Jersey General Hospital provides a wide range of acute services that would be expected in a District General Hospital, despite serving a population of only 100 000. Jersey as a British Crown Dependency is relatively isolated, as an Island jurisdiction. Travel off-island is sometimes difficult; Jersey is fog-bound for an average of 30 days per year, and sea travel to the UK takes a minimum of 4 hours. It is, therefore, critical that hospital services for 24/7 emergency care, maternity care and essential supporting services continue to be available, that there is sufficient spare capacity to deal with peaks of demand and that the hospital remains at the heart of an integrated health and social care system, as we move towards implementation of a new Regulation of Care Law in 2012.
The majority of acute care is provided free at the point of delivery. Almost 50 % of the population has private health insurance but the coverage of the various insurance policies varies and many people still opt for States-funded care even when they have private insurance.
Certain procedures are not undertaken in Jersey either due to their complex nature or equipment requirements. The size of the population and the incidence of medical and surgical conditions on the Island limit the number of certain procedures that clinicians are able to perform and therefore it can be difficult to maintain the necessary levels of skill, competency, accreditation and insurance.
Historical arrangements are in place with a number of NHS providers in the UK. During 2014 we wish to develop improved links with non-Jersey based providers to secure improved education, peer review, protocols, access to specialist services and communication in order to deliver co-ordinated high quality care with smooth transfer between Jersey and non-Jersey based services. We wish to identify key strategic partners to work with us to develop a safe, sustainable and affordable acute service for Islanders.
For further information and the ability to express interest in this project and download the Background and Pre-Qualification Questionnaire Documents, visit www.tenders.gov.je.