PEOPLE in Farnham are to benefit from almost £5 million of further national funding to continue to transform the way health and care is delivered.

The money has been awarded by NHS England to the North East Hampshire and Farnham Vanguard, a group of NHS, local government, voluntary, community and other organisations driving a new model of health and social care across the region.

It is hoped this new ‘Happy, Healthy at Home’ model will improve the healthcare people receive and prevent ill health, whilst reducing pressure on busy GP and A&E services.

Dr Andy Whitfield, chairman of NHS North East Hampshire and Farnham Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “We are delighted that we have received further funding for our programme.

“This is a great endorsement for the projects that are already under way as well as the plans we have in place to improve health care for local people.

“Our programme aims to keep people happy, healthy and at home. Local people are supported to improve their own health and wellbeing and when they are ill or need support, they will receive the best possible joined-up care, in the best location for them.”

The Happy, Healthy at Home programme is:

• helping people to manage their own health conditions, empowering them to make choices about their care and ensure the right services are available to all our communities;

• building teams to ensure joined-up care for patients, especially those who are vulnerable or have complex needs. They include community nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, social workers, a psychiatric nurse, a lead psychiatrist, a pharmacist, a geriatrician, GPs, the voluntary sector, and specialists in palliative care and domiciliary care. These teams have been running since July 2015 and are located in Aldershot, Farnham, Farnborough, Fleet and Yateley;

• delivering more and better services in the community, by growing the community teams we have developed and supporting GP surgeries and local community hospitals to deliver a wider range of services; and

• providing better access into and out of specialist inpatient care in community hospitals (such as in Farnham and Fleet) as well as Frimley Park Hospital.

Samantha Jones, director of the new care models programme for NHS England, said: “The vanguards are making great progress and have already made a tangible impact on the lives of patients and the working lives of staff.

“2017/18 is a crucial year for the vanguards, in particular how we further spread their work across the wider NHS and care services. This funding, as well as the support we offer to them, will help them to continue to move at pace.”

To find out more about the Happy, Healthy at Home programme visit the website www.happyhealthyathome.org.