A PUBLIC consultation by the East of England Ambulance Service into how it is run has shown “positive support” for its bid to be an NHS Foundation Trust (FT).

As part of the EEAST’s application to become ‘FT’, public, staff and stakeholder views were sought on the way it plans to develop services and provide first-class clinical care for patients.

During winter 2010/2011, people from across the region took the opportunity to influence how the NHS Foundation Trust will be set up by attending 24 consultation events held for those who work for the service, the organisations who work alongside it, and members of the public.

Attendees were asked to comment on aspects such as what service improvements they wanted to see, the make-up of the members council and appointed governors, and which outside organisations should be involved.

This has been collated into a feedback report which has been ratified by the Trust and is now published online at onlineeastamb.nhs.uk

Chief executive of EEAS Hayden Newton said: “Becoming an NHS Foundation Trust will allow for closer links with those who are most important to us - our patients, staff, volunteers and the communities we serve.

“Many people supported our vision for improved and more personalised care for patients, based on what the patient needs and the best outcome for them.

“The report details the feedback we were given, and the actions we are taking so that our application can best reflect the wishes of the region we serve.”

The FT application continues this summer with the Department of Health reviewing the application later this year. Anyone can still ask questions and provide feedback on the application, and ask for a hard copy of the consultation report by e-mailing ft@eastamb.nhs.uk