After a challenging year for the local NHS and the communities of Sandwell and West Birmingham, members of the public are invited to find out more about a West Midlands NHS Trust’s past year and future priorities by joining its virtual annual general meeting.
Much has changed across the last 12 months at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust (SWB), and new Chairman Sir David Nicholson will be joined by Interim Chief Executive Richard Beeken to host a ‘Question Time’ session with members of the public. They will be joined by fellow members of the Trust board.
The review of the year will also include information about the vaccination programme and the work that primary care teams have done in partnership with the Trust to deliver COVID-19 vaccines to tens of thousands of local people.
Sir David, said: “Unfortunately we must, due to COVID-19 restrictions, host a virtual AGM again this year. However we look on the bright side, as this allows many more to be in ‘attendance’ and post their questions.
“It has been an extremely difficult year for us all, and now we have the chance to move forward together. Things will not be as they once were; we have all learned some very hard lessons over the past 18 months, but through those we are able help shape the way we deliver care going forward to benefit those within the Sandwell and West Birmingham community.
“We look forward to sharing the actions and innovations the Trust has made in order to minimise disruption to services, our arrangements that are bringing services back to a ‘new normal’ and what the future holds for the Trust, in particular with the development of the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital. We’re also happy to hear any issues that our community wishes to raise about their care and the Trust. We want to make sure all voices are heard.”
Electronic copies of the organisation’s Integrated Annual Report and Accounts and Quality Account will be published on the Trust website ahead of the event.
Questions can also be submitted in advance via email to swbh.comms@nhs.net with “AGM Questions” in the subject header. Trust Board members will respond during the Q&A session.
The meeting will take place at 6pm on Thursday 15 July, and instructions on how to join the WebEx session and a link to it can be found on the Trust’s website by going to https://www.swbh.nhs.uk/about-us/trust-board/.