Leicestershire Medequip contract

Community equipment specialists Medequip has been awarded a five-year contract to provide an Integrated Community Equipment Loan Service (ICELS) across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR).

The Medequip service, which commences in April 2022, will align closely with the future development of health and social care services across the region.

Loan equipment supplied by Medequip will facilitate independent living in the community, palliative care, rehabilitation and end of life care.

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The service will provide vital support for carers, working with clinicians and other professionals to enable early discharge from hospitals alongside reductions in admissions and readmissions.

Medequip have stated that it will also work to support a new model of care called ‘Home First’, which is being developed collectively by commissioning and provider organisations across LLR.

The underlying principle of LLR Home First, it says, is to enable individuals to stay out of hospital and remain safe and well at their chosen place of residence, where they call home.

When hospital admissions are inevitable, then the programme encourages appropriately planned discharges to enable individuals to return to their homes or community environment as soon as appropriate, with the minimum risk of re-admission.

Medequip, a spokesperson confirmed, will play a key role in facilitating faster discharges from hospital, sometimes within two hours, which may require the delivery and installation of more complex support equipment into the home environment.

Admission avoidance is also an essential part of the service model, and the Medequip service will need to be agile to achieve the required changes in health and social care response times for rehabilitation, reablement and recovery as well as supporting vital End of Life pathways.

Under the terms of the contract and the Social Value Charter adopted by LLR, Medequip will also be required to deliver social value for the area, with the aim to make LLR a better place to live, work and further develop community confidence and pride.

“We are looking forward to working closely with our partners at LLR to deliver the new Home First care model,” stated James Ibbotson, CEO at Medequip.

“We operate a responsive service capable of meeting the challenges of these changing requirements, providing an ICELS for LLR which matches the aspirations for those leading the drive for improvements in health and social care into the future.”

Julie Morley, ICELS Partnership Manager for LLR, is positive about the potential for the future. She said: “Our Home First concept is all about ensuring people get the right care, in the right place, whenever they need it.

“Working closely with Medequip, we are confident we can continue to deliver this safely, reliably and cost effectively.”

One of the longest-serving outsourced providers of community equipment services to the NHS and local authorities, Medequip was also recently awarded a new contract by NHS Derby & Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Derby City Council that will last until the end of November 2023.

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https://thiis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Leicester-Contract1.jpghttps://thiis.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Leicester-Contract1-150x150.jpgLiane McIvorAwards & AchievementsNewsroomSupplier NewsTrade Newscommunity,Community Equipment Loan Service,contract,Leicester,Leicstershire,Medequip,RutlandCommunity equipment specialists Medequip has been awarded a five-year contract to provide an Integrated Community Equipment Loan Service (ICELS) across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR). The Medequip service, which commences in April 2022, will align closely with the future development of health and social care services across the region. Loan equipment...News, views & products for mobility, access and independent living professionals