I frequently use my mum as a frame of reference when thinking about what multispecialty community providers (MCPs) are doing to improve care and support for patients and communities.
As a “young” 74-year-old she has, like others of her generation, developed long term, disabling or limiting conditions. For her, this means more interactions with health and social care services.
Whilst I have worked in both commissioner and provider roles in organisations across the NHS for over 20 years, I have equally learnt significantly from my mum’s experiences as a patient.
As a patient (and my mum), I understand that she expects a person centred experience that recognises her individual goals. The trust she has in her GP and other health professionals is paramount to understanding her condition and self-care, enabling her to manage diabetes and high blood pressure, whilst balancing the desire to maintain her independence.
Understanding of her conditions and independence are vital to her overall a sense of wellbeing.
This is why my work with the multispecialty community provider, where care is built around the patient and the wider registered population, is so important. Because of my mum’s experiences, I recognise that care and support needs to be delivered in a way that recognises the needs of the individual but also the wider determinants of their health.
This is a key feature of many of the vanguards who are bringing together the rich insights of different professionals, clinical and non-clinical, health, social care and voluntary or community sector to develop support which more accurately reflects the way people live. These services operate within and work with the local community and make it easier for people to access the services they need.
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