NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) will become responsible for the commissioning of community pharmacy, community optometry and NHS dental care services across our system from 1 April 2023.
These services have previously been commissioned and managed by NHS England. However, this change will allow NHS South Yorkshire to consider how those services can best serve our local communities and how the Integrated Care Strategy, recently launched by the Integrated Care Partnership, can support this.
Staff at NHS England who are currently responsible for commissioning and managing these services will continue to do so as part of the delegation agreement. It is anticipated that these staff will transfer to NHS South Yorkshire later this year.
NHS South Yorkshire and NHS England are currently working together to support the transition, including sharing information and data and setting up governance procedures.
Anthony Fitzgerald, Executive Place Director for Doncaster and lead for Primary Care, said: “Our teams have been working hard on supporting the transition of responsibility for the commissioning of community pharmacy, community optometry and NHS dental care services for some time.
“This is an exciting development, and although it is anticipated there will not be significant changes immediately, we will be working to improve these services for our communities in the long-term in support of our integrated care strategy.”
Dr David Crichton, Chief Medical Officer, said: “We’re looking forward to working closely with local pharmacies, optometrists and general dental practices and continuing to develop services that meet the needs of our communities.
“By commissioning these services more locally we can work to improve the health of our population and reduce health inequalities that exist in South Yorkshire.”
