UHCW and Coventry partners shortlisted for Provider Collaboration of the Year in the 2025 HSJ Awards

University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) NHS Trust is proud to announce that it has been shortlisted, alongside Coventry partners, for the Provider Collaboration of the Year Award in the prestigious 2025 HSJ Awards.

The Trust’s shortlisted entry, The Coventry Improving Lives Programme, was chosen following a rigorous judging process and has been recognised as a standout example of excellence in healthcare delivery.

The Improving Lives programme brought together expertise from UHCW, Coventry City Council, Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board (ICB) and healthcare consultancy Newton Europe to improve integration and information sharing among acute, community and social care teams.

With a view to transforming out-of-hospital urgent care, the programme developed the One Coventry Integrated Team (OCIT), a pioneering service that in its first year has helped hundreds of people in Coventry get back to independence after being in hospital.

Comprised of three Locally Integrated Teams (LITs) based in Newfield House, the Opal Centre and Tile Hill Primary Care Centre, OCIT operates an 8am to 8pm service, seven days a week, offering a two-hour crisis response, a same day response and virtual wards. It helps patients avoid unnecessary admission to hospital by delivering care at their home or close to where they live and supporting them with discharge from hospital and reablement.

Following extensive trailing of the integrated approach, a full rollout of the programme across Coventry saw NHS and social care colleagues working together on one shared caseload, with face-to-face multi-disciplinary teams (MDTs) focussed on achieving individualised goals for older patients.

The creation and implementation of a shared digital record, developed by colleagues in collaboration with Newton Europe, further enhanced the programme’s vision for more joined-up care for patients.

Since its launch in June 2024, OCIT has achieved several benefits including:

• Caring for more than 6,000 people and helping 840 patients to avoid unnecessary hospital admission.
• Supporting over 1,420 patients with therapy in, or close to their homes.
• A reduction in stay of 0.5 days for older patients admitted via the emergency pathway, with patients discharged into OCIT once medically fit.
• 10 per cent of emergency admissions avoided through the front door model which proactively identifies patients suitable for care under OCIT with an immediate response from the team.

Justine Richards, Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer at UHCW NHS Trust, said: “We are honoured to be shortlisted for the Provider Collaboration of the Year Award at the HSJ Awards 2025.

“This is a proud moment for the Trust and our partners, whose hard work and dedication to working as a single integrated team has fundamentally changed the way we support patients with an urgent need and has delivered improved outcomes for the people of Coventry.”

Pete Fahy, Director of Adult Care, Health and Housing for Coventry City Council added: ‘In Coventry we are very proud of how we work together across partners to deliver improved outcomes for our residents.

“Being shortlisted for this prestigious award is great recognition for everyone involved in the Improving Lives programme that has made a difference to the lives of thousands of people that have come into contact with the service.”

This year’s awards attracted more than 1,250 entries from across the health sector – showing the scale of the Trust’s achievement.

Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on 20th November 2025 at Evolution London.