handshakeAn NHS Foundation Trust and a private sector mental health service provider have formed a business partnership that aims to deliver accessible and affordable treatment across the UK for common mental health issues such as depression and anxiety.

Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (CWP), a provider of inpatient and community mental health services, and Ultrasis, which specialises in interactive healthcare programmes, will establish a jointly-owned company to deliver a range of computerised healthcare products and clinical interventions to patients.

CWP will provide telephone and clinical support for Ultrasis’ computerised cognitive behavioural therapy, Beating the Blues, which helps treat mild and moderate depression and has been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.

Sheena Cumiskey, chief executive of CWP, said that the aim of the partnership is to improve health and wellbeing by providing high quality, evidence-based mental healthcare that is ‘user friendly’ and cost effective. “By bringing together the computerised programme ‘Beating the Blues’ and the Trust’s robust clinical pathways, we will be in a strong position to deliver a wide range of services across a number of key sectors including healthcare, business and education for the benefit of patients, employers/employees and healthcare professionals respectively,” she said.

John Smith, chief executive of Ultrasis, added: “CWP has an exceptional reputation for quality service provision and excellent clinical governance arrangements and we look forward to working in partnership to address the growing national need for accessible and affordable mental health services.”

The partnership seeks to be commissioned by a range of organisations including clinical commissioning groups, GP practices, NHS organisations, local authorities, psychological therapy providers, large employers and private sector healthcare providers and insurers.