South Western Ambulance Service welcomed Sir Bruce Keogh to their Dorset clinical hub recently.

Mr Nigel Acheson MD, Regional Medical Director for NHS England (South), also attended the visit last Friday.

The clinical hub, based in St Leonard’s, houses one of the three 999 control centres, the Dorset NHS 111 control centre, as well as the Dorset out-of-hours doctors service and the new Dorset single point of access (SPoA).

In his role as NHS Medical Director, Sir Bruce Keogh has published several significant national reviews, the latest being transforming urgent and emergency care services in England.

During the visit Sir Bruce was able to see the services in action, including how they interact to provide seamless patient care.

Ken Wenman, Chief Executive of SWASFT, said: “We are very committed to providing every patient, no matter how they contact the Trust, with the right care in the right place at the right time.

"It is important that our patients receive the best possible service and Sir Bruce’s visit was a great opportunity for us to demonstrate how we do this.”

Sir Bruce said: “I’ve heard a lot about integration, but today I’ve seen it in action.”

Ken Wenman added: “Our staff are committed to providing the best care for patients, whether they require urgent or emergency care. So it was really good for them to be able to show this and to be recognised for their hard work.”