Healthcare leaders head to Essex for EPIIC conference

The University of Essex welcomed healthcare leaders, researchers and practitioners from across the region for a major conference exploring the future of integrated care systems.

Hosted at the Colchester campus, the two-day event brought together six universities and partners from NHS and community organisations as part of EPIIC (the East of England Policy, Innovation and Implementation Centre).

Senior figures from Essex played a central role in the event, with Vice-Chancellor Professor Frances Bowen and Professor Victoria Joffe, Dean of Integrated Health and Social Care, opening the conference.

Professor Andrew Bateman also presented on workforce development through interdisciplinary service provision in the Health, Wellbeing and Care Hub.

In her opening speech, Professor Bowen said: “The scale and ambition of this event shows the value of universities working in partnership to tackle the big challenges we face across the UK.

“Bringing our universities together like this gives us the chance to share how we are improving health, reducing inequalities, and what more we can achieve in the years ahead.

“As we know, our health and care system is under real pressure – from an ageing population and rising inequality to workforce demands and financial constraints.

“This is a moment for innovation and genuine collaboration to find and test solutions that can ease that pressure.”

Other keynote speakers included Phil Carver, regional director of workforce, training and education NHS East of England, who outlined the implications of the NHS 10-Year Workforce Plan, Dr Tim Elwell-Sutton, deputy regional director of public health for the south east of England at the department of health and social care, on leadership and health equity, and Nicky Murphy, who explored the future of digital technology in the NHS.

Dr Ed Garratt OBE also delivered a keynote on transforming healthcare through kindness and trust, while Professor Sally Hardy set out the vision and collaborative impact of EPIIC.

Essex’s Health, Wellbeing and Care Hub featured prominently, with attendees given the opportunity to see how education, research and service delivery are being brought together to support communities.

Ian Rogers from Parkinson’s UK, spoke movingly about the impact of the Health, Wellbeing and Care Hub, on people with Parkinson’s, emphasising partnership working, hope and opportunity.

The conference also highlighted initiatives aimed at inspiring the next generation of healthcare professionals and strengthening the future workforce. Professor Joffe said: "The conference brought partner anchor institutions together to explore and debate key challenges in meeting the needs of the population.

“The importance of compassionate leadership, and a focus on wellbeing of staff was highlighted.

“Those attending reported being inspired by the range and diversity of innovative programmes of work, and the strength of partnerships in delivering hope and opportunity in the current challenging times.”

The event also helped to demonstrate the growing impact of EPIIC since its launch in 2022, with the partnership helping to generate evidence, build capacity and translate research into practice to support a more resilient healthcare system.