Great Ormond St says delay to lifting of private patient cap a 'key risk'

The statement, in the trust’s annual plan review submitted to Monitor, said: “We will grow our international private patients activity, both specialist care and education, in line with our strategy and in order to provide financial support for our NHS services. A delay in removal of the private patients cap is a key risk.”

The trust said the majoity of its international private patients came from the Middle East and were funded by government bodies.

The APR said: “Capacity within the private patient wards has recently been increased by the refurbishment of ward areas to allow an increase in the number of beds.

“This will not impinge on our ability to treat NHS patients, indeed the profit we make from international private p patients will be reinvested into NHS resources.

“Deliver the planned growth in NHS activity through the increased centralisation of specialist services and the recently updated growth strategy for international patients once the PPC is lifted, currently assumed to be April 2013.”

It added: “This is achievable through leverage of the new capacity afforded through the Morgan Stanley Clinical Building, additional capacity recently added in our private patient wards and improving productivity in all clinical areas.

“This will happen progressively over each of the three years and it is possible that when the current Safe and Sustainable workstreams reach conclusion that we will have the opportunity to secure more activity growth than is currently within the plan.”