About

Our Dorset

A Shared Commitment

Everyone in Dorset deserves to live well. That’s why our NHS organisations, councils, public services and voluntary and community partners are working together as an integrated health and care system: NHS Dorset.

We want Dorset to be a healthy place where you can live your best life. This means taking care of our bodies and minds to stay well. The way we provide services is changing to meet people’s changing needs: we will still need to give medical help when its needed, but we also want to work with people to focus on preventing illness and promoting well-being. When we improve our physical and mental health, our communities become healthier places.

Our Journey

In Dorset, a quiet but powerful transformation is underway – one rooted not in new technologies or buildings, but in collaboration.

For years, healthcare providers across the county have worked tirelessly to deliver high-quality care. Yet, like many regions, Dorset has faced growing challenges: an aging population, increased demand on services, and patients with more complex, long-term health needs. These challenges are not isolated – they cross boundaries between hospitals, GP surgeries, mental health services, social care, and community support. And so, the solution must too.

That’s why Dorset’s healthcare providers are coming together like never before.

Across NHS trusts, primary care networks, the Integrated Care Board (ICB), local authorities, voluntary sector partners, and social care services, a new era of integrated working is taking shape.

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From Silos to Systems

This collaborative model marks a shift from siloed care to a coordinated system where information flows more freely, patients experience smoother transitions, and decisions are made jointly with the person at the centre. Whether it’s a patient being discharged from hospital with coordinated community support in place, or someone with mental health challenges getting seamless access to counselling and housing advice, the difference is tangible.

Weekly multidisciplinary meetings are now common practice across many parts of Dorset, where GPs, hospital consultants, mental health professionals, and social workers come together to discuss complex cases. The result: faster decisions, better planning, and a shared understanding of what each patient truly needs

Innovation Through Collaboration

Collaboration is at the heart of our success and enables true innovation. Working within a progressive Integrated Care System (ICS), we are embracing the national Frontline Digitisation agenda and working toward a more connected and efficient digital ecosystem. Pilot projects across the county – like virtual wards, digital health monitoring, and mobile mental health crisis teams – are showing promising results. These initiatives wouldn’t be possible without the alignment of multiple organisations, sharing not just data but also trust.

Dorset’s digital infrastructure, backed by shared records and a system-wide analytics platform, is turning data into insight. Leaders across the system now meet regularly to review outcomes, spot trends, and allocate resources proactively. Their work here helps ensure our digital capabilities meet the evolving needs of modern healthcare.

Our Dorset Goals

Our goals are to:

improve outcomes in population health and healthcare
tackle inequalities in outcome and access
enhance productivity and value for money
help the NHS deliver broader social and economic development

Looking Forward, Together

This journey isn’t without its challenges. True collaboration requires time, mutual understanding, and the willingness to change long-held ways of working. But the collective determination across Dorset’s health and care landscape is stronger than ever.

As Dorset’s Integrated Care System matures, one thing is clear: the future of healthcare lies not in any single organisation, but in the strength of collaborative working. By working together – with patients, not just for them – Dorset is laying the foundation for a healthier, more connected future.

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