Guy’s and St Thomas’ and Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trusts are to merge. A joint statement from the two trusts has announced their plans for closer working, indicating that the arrangements include the creation of a hub for highly specialised clinical academic cardiorespiratory services at the St Thomas’ site.
According to the press release, discussions between the two boards, and with wider partnerships, remained focused on using the collective clinical and academic expertise to provide the best possible care to patients, meeting all national standards for paediatric congenital heart disease, and ensuring the long-term future of the specialist services currently provided at Royal Brompton Hospital.
It states: “It has become increasingly clear to the boards of both trusts that full integration of the services provided by Royal Brompton & Harefield with those at Guy’s and St Thomas’—in effect an agreed merger—is the best and most positive way of securing these aims, and the collective vision of the wider partnership.”
Guy’s and St Thomas’ and Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trusts have been working together since 2017, along with King’s Health Partners, to develop plans for transforming healthcare for heart and lung disease.
The press release says: “The boards of both trusts are confident that by formally bringing together our respective organisations and the shared expertise of our clinical and academic teams, we can significantly improve care and outcomes for people with cardiovascular and respiratory disease. This ambitious venture, in partnership with King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and our academic partners, will create a centre of national excellence for the care of adults and children, which will sit at the heart of a population health system working together to significantly reduce the burden of these conditions.”
The statement describes the move as “wholeheartedly welcome”, and says the trusts will be “taking this forward with our NHS partners and with King’s College London and Imperial College London”. It promises that further details of the transaction, the process, and the next steps will be set out in a “letter of intent” between the trusts, which is expected to be agreed shortly.
