Ealing Community Partners (ECP)

Our intention was to show that working in partnership benefits patients, carers, and their families, and we’re trying to improve the standard of care that people are receiving as well as delivering it more efficiently.

Christopher Hilton, Clinical Director for Integrated Care

About the partnership

1. Ealing Community Partners is a group of NHS, Ealing Council, and voluntary organisations working together to deliver community health and care services in Ealing, established in July 2019.

What has gone well

1. Staff report improved joint working across teams with benefits for patients.
2. Working with partners to build on new developments to iterate further improvements.
3. At a strategic level, partners reported the development of ECP has reinvigorated wider joint working.
4. Comprehensive clinical governance arrangements for ECP have been implemented, with the relevant service line reporting regularly on its performance to the Quality, Finance and Performance and the Workforce and organisational development sub-committees.

Challenges experiences and overcome

1. Like many NHS Organisations, Ealing Community Partners faced unprecedented pressures throughout the COVID -19 pandemic. Whilst a challenge, the service line together with their partners, embedded new and innovative ways of providing meaningful patient care whilst ensuring they met increased demand across the sector.
2. At both a strategic and functional level, Ealing Community Partners have supported the successful delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine to the Ealing community. The service line has been widely praised for its integrated and creative desensitisation programme, which has helped to support patients with needle phobia to have the vaccine.

Results

1. Ealing Community Partners brought together over 800 staff from across 13 organisations to deliver over 100,000 episodes of care in its first year of operation.
2. The Partners’ Referral Hub manages over 13,000 referrals per month – simplifying access to community services for professionals in primary care and residents.
3. The group have developed new ways of delivering care, for example video consultations.
4. Patients can access a ‘one stop shop’ model of holistic care – making getting the right support easier.

What made the difference

1. Digital technology: including devices which enable remote working, and transfer of records to the Partners at the launch of the contract.
2. Contracting: Ealing Community Partners are commissioned via a single joined up contract, with West London NHS Trust acting as the lead provider.
3. Engagement and communications: the Partners’ planned and held a range of communications and engagement events with staff and broader stakeholders, for example, welcome events for new staff transferring to the partnership.