The NHS has today gone out to advert for a substantive Chief Executive Officer to lead the new Black Country Integrated Care Board and play a pivotal role within the local health and care system.
Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) are partnerships of health and care organisations, local government and the voluntary sector. These partnerships aim to meet health and care needs, coordinate services and plan in a way that improves the health of local people and reduces inequalities between different groups.
From 1 July (subject to the Health and Care Bill receiving Royal Assent), ICSs will become statutory bodies led by an Integrated Care Board (ICB). ICBs will take on functions from the current NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) as well as greater strategic responsibility for setting healthcare strategies for their local system. The new Black Country ICS will cover Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton.
The Chief Executive Officer will lead the Integrated Care Board and will help leaders from the NHS, local authorities and the voluntary sector to work even more closely together to join up services, personalise care, tackle health inequalities and improve people’s health across the local area.
The role has been held on an interim basis since November 2021 by Mark Axcell, CEO of Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, who has been working with the chair Mr Jonathan Fellows to recruit the ICB’s future Executive team and appoint its Non-Executive Directors.
Mr Jonathan Fellows, Chair Designate of the ICB, said: “Now that our core ICB leadership team is largely in place, I have decided that the time is right to move forward and recruit substantively to the role of CEO.
“This is a crucial position within our local health and care system, and it presents a once-in-a-career opportunity for an exceptional person to lead this new NHS Body and to provide inspirational leadership, working with partners to make a difference to health outcomes for the people of the Black Country.”
The closing date for applications is 15 May 2022 and more information about the role can be found here.
