The South West HCC or Haemoglobinopathy Coordinating Centre is one of ten regional networks in England which coordinates care for haemoglobinopathy patients across the South West. HCCs were established in 2019 as part of the development of ‘Specialised Haemoglobinopathy Services’ in England, designed to improve the experience of patients with haemoglobinopathies and to ensure equity of care across the country. The diagram below shows the structure of haemoglobinopathy services in England:
What is the HCC?
(Note: This information is provided to explain the regional service we deliver. For complete service specifications please note these are held by NHS England.)
Diagram reproduced from NHS England SHT Specification Document
The South West HCC is a regional network hosted by University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust. Our network oversees the care of patients with sickle cell disease – the HCC for thalassaemia and rare inherited anaemia is The Red Cell Network based in University College Hospitals London.
This three-tiered model shows that the HCC is responsible for running their network which consists of specialist and local haemoglobinopathy teams. In the South West, Bristol (University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust including Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and Bristol Haematology Oncology Centre) is the specialist haemoglobinopathy team for adults and paediatrics, covering the care of sickle cell, thalassaemia and rare inherited anaemia patients. There are eight local haemoglobinopathy teams across the South West:
- Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- North Bristol NHS Trust (adults only)
- Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust
- Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
- Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
- Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
- University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
- Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
We hold meetings to discuss regional cases once a month (known as the multidisciplinary team meeting or MDT). We oversee the annual reviews that patients have each year and offer 24/7 specialist support.
We also contribute to the National Haemoglobinopathy Panel meeting which takes place once per month. We also have twice yearly business meetings which patients are invited to attend – please contact the haemoglobinopathy team on haemoglobinopathybristol@uhbw.nhs.uk if you are interested in attending the next meeting.