New era for Rochdale Infirmary and local services as new NCA NHS Foundation Trust launches

Two of the largest trusts in Greater Manchester - Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust and The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust - will today, Friday (1 October) formally become one single NHS trust – known as the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust.

Staff at Rochdale Infirmary and those working across local community services across Rochdale brough will join staff in Oldham, Bury and Salford to mark the start of a 'new era' as the new trust becomes one of the largest NHS organisations in the country, employing over 20,000 staff.

As Salford Royal and Pennine Acute trusts have worked together as one organisation under a group arrangement (Northern Care Alliance NHS Group) since 2017, it is anticipated that the impact of the formal transfer and creation of the new trust will be minimal for both staff and patients.

Importantly, the names and identities of the trust’s four hospital sites will remain unchanged.

Following approval from the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the transfer will also mark the formal dissolution of the Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (PAT) which has been running as the local hospital trust provider for nearly 20 years, established in January 2002.

Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust will formally change its registered name to Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust.

Since Salford Royal has teamed up with Pennine Acute through the NCA Group over the past five years, the organisation has been on a journey to bring both services and staff together to help deliver significant improvements - including the quality of care and standards - which have been recognised by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 

 

 

Karen Archibald, lead nurse for integrated and community services at Rochdale Infirmary, celebrates 35 years with the organisation this week.

She said: “I’m celebrating 35 years working for Pennine Acute this week, from starting work with the local Rochdale Health Authority back in 1986, right through to working for the newly formed Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust today.

“A whole life’s career that I’m so proud to have had, working with some fantastic people and teams. Now we move into the new era of the NCA with hope, and optimism. Bring it on!”

The NCA brings together four hospitals, 2,000 beds, specialist and acute services, a range of associated community healthcare and social care services. The trust’s highly-skilled 20,000-strong workforce is made up of four care organisations, diagnostics and pharmacy services, and many other support teams, all dedicated to saving lives and improving lives.

The first part of the PAT transfer was completed on 1 April 2021 when North Manchester General Hospital was transferred to Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) as part of previous plans for the single hospital service for the City of Manchester and Trafford. 

 

 

The NCA is investing in and developing new digital technologies and systems, creating new models of care and integrated services, sharing skills and learning, and investing in its people and services.

Professor Michael Luger, Chair of Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This marks the start of a new era for our organisation and for everyone who works and volunteers across our hospitals and services.

“Today is a monumental day for the NCA. We formally transition from two trusts to a single, joined-up organisation - the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust.

“We are delighted that this day has arrived. A great deal of work has been going on behind the scenes, involving many of our teams, working with our partners, to bring us to this point. And we have already seen the benefits of bringing our staff and services together under one group over the past five years.

“We can now focus our attention and efforts on what is important – investing in and further transforming and integrating our services for our staff, patients and service users.

“The NCA will continue to take an active role across our four localities in Oldham, Bury, Rochdale and Salford, working with our place-based partners to drive further integration and improvements in the health outcomes of the communities we serve.

“I also want to thank our staff for everything they do every day for each other and for those who need our care. It is right that we come together today to recognise the exceptional hard undertaken and look forward to a positive future, together.”

Dr Roger Prudham, consultant gastroenterologist and lead cancer clinician for the NCA, based at Fairfield General Hospital in Bury, said: “This formal coming together of the two parts of our group – Pennine Acute and Salford Royal - is a pivotal moment for us. As a new combined NHS foundation trust we will see further investment and development across our services, giving us a real and significant opportunity to improve and transform, working with our local and Greater Manchester partners.

“I am hugely proud of the work we’ve done to improve cancer services, including the development of our rapid diagnostic centres across NCA, based in Rochdale and Salford and the imminent launch of community diagnostic hubs.  I’m hopeful and optimistic that as we recover from the pandemic the NCA is now in a stronger position than ever to help patients who need our care.”