Rush to reduce elective backlog increasing ‘never events’, report finds
Moving less complex procedures out of operating theatres and into other care settings to free up capacity to support elective recovery has ‘inadvertently’ increased the risk of ‘never events’ at an acute trust, a report has warned.
HSJ Podcast: How one trust changed England’s A&E model
A trust that gave its name to a controversial A&E policy has seen performance improve significantly, so this week we discuss how North Bristol Trust handled the risks and how quickly its model could spread throughout the NHS.
Ward staff ‘must accept extra workload to help A&E’
Hospitals are being prevented from adopting models which spread risk away from emergency departments because other teams refuse to take on the extra work, according to a top accident and emergency doctor.
‘Controversial’ A&E policy 'showed we're all shouldering the pain', says CEO
A high-profile shift to admitting patients from A&E to wards irrespective of bed capacity has ‘turned the dial’ for an acute trust’s emergency care, its chief executive has told HSJ.
Revealed: Four trusts report quarter of all ‘critical incidents’
More than a quarter of ‘critical incidents’ have been declared by just four trusts since the start of the crisis in urgent and emergency care.
Trusts miss out on £50m of pledged ‘net zero’ funds
Nearly a fifth of the capital funding allocated to the NHS for ‘net zero’ projects was never received by trusts, with at least two schemes prevented from going ahead due to a lack of flexibility in the scheme.
Trust leaders using ‘aggressive tactics’ to ‘break’ strikes, BMA claims
The BMA has hit out at a trust after it emerged that striking junior doctors could ‘needlessly’ have eight days’ wages deducted from July’s pay, despite there being five days of strike action this month.
Sixteen trusts win £150m for green energy projects
Sixteen trusts have been allocated a combined £150m for heat pumps and other projects to reduce emissions from their estates.
Long cancer waits hit record high, despite drop in backlog
The number of people waiting for cancer diagnosis and treatment for more than three months has passed 12,000 for the first time.
Revealed: Four trusts added to NHSE ‘help list’
NHS England has revealed the latest list of trusts which it has identified as needing the most support to meet electives and cancer targets.
All new hospitals must have single rooms only, government rules
All new hospitals built in England must have only single patient rooms, health infrastructure chiefs have confirmed, requiring an overhaul of many trusts’ current proposals.
Trust boss urges Sunak to avert strike action
A trust leader has written an open letter to prime minister Rishi Sunak asking him to urgently avert strike action planned by the Royal College of Nursing.
Trust boss ‘depressed’ by NHSE spending crackdown
The chair of an acute trust has criticised NHS England’s new spending curbs, saying they make her “depressed” and significantly hamper the organisation’s ability to take strategic decisions.
Four in five trusts yet to reach digitisation target
Only one in five trusts has reached the level of digitisation required by 2025 – more than three years after the target was set, tech chiefs have revealed.
Longest diagnostic waits at highest level since covid lockdown
The share of referrals waiting more than three months for a diagnostic test – one of the key problems behind long waits for cancer treatment – is worse than at any point since February 2021, during the second national covid lockdown.
Recovery Watch: Debate over ‘sticking plaster’ A&E model
Recovering services from the covid crisis is the big task for NHS leaders for the foreseeable future. The Recovery Watch newsletter tracks prospects and progress. This week by HSJ emergency care correspondent Matt Discombe
Exclusive: New hospitals could be required to have single patient rooms only
New hospitals may be required to have single patient rooms only, HSJ can reveal.
Revealed: Long-wait cancer patient list grows again
The backlog of urgent cancer referral patients who have waited 104 days or more for treatment has increased month-on-month again, internal NHS data reveals.
Patients fit for discharge stuck in hospital for up to nine months
Medically fit patients are waiting up to nine months to be discharged from some NHS hospitals as increasing numbers of working age people develop more complex conditions amid ongoing social care shortages.
Large hospital trusts still missing key crisis support in A&E
Some of the country’s leading acute hospitals are not meeting a key NHS standard for mental health support in emergency departments, HSJ research suggests, with some regions faring better than others.