The Background and Role of the PCT
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The West Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust broadly covers the local council areas of Gloucester and the Forest of Dean, together with the southern area of the borough of Tewkesbury.
The area has a population of approximately 223,000 and covers a total of over 250 square miles.
West Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust (PCT) aims to provide better services that respond to the needs of its communities. The Trust holds the NHS budget for the local population.
The Primary Care Trust is helping to develop services provided by family doctors, dentists, optometrists (opticians) and pharmacists and provides services such as district nursing, health visiting, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and podiatry (chiropody). It makes sure that hospital care, mental health services and other specialist treatments are available when people need them.
The PCT also manages the two Community Hospitals in the Forest of Dean, Dilke Memorial Hospital and Lydney and District Hospital.
How the PCT approaches its work is reflected in its Vision Statement.
VISION
The Trust aims to:
- improve the health and wellbeing of local people including staff by understanding their specific needs
- involve local people in the decision making about the types of services needed and their access to them
- develop health and social care services closer to where people can best use them
- value, invest and involve staff.
