A look at September in the NHS

Many of which we have talked about in the NHS for quite some time, including a lack of capital investment, the overall NHS funding model, productivity, and the role that the adoption of technology plays in improving patient experience and outcomes.

My personal view is that investment in preventative health/primary care and social care is key to reducing pressures in the acute sector, and that that investment can also improve overall patient outcomes. I had the pleasure of listening to Alston Owens (Assistant Director of Finance at Torbay and South Devon NHS Trust) addressing the room at the HFMA Wales’ annual conference recently. His session outlined a project that focused on addressing access inequalities to preventative actions, clearly demonstrating that done the right way, it’s a worthwhile investment to improve overall patient outcomes.

I also attended HFMA’s South West annual branch event, where I caught speaking sessions by Jeff Buggle (Regional Director of Finance at NHS England) and Laura Langsford (Head of Clinical Strategy, University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust). Again, the outlook focused on the status of the finances and productivity, with an emphasis on understanding why this hasn’t improved since the pandemic, despite having more WTE’s in post than ever before.

I found Laura’s session inspiring, as it demonstrated what is possible to achieve with clinical stakeholder engagement and embracing technology to reengineer how care pathways are delivered, ultimately creating time to deliver more care.

During this time, a very insightful report was published by the NHS Confederation in partnership with Carnall Farrar, titled “Achieving the 18-week standard for elective care”. It’s reading that I recommend – you can find it here if you haven’t already.

In the report, one statistic which is pretty startling is that in 2028/29 the NHS will need to do 50% more elective activity than it is currently to clear the wait list and sustain achievement of 18-week targets.

The report is extensive but in my view, continues to echo some of recent weeks’ narrative of areas such as reform and strategic transformation, with key points that are close to my heart – the need for digital transformation to better manage waiting lists and transform outpatient elective care pathways, leading to fewer unneeded appointments.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. The NHS undoubtably faces challenges, but it is also well equipped with world-class individuals across the board capable of delivering on the required change.

From speakers to new reports, the consensus is clear: better oversight is required to create time for the delivery of more care. Whilst the adoption of effective technology to manage outpatient pathways and any enhanced long-term pathway will almost certainly help to reduce waiting lists.

Next on my travels, I’m looking forward to attending Proud2opps, NHS Wales Confederation, HFMA Northern Ireland, and HFMA annual, and having the opportunity to continue to discuss these topics with colleagues from across the NHS. If you’re attending any of these events and would like to continue to conversation, please get in touch.