Elective Care Improvements – Have Your Say

by Karen Tuckley

The Black Country Provider Collaborative (BCPC) – a partnership between Walsall, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell and West Birmingham, NHS Trusts – is currently developing ideas to improve planned (elective) care. As part of this, communities across the Black Country will have the opportunity to help shape planned healthcare services to better meet their needs and are being asked to take part in a survey – https://blackcountryprovidercollaborative.nhs.uk/developments/engagement-consultations/opportunity-to-help-shape-healthcare-services/

The BCPC is working to:

  • Manage rising demand for services
  • Improve access and patient experience
  • Deliver more joined up (integrated), patient-centred care

It has identified the funding needed to potentially set up a dedicated elective (planned) care surgical hub at Sandwell Health Campus. This would see Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust and Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust bring together some of their surgical services at Sandwell Health Campus to carry out simple/routine procedures for general surgery, orthopaedics and gynaecology.

The survey is open to patients on the waiting list for services which could move from Dudley to the new Sandwell Hub, as well as local residents, stakeholders and community groups.

Please take just a few minutes to fill in the survey and share with your families and friends across the Black Country, as the BCPC needs as much feedback as possible to help inform its plans.

The closing date for the survey is 27th July 2025.

Meanwhile, here’s some more information about elective surgical hubs:

What is an elective surgical hub?

  • Elective surgical hubs are an important part of plans across the NHS to increase surgical capacity and to offer hundreds of thousands more patients quicker access to some of the most common procedures.
  • Hubs focus mainly on providing ‘high volume low complexity’ surgery.
  • They bring together skills and expertise of staff under one roof – reducing waiting times for some of the most common procedure. These operations can be performed quickly and effectively in one place.
  • Improving quality and efficiency will mean patients have shorter waits for surgery, will be more likely to go home on the same day, and will be less likely to need additional treatment after surgery.

As the hubs are separated from emergency services at other hospital sites, surgical beds are kept free for patients waiting for planned operations, reducing the risk of short-notice cancellations due to other emergency admissions taking priority.

As part of their engagement activity, they will be seeking the views of patients on the waiting list for services which could move from Dudley to the new Sandwell Hub along with seeking the views of local residents, stakeholders and community groups. Feedback will then be used to inform their plans moving forwards.

For more information please visit the website  https://blackcountryprovidercollaborative.nhs.uk/developments/engagement-consultations/opportunity-to-help-shape-healthcare-services/