North Yorkshire and York residents reassured that they will be vaccinated against the flu

With flu season fast approaching, NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group and NHS Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group, along with local authorities want to reassure eligible patients that they will get their free NHS flu vaccination this year – and health partners are working together to ensure people in high risk groups get vaccinated.…

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Annual General Meeting is open to the public

Members of the public are invited to the Annual General Meeting of NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) on Tuesday 25 August. The event will be hosted virtually and will begin at 5pm. The event will cover the work of the three separate North Yorkshire CCGs from 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2020…

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Cancer Advice Line for Harrogate patients

In light of the Coronavirus pandemic Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust have launched a Cancer Advice Line for cancer patients in Harrogate and their families and carers. This advisory line signposts callers to specific information and address queries. It is staffed on a rota basis by administrative and nursing staff so that it has…

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New programme launched to prevent abusive head trauma injuries to babies

On 8 November, the Designated Nurses team  in North Yorkshire and York launched a new innovative programme to prevent abusive head trauma injuries to babies caused by shaking. ‘ICON – Babies Cry, You can Cope’ (ICON) is an evidenced-based programme designed to help parents and carers understand the normal crying pattern of young infants and to help them develop successful coping mechanisms.
The ICON programme has been initially funded by the four North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) and delivers four simple messages before the birth and in the first few months of a baby’s life which will be communicated by Midwifery and Health Visitor services :

I – Infant crying is normal;

C –Comforting methods can help;

O – It’s OK to walk away;

N – Never, ever shake a baby.

These ICON messages have been demonstrated to help parents and carers manage the stresses which can be caused by normal infant crying. Midwives, Health Visitors and other professionals across  the region have developed ICON expertise to help give parents and carers the tools they need to help keep their babies safe. They have also produced an information graphic around infant crying which can be found here.

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3 North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Groups announce appointments to strategic leadership team

The three North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) NHS Hambleton, Richmondshire and Whitby CCG, NHS Harrogate and Rural District CCG and NHS Scarborough and Ryedale CCG, today announce two appointments to their shared senior leadership team.

Wendy Balmain has joined the team as Director of Strategy and Integration. Wendy previously served as Director of Transformation and Delivery for Harrogate and Rural District CCG where she was responsible for delivering health care commissioning for the CCG and led work to integrate community and adult social care services. Wendy brings extensive experience across health and social care both at a national and local level to her new role. As Director of Strategy and Integration she will be responsible for primary care transformation and commissioning, including implementation of primary care networks, and will work closely with partners across North Yorkshire to expand integrated service models.

Simon Cox has been appointed permanent Director of Acute Commissioning. Simon has been serving in this role temporarily since January 2019. Prior to this he served as Chief Officer of NHS Scarborough and Ryedale CCG. Simon started his career as a practitioner in operating theatres in Leeds General Infirmary and brings thirty years of NHS experience to his new role. As Director of Acute Commissioning he will oversee the relationship with acute providers across the three North Yorkshire CCGs including commissioning and performance. He will also support transformation and service redesign initiatives ensuring that acute care best serves the needs of North Yorkshire.

Both Wendy and Simon have commenced in their new roles. Amanda Bloor, Accountable Officer for the North Yorkshire CCGs, said: “I am delighted that we have secured such talented senior leaders to work alongside me as we transform the way we deliver for the people of North Yorkshire.

“Wendy and Simon are the first directors to join the team which will provide strategic leadership for the three North Yorkshire CCGs, replacing director positions which were previously replicated across the CCGs. This ‘scaled up’ approach will enable us to work strategically with our partners as well as achieve consistent decision making across North Yorkshire for the people we serve.

“Both Wendy and Simon bring a wealth of health care and leadership experience and decades of public service to their new roles. They are committed to retaining the local focus of our work, delivering for local people, while enabling us to share good practice across North Yorkshire. This will enable us to make the most of our combined resources and contribute to better health outcomes for our community.”

In September 2018 the three CCGs’ Governing Bodies voted to introduce a shared senior leadership team across the three organisations. Recruitment is under way for three remaining positions on the new team:  Director of Vulnerable People, Director of Corporate service, Governance and Performance and Chief Nurse. Announcements will be made once appointments have taken place.

For further information contact the Communications Team at hardccg.media-enquiries@nhs.net or 01423 799300.

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