NHS Sussex ICB - Assisted Discharge Service

Following a further competition under the NHS Shared Business Services Patient Discharge Services & Mental Health Step Down Care Framework - Reference: 10230, Lot 1 - Discharge to Assess Services, this notice is to inform the market of the award of a 3 year (plus an optional extension period of up to a further 12 months) contract to British Red Cross, for provision of an Assisted Discharge Service for NHS Sussex Integrated Care Board (ICB). The contract value is PS1,993,240.00 over the potential four year term. Timely hospital discharge, that allows people who are well enough to return to their place of residence or a community setting, is a key part of improving patient care.

Discharge can be delayed for many reasons, including personal situation, the suitability of the person's place of residence or a need for greater social care support. Speeding up hospital discharge helps improve the experience of those people waiting to return to their place of residence and means hospitals can care for those who do need acute care more quickly. This requirement is for provision of an integrated Assisted Discharge Service offer from Royal Sussex County Hospital (RSCH) across Sussex.

It will align with the Discharge Transformation Programme (DTP) to deliver improved discharge processes across the whole system. The model will provide greater resilience in the community to people returning home on Pathway 0 to reduce the likelihood of readmission. It will also support admission avoidance at the front door, to prevent socially driven admissions.

The service will provide support to vulnerable adults (18 years and over) who are being discharged from hospital and who lack support to return home safely. The service will transport the patient, carry out a risk assessment at the home and ensure they have everything they need to stay at home and reduce the likelihood of socially driven readmission. The service will also provide up to four weeks of ongoing support to improve resilience by supporting the person to reintegrate into their community.

The service will take patients discharged from the wards and emergency department at the Royal Sussex County Hospital (RSCH) who are resident in East Sussex, West Sussex or Brighton and Hove.