SANDWELL AND WEST BIRMINGHAM HOSPITALS NHS TRUST

Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust



Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust

SWBH with relation to its purpose and stakeholders

The proposed reconfiguration of each of Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals (SWBH) services requires more than just a change in location. In order to meet the capacity requirements and as part of the transition towards the 2010 model of care there will need to be a significant and widespread change in working practices in order to reduce length of stay, increase day case rates and avoid unnecessary admissions. The reconfiguration of each of these 4 service areas will have implications for other associated and supporting clinical services and for other SWBH managements. There are a number of risks involved that will require contingency plans. In addition there are many internal and external stakeholders. A tight and robust project SWBH management approach and supporting structure will be required to ensure that the many issues are identified and addressed, the potential benefits are realised and the risks are planned for and minimised including the continued delivery of all services during reconfiguration.

Enable a two-way dialogue between the NHS Trust and its staff, patients, GPs, stakeholders and local population, helping us improve the service SWBH provide, the general health of the local population as well as access to services on an equal basis regardless of age, culture, race or disability, to improve the patient experience and to drive up standards of care.

Ensure the 2010 agenda is rigorously pursued, leading the Communications and Engagement plans, offering support and direction when necessary and ensuring our staff, patients, carers, public and stakeholders are kept informed and have the opportunity to become involved with the Towards 2010 Programme.

Role of SWBH management in achieving goal

The document described above heralds the need for a 'systematic and transparent approach to managing performance in the NHS'. It introduces the registration process governed by the CQC.

In broad terms, the document takes existing structures, e.g. services contracts with commissioners, MONITOR, performance-SWBH management roles of SHAs, inspections by the CQC and seeks to place these into an integrated framework. What is new is the performance regime for NHS Trusts and NHS IMAS (the interim support service) set up to intervene in failing SWBH managements.

The principle of service continuity would always apply in circumstances of intervening due to sustained poor performance.

The NHS Trust can expect PCTs to exert pressure by managing quality and safety through the legally binding contract. Greater accountability is envisaged for PCTs and SHAs. However, it is incumbent upon SWBH managements to find solutions in the first instance. To this end, paragraph 18 on page 11 sets a challenging agenda as it appears to require incongruent goals but does at least recognise that where a NHS Trust is deemed to be 'failing' some form of local recovery plan is to be implemented which positively seeks to secure services in the first instance.

“For example, there may be cases where PCTs can justify additional non-tariff income in order to ...