Health shake up set for Rochdale

Five health services in Rochdale are under review in a bid to standardise treatments throughout Greater Manchester.

The Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), is one of 12 CCGs in Greater Manchester where bosses are planning changes to treatments.

The treatments being reviewed are:

• Body Contouring 
• Cataract Surgery 
• Hyperhidrosis (excess sweating) 
• Injections for non specific or undiagnosed low back pain 
• Pelvic vain embolisation 

It is a review which aims to ensure that all healthcare providers in Greater Manchester offer the same treatments.

Dr Andrew Bracegirdle, chairman of the Greater Manchester EUR steering group and a Middleton GP, said: “Every clinical commissioning group in Greater Manchester has a duty to provide the best care for the maximum number of people, so it is vital to make every penny count.

“This means funding treatments that have been demonstrated to have a high likelihood of benefit and a low likelihood of harm. As a result, each CCG has a series of effective use of resources (EUR) policies, which indicate what they routinely provide funding for.

“Currently, each locality has their own set of policies, and the level of service routinely offered for a specific treatment can vary from borough to borough.

“In order to reduce this variance, all 12 CCGs in the region are being supported by the Greater Manchester Commissioning Support Unit (GMCSU) to review existing EUR policies and develop new ones. This work will help to ensure that people across the whole of Greater Manchester are able to access these treatments in a fair and equitable manner.

“In some areas this may mean an increase in treatments offered through the NHS for certain services, while in others there may be the potential for a reduction.” It is understood that before any final decision is made, a period of consultation will be undertaken and will involve the views of patients, clinicians, carers and the general public.

Dr Bracegirdle added: “As a result, any potential change in policy will be preceded by a period of consultation. Feedback from the consultation will then be evaluated by the CCGs and used to inform the final policy. The best place to access the consultations is through your local CCG’s website.”