A NEW era in health care has dawned in Darlington as officials unveil plans to boost services and the wellbeing of residents across the borough. A shake-up of services has given a new look and new responsibilities to Darlington Primary Care Trust (PCT) as it strives to better the health of local residents. From the beginning of August, changes were introduced to the structures of both Darlington PCT and its counterpart in County Durham. The developments mean that the county organisation will now be in charge of commissioning quality health services – and Darlington PCT is tasked with then providing them to the public.

The town’s PCT is responsible for delivering a vast array of health services in the local community from district and school nurses to health visitors. Now, the organisation is in charge of a workforce of 3,000 people, focused on providing world-class services throughout the entire area. Darlington PCT chief executive Colin Morris said the move offered a host of benefits to residents. “The main noticeable difference for people is essentially that they will see more cohesive, better-organised services provided, now that we’re operating as one big organisation,” he said. “With everyone working together under the banner of Darlington PCT, we’ll be able to provide excellent coverage in terms of health services across the town and the whole of County Durham.”

The PCT will continue to be at the heart of the many effective and popular initiatives boosting the health of Darlington’s 100,000-strong population. Good progress has already been made in dealing with issues surrounding obesity, sexual health problems, breast and cervical screening, and diabetes. The walk-in health centre, at Dr Piper House, in King Street, has also proved phenomenally successful since opening just over three years ago, with 110 people now coming through its doors every day.
Priorities for the coming year were identified as tackling obesity from before birth, across childhood and in settings ranging from the home to children’s centres, nurseries and schools.

Mr Morris added that the PCT looked forward to developing further excellent relations with its many partners in the town, including the borough council, Darlington Partnership, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust and the Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Trust, which supports people with a range of mental health issues. “We’re also a significant partner in Darlington’s Drug and Alcohol Action Team, which works to support people affected by substance misuse and is presently working on strategies to diminish the reliance of young people on alcohol,” he said. “But the main thing to stress with the recent developments is that the people of Darlington should only notice one thing – improved care right across the borough.”