Emergency admissions to hospital have been reduced thanks to an initiative that has seen healthcare workers take to the streets of Lancaster and Morecambe.
A coalition of NHS partners led by Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB), primary care settings, voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector organisations and community groups got together in 2023 to tackle a long-standing problem.
In the Poulton, Skerton West, Westgate, Harbour, Heysham North, and Overton wards, emergency admissions to hospital had been identified as being disproportionately high.
The team set about addressing persistent health inequalities affecting people in those areas in an effort to bridge the gap between healthcare services and the people who needed them most but were least likely to engage.
Data shows that targeted streets in the Poulton ward and Ryelands estate in Skerton West - the two wards that the team have focused their efforts on so far - saw an 11 per cent and five percent reduction in urgent and emergency care attendance respectively.
In Poulton, there was also a seven per cent reduction in associated costs compared to similar areas without this approach.
Claire Niebieski, head of population health for Lancashire North at the ICB, said: “Our data showed that emergency admissions were higher in several wards, and the challenge became clear to us; many residents didn’t know how to access services, they didn’t realise they needed them or were simply overwhelmed by life’s pressures to properly engage.
“Some used services in ways that didn’t meet their needs, while others avoided them altogether. All of these things can eventually lead to someone being admitted into emergency care.
“Our team didn’t wait for people to come to them - instead, they went out into parks, schools, community groups, and knocking on doors in Poulton and Skerton West, offering health checks, supporting those living in damp or overcrowded housing and referring people to foodbanks and other local services.
‘’They helped create communal spaces to foster health through play and connection.
“The work has been a big success and we’ve seen a good reduction in the number of emergency admissions in those wards.
‘’For some of those people who have benefited from this approach, they would otherwise have been at high risk of repeated A&E visits, prolonged hospital stays, delayed discharges, and multiple long-term conditions - all leading to escalating costs and declining health.”
The NHS team, which included local Integrated Care Community leads, and Primary Care Network outreach nurses, aided by Lancaster Community Voluntary Solutions and other members of the VCFSE sector and the community groups, developed the ‘Lancaster District Enhanced Health Check and Health Inclusion Model’ that will be utilised in the remaining wards.
It is hoped can be rolled out across the Lancashire and South Cumbria region, in other areas where emergency admissions are higher.
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