NHS England and Ministers need to embrace Integrated Care Systems - The Yorkshire Post says

Integrated Care Systems are being developed with this in mind, bringing together the the NHS, local authorities and other partners to collectively take responsibility for planning services, bettering the nation’s health and dealing with geographical inequalities.

MPs have now warned, though, that urgent action needed to make sure this restructure realises its potential.

The Health and Social Care Committee says that while there is “genuine enthusiasm” for ICSs to deliver on challenges in the health and care sectors, there is also a “serious lack of clarity in some areas with risks that acute short-term pressures could be given priority over longer term ambitions such as preventing ill-health”.

Its new report says it is vital that the Government and NHS England should not dictate how ICSs deliver local outcomes.

The relevant authorities should take heed, because much is at stake. The King’s Fund charity, for example, has highlighted the disparities in health outcomes – pointing to shorter life expectancy in the north of England compared to the south. That must change.

The old saying about how ‘prevention is better than cure’ has never been more relevant and has to be wholeheartedly embraced to best serve people of all postcodes.