Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
‘Health services
Board chief focuses on delivery of local care
IT’S one of the biggest changes to local health services in recent times.
And now the man at the head of NHS Tayside and Dundee City Council’s new integrated joint board has revealed his vision for the delivery of quality healthcare in the coming years.
Ken Lynn, a city councillor with experience of working in health, was chosen to become chairman of the new board.
He sat down with the Tele to explain why the change was needed — and how it will bring together many different parts of the NHS and the council.
Mr Lynn also vowed to achieve success despite an ever-decreasing budget.
He told the Tele: “We want to bring all the services that are provided by NHS Tayside under one umbrella.
“We want an integrated service that provides care for the elderly, drug and alcohol help, social work care and mental health care.
“It is recognised that the existing models of care in Dundee need to change in order to meet both current and future challenges.
“There are no choices i n this regard. If we do nothing, the current health and social care system will not be able to deliver the high-quality of services we expect to meet the needs of the Dundee population.
“This is a very exciting time and I am very enthusiastic about bringing improved health care to the people of the city.”
Mr Lynn wants to reduce health inequalities and also prevent people becoming ill in the first place by offering wide-ranging levels of preventative care.
He said: “That is achievable by providing early intervention and health advice before someone gets to the level of requiring medical care.
“However, health doesn’t exist in a bubble. The conditions in which people live have a huge bearing on ill health. Therefore it is important that we do all that we can to improve conditions for people in Dundee, both on the jobs front and where they live.”
He added: “I have wide experience of working in the social care sector, having spent my entire working life in it.
“For me to now be chairman at this time gives me great enthusiasm for the work that lies ahead in Dundee. I want to work as hard as I can, along with the other partners, to improve the lot of everyone in this city.”
Mr Lynn said he was also happy to be accountable for the work the board intends to carry out.
He added: “The integrated joint board meetings are open to the public and I want us to be as open as possible. I know we need to look at doing the sums to meet our ambitions and the Tayside health board has told us it is happy to work with us.
“There’s no doubt the finances are challenging, with an ever-shrinking budget, but we are prepared to meet that challenge.”
David Lynch, chief officer of the integrated joint board, said the vision was that each resident of Dundee would have access to information and support to live a fulfilled life.
He added: “We recognise our