Published on: 15 May 2019
Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust hosted two of the most senior figures in the country’s health sector – including the head of the NHS in England.
The Trust had the honour of showcasing its work for Simon Stevens, Chief Executive Officer of NHS England, and Saffron Cordery, Deputy Chief Executive of NHS Providers, at its Kingsway Hospital site in Derby.
As CEO of NHS England, Simon Stevens leads the NHS’s work nationally to improve health and ensure 
high quality care for all, as reflected in the current NHS Long Term Plan. As the NHS Accounting Officer he is accountable to Parliament for more than £100 billion of annual Health Service funding.
Simon – along with Dale Bywater, NHS England and NHS Improvement’s Regional Director for the Midlands – met members of the Trust team that works with Derbyshire GPs, nurses and healthcare providers to ensure that people with learning disabilities are able to access NHS services in a timely and effective way.
Experts by experience
The team, called the Learning Disabilities Strategic Health Facilitation Team, ensures that people with learning disabilities are able to benefit from GP annual health checks, cancer screening tests and dental appointments – thereby preventing health problems before they become serious and, as a result, directly meeting some of the ambitions of the Long Term Plan.
The team employs people with learning disabilities to advise GPs and other health professionals on the simple adjustments they can make to help people with learning disabilities – and two of these experts by experience were present to meet Simon Stevens today, to share their knowledge.
Simon also met with wider Trust colleagues working in Derbyshire Healthcare’s psychiatric liaison team at Royal Derby Hospital, who support hospital staff by providing specialist mental health care to individuals receiving care across hospital services, including A&E.
Pictured with Simon Stevens (fourth left) are (from left) Debbie Edwards (Acute Liaison Nurse), Ifti Majid (Trust Chief Executive), Jackie Fleeman (Lead Strategic Health Facilitator), Adam Chilcott (Assistant Strategic Health Facilitator), Dan Walmsley (Assistant Strategic Health Facilitator), Rachel Johnson (Strategic Health Facilitator) and Dale Bywater (NHS England and NHS Improvement Regional Director – Midlands).
Patient-focused care
Saffron Cordery, Deputy Chief Executive of NHS Providers, spent the day at Kingsway Hospital meeting Derbyshire Healthcare’s Board of Directors and visiting the Trust’s inpatient unit for people with acute needs due to dementia. NHS Providers is the membership organisation and trade association for NHS foundation trusts, and helps these NHS trusts to deliver high-quality, patient-focused care by learning from each other and helping to shape the system i
n which they operate.
Saffron Cordery said: “I love coming out to visit member Trusts. The most important thing, working in a national membership organisation, is being in touch with what’s going on, on the front line. I have been inspired and educated by what I have seen today, and I will take back my learning to my team and use it to help them do their jobs better.”
Derbyshire Healthcare’s Chief Executive Ifti Majid said: “Today has been a marvellous opportunity to talk about the great work that our staff here at Derbyshire Healthcare are doing on a day-to-day basis with two senior figures shaping our national health agenda.
"I’m so pleased that both Simon and Saffron have been able to meet face-to-face with our colleagues, service users and experts by experience. As a Trust, we are delighted to have had the opportunity to showcase some of our current successes and discuss how we intend to improve and develop in the future.”
Saffron Cordery (front left) is pictured with Trust colleagues who work at Cubley Court, the Trust's assessment and treatment unit for older people with dementia.
