NHS supports core EB nurse duties

Thursday 7th June 2012

Nurses helping people with a rare genetic condition are having their essential duties funded by the NHS under a new agreement.

Thanks to negotiations between Debra and NHS National Commissioners, nurses in London who support people with epidermolysis bullosa (EB) will have 75% of their role funded by the NHS.

The remaining 25% of the nurses' costs will be funded by the charity, which provides specialist care for people with EB.

The Berkshire-based charity will reinvest the £300,000 saving from the funding arrangement back into health and social care developments surrounding the condition, which causes the skin to blister and shear at the slightest friction.

Debra chief executive officer Ben Merrett said: "This new partnership with the NHS is the culmination of a lengthy process to bring the special needs of EB to the attention of healthcare providers; it recognises the need for NHS funding provision for all core activities and care that the NHS has a duty to provide."

The agreement means that patients are aware of what level of care to expect from the NHS and Debra.

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