Merseyside has been named amongst the first eight areas in the country that will be able to offer direct payments for healthcare to individuals as part of a new programme that will let patients decide what care is best for them.

The Department of Health’s announcement means that up to 75 patients in Sefton, Liverpool and Knowsley could be able to access direct payments for personal health budgets. 

This will allow the three Primary Care Trusts in those areas – NHS Sefton, Liverpool PCT and NHS Knowsley, together with Merseycare NHS Trust - to give a set amount of money to some patients involved in the pilot directly to them, so they can decide how, where and from whom they receive their healthcare, in partnership with the local NHS. The aim is to improve their experience and the effectiveness of their care and to give individuals as much control over their healthcare as is appropriate for them.

Personal health budgets are intended to be used for a range of things to meet people’s health and wellbeing needs. This might include exercise equipment or gym membership to help patients achieve better outcomes allowing them to choose how they can best meet their health objectives. It could also fund ongoing packages of support that cannot be provided by their local NHS.

Initially, people using mental health services in Sefton, Liverpool and Knowsley will be identified to try out the new scheme, but this could be extended to more groups of patients if it is found to be successful.

Personal health budgets put control of healthcare in patients’ hands. They have already been used successfully in social care, and it is expected that the new scheme will make a real difference to patients.

NHS Sefton is leading the pilot on behalf of the three Merseyside PCT’s. Deputy Director of Strategy and Service Development, Tina Wilkins, said: “We are excited at being one of the first pilot sites to be able to offer direct payments to individuals. Personal Health Budgets are a way of allowing people more control over how money is spent on their healthcare and the pilot builds on positive lessons learned from direct payments and personal budgets in social care.” 

The new pilot also builds on successful work carried out by Mersey Care NHS Trust, who piloted personal health budgets to help people with their recovery.   

Jenny Robb, Deputy Director of Social Care at Merseycare NHS Trust, said: “We already have people accessing personal health budgets in Merseyside with good results. It’s great news that the pilot has been extended to allow people to access direct payments, which will give them even greater control about what they need from their healthcare to meet their health objectives.”

This new scheme will be closely monitored. It is hoped that the learning from the pilot can be used to benefit people across Merseyside in the future. As those involved in the pilot are already accessing health services, there will be no additional cost to the local NHS. 

Tina added: “Direct payments have been used in social care for a number of years and have shown real results. We are delighted that people using mental health services in Merseyside will be able to benefit from a similar scheme.

Tina concluded: “Personal budgets won’t be the answer for everyone, but we believe that this will change some people’s lives for the better by giving them more control over their own care.”