’t need to be, fewer delays to getting the care you need, better use of theatres and clinics, and more care closer to home.
This all must be done alongside delivering the best possible value with the money we have to spend.
We’ll be sharing more about our improvement journey, and what it means for you and your families, in the coming months.
Thank you to everyone who joined the meeting and to all those who continue to support our Trust. We remain committed to delivering outstanding care and improving the health and wellbeing of the communities we serve.
