A local health campaign group fears one of the biggest NHS re-organisations in nearly a decade will lead to more crisis, disruption and privatisation of the UK’s health service.

The government has restructured the NHS to create a new set of local Integrated Care Systems across England, due to come into force on July 1, to ensure smooth working between the NHS and the care providers.

The Devon campaign group Save Our Hospital Services (SOHS) has written an open letter to former Totnes MP, Dr Sarah Wollaston, chairwoman of the ICS for Devon, urging her not to bring people who work for private health companies onto the Devon Integrated Care Board (ICB).

In response, Dr Wollaston insists the appointment of board and committee members who could “reasonably” be regarded as undermining the independence of health service because of their involvement with the private healthcare sector is prohibited by the Health and Care Bill.

The SOHS letter says: “Our local system, under a board of directors led by Sarah Wollaston, will have to provide care for people in our area within a severely restricted budget set by central government.

“For almost a decade, decisions about what NHS services are available in each area have been made by local bodies made up of senior medics and NHS administrators, with scrutiny by local councillors.

“Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), on the other hand, can include almost anyone with a stake in health and care, including private companies who have a financial interest.”

Campaigners fear the combination of “restricted budgets and removal of local accountability” will lead to crisis, disruption, and privatisation in our health service.

They insist the “crisis in our local health and care workforce needs to be addressed with proper planning, decent pay, and free training.”

The letter added: “Sarah Wollaston has the power to ensure that the NHS continues to provide outstanding care to everyone, as it has for more than 75 years.

“She must not allow a decade of decline to become a death spiral.”

In an open letter of reply, Dr Wollason says ICSs will “arguably” be more locally accountable than the Clinical Commissioning Groups they are replacing, which were largely led by NHS executives and GPs.

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Dr Sarah Wollaston (.)

“We have always been open and transparent about the outside interests of our decision-makers and that will continue,” she wrote.

The Covid pandemic has resulted in long waiting lists for operations such as hip and knee replacements, Dr Wollaston said.

“To help get people the care they need as quickly as possible, we want to use all the capacity available to us, in our NHS hospitals, in new NHS facilities like the Nightingale Exeter, and in through our independent sector partners.

“But while we see the independent sector is a partner in helping people get the NHS-funded care they need, they are not part of our decision-making process.”

In recent years, Devon has consistently spent more money on health services than it has received, to meet the needs of the 1.2million it serves, wrote Dr Wollaston.

“This has placed our system into unacceptable levels of debt and, like any organisation, we must learn to live within our means.”

She continued: “The workforce issues facing the health and care sector are felt nationally, with nationally agreed rates of pay, but within Devon, a workforce strategy is being developed to do our best to meet the anticipated demand for health and care services in coming years.

Dr Wollaston added: “It’s normal to feel a little apprehensive about any sort of change, but I am confident that the ICS for Devon will allow health and care services to better serve the needs of local people.

“NHS Devon has previously offered to meet with SOHS Devon.

“That offer remains open and we would be happy to discuss their concerns.”