Neighbourhood health in practice: integration, access and sustainability
Transforming Care
23 January 2026
By Louisa
Interview with
Shilpa Shah
CEO
Community Pharmacy North East London. LPC.
Neighbourhood health is reshaping the way the NHS, local government, social care, and their partners work together. The 10 Year Health Plan aims to make this emerging model a reality, informed by existing initiatives and engagement with the public, staff and key stakeholders.
Some areas have already made strides in developing a local, collaborative approach to care, but there’s still a long way to go.
Shilpa Shah, CEO of Community Pharmacy North East London, which represents 370 pharmacies across seven boroughs, sees both the opportunities and the hurdles. Integrated neighbourhood teams rely on the voluntary and charity sector to fill gaps, particularly in mental health support. But charities are struggling financially as demand rises and economic pressures grow.
On top of that, healthcare professionals themselves are experiencing burnout from unpaid extra hours, limiting the capacity to contribute to volunteer efforts that help keep neighbourhood care running.
“Understanding the unpaid hours staff are putting in is crucial,” Shilpa explains. “It reveals the real need for additional full-time roles, and highlights just how deep-rooted some systemic issues are. Sometimes, slow tweaks aren’t enough and we may need to rethink the system entirely.”
Shilpa’s experience straddles both strategic leadership and frontline care. Alongside her CEO role, she volunteers at Samaritans, Crisis at Christmas, and Pharmacist Support — giving her unique insight into the pressures on communities and the ways technology and integrated teams can either alleviate or amplify inequities in care delivery.
Key challenges in integrating health and care services
Integrating health and care services into local communities and neighbourhoods is easier said than done. From Shilpa’s perspective, two major challenges stand out: workforce capacity and system navigation.
Workforce and capacity
“If services are moved or newly created”, Shilpa muses, “where are we moving staff from, and where do we find the workforce to support these new services?”
Shilpa highlights that some aspects of care must be delivered face-to-face within the community. However, this creates additional pressure on an already stretched workforce. Without sufficient staffing, new or relocated services risk overburdening existing teams, reducing quality of care and increasing burnout.
System navigation
Another significant challenge is helping service users know where to go and who to speak to for specific health needs. In complex urban areas like Northeast London, first-generation English-speaking families and other groups can struggle to understand how to navigate the system, leading to confusion, frustration, and inappropriate or under-use of services.
“We need to go back to the drawing board,” Shilpa explains. “Mapping out the system flow and educating people, including children, on how to access the right services is crucial. For example, knowing when to use 999 versus NHS 111, or how to self-manage long-term conditions. This is something many families are missing.”
Shilpa advocates using the education system and public campaigns to increase health literacy. This includes national awareness via social media and community programmes, ensuring patients and families are empowered to navigate care appropriately.
Where Integrated Neighbourhood Teams (INTs) are making a difference
Engaging community and voluntary routes
Shilpa highlights the growing awareness and involvement of voluntary and community organisations in neighbourhood care. Initiatives like local walking groups, gardening clubs, and other social prescribing projects are increasingly being recognised for the role they play in supporting people with their health and wellbeing.
“It’s encouraging to see more community groups becoming part of the conversation,” Shilpa says. “I’d love to see even more of these organisations involved. They bring insight, flexibility, and local knowledge that services alone often cannot provide.”
By tapping into these networks, INTs are starting to leverage non-clinical routes to care, which can complement NHS provision and broaden the reach of preventive health measures.
Multidisciplinary teams: progress and gaps
While the concept of multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) is central to neighbourhood care, Shilpa notes there is still work to be done in practice.
“We often work in silos, where the individual has to be seen multiple times instead of being seen by all professionals at once,” she explains. “Rigid frameworks sometimes get in the way of flexibility and people-centred care.”
Community pharmacies, for example, are often excluded from MDT conversations due to perhaps other HCP’s not realising what community pharmacists can add to a conversation as their inclusion could support a more cohesive, “one-stop shop” approach. Shilpa draws on her volunteering experience with Crisis at Christmas, where involving multiple professionals in a coordinated way improves outcomes and ensures people receive the right support at the right time.
The role of technology in supporting neighbourhood health
For Shilpa, the real value of technology in neighbourhood care lies in connection and consistency. At its best, digital infrastructure should remove friction, not add to it.
Information sharing that supports joined-up care
Shilpa advocates for the long-term goal of a single, shared care record. This should be supported by accessible and interoperable IT ecosystems that can be used across multiple health and care settings. She recognises the efficiencies this could unlock for neighbourhood teams, while also acknowledging the risks.
“There’s always a concern about what happens if one system goes down,” Shilpa says. “But the bigger risk is continuing to work in silos, where professionals can’t see the full picture and patients are asked to repeat themselves again and again.”
Consistency is key. Shilpa points to the NHS App as an important part of this approach. A familiar, trusted interface that can help standardise how people access information, appointments and communications across services.
Using AI where it adds value
Shilpa also sees a clear role for AI, particularly when applied to non-clinical tasks. Rather than replacing human care, AI should be used to reduce pressure on the system. For example, it can support staff rota planning or triaging calls to ensure people are directed to the right service, first time.
“If technology can take some of the administrative load off teams, that’s where it can really make a difference,” she explains.
However, she is clear that AI and automation must be introduced thoughtfully, safely and with transparency, to maintain trust among both professionals and the people they support.
Questions also remain around responsibility and escalation, particularly when multiple departments or organisations are involved in a person’s care. Shilpa highlights the need for clear governance, agreed accountability and robust system design — ensuring that information sharing enhances care, without compromising safety or clarity.
Designing neighbourhood care that lasts
As neighbourhood teams continue to evolve, Shilpa is clear that digital inclusion must be treated as a core requirement, not an afterthought.
“Technology has to flex around the individual,” Shilpa explains. “If it doesn’t, we risk excluding the very people neighbourhood care is meant to support.”
Neighbourhood teams cannot rely on a one-size-fits-all digital approach. Even in relatively affluent areas, the digital divide remains significant. Shilpa points to practical interventions — using libraries as access points or working with large technology providers to offer free data or devices — but warns that without careful planning, some people will inevitably be digitally left behind.
“There is also the challenge of limited capacity to collect and analyse data to secure ongoing funding. We know these services make a difference,” she says. “But without the right data, it’s harder to prove impact and sustain them.”
Looking ahead
Finally, Shilpa returns to the need for consistency and longevity in neighbourhood care. While she strongly supports locally tailored neighbourhood teams, she argues that they must be underpinned by start-up funding, shared frameworks and clear measures of success. Too often, promising initiatives are disrupted by shifting priorities or changes in government, undermining trust and momentum.
“Neighbourhood teams need time to embed, learn and grow,” Shilpa concludes. “If we’re serious about integrated care, we have to commit to it for the long term.”
Finally, in Shilpa’s view, the future of neighbourhood health depends on flexible technology, inclusive design, intelligent use of data and sustained investment — all grounded in a clear understanding of the communities being served. Only then can neighbourhood teams deliver care that is not just integrated, but equitable, resilient and built to last.
Media Contact:
Louisa
Marketing & PR
hi@mayden.co.uk
01249 701100
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