Personalising Health — The West Sussex Story

This article describes the journey that West Sussex PCT and County Council have set out on to test and experiment how personalisation in health can improve patient outcomes and experience of health care. The journey is far from over, but the article describes the importance of top‐level commitment and leadership, the progress we have made, the lessons we have learned and some of the challenges we see ahead. It is about local action and learning, and does not presume to suggest it is the right or the best approach. The article is a case study to follow up the article about self‐directed support in health by Rita Brewis in the previous Issue of this journal. West Sussex is a provisional DH pilot area for the introduction of personal health budgets, and is a member of the Staying in Control programme. West Sussex County Council has been an individual budget pilot site, and has nearly 2,000 people receiving individual budgets and a target that all adults receiving social care will be offered self‐directed support by April 2010.