1 | Improving Together
Hospitals transformation moves into next phase
Back row L-R: Andrew Tapp, HTP Medical Director; Laura Sheldon, PA to Programme Director; Robin Long, Clinical Project Manager; Wendy Southall, Clinical Programme Manager; Sharon Stuart, Project Manager; Adam Ellis-Morgan, Estates Lead for HTP; Gwyneth Kidd, Programme Manager; Tom Jones, Clinical Programme Manager. Front row L-R: Louise Jones, Clinical Programme Lead; Neil Nisbet, Programme Director; Sophie Rawlings, Communications and Engagement Specialist; Louise Clayton, Project Support Officer.
The team behind the programme to transform hospital services for the people of Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin and Mid Wales has been relaunched as the project enters its next phase. The Hospitals Transformation Programme – HTP – replaces the Sustainable Services Programme – to better reflect and represent the work that is taking place within SaTH. The HTP will be responsible for implementing the reconfiguration of services at PRH and RSH which were designed as part of the NHS Future Fit programme. SaTH’s former Finance Director, Neil Nisbet, has taken up a new role as HTP Programme Director. Mr Andrew Tapp, Care Group Medical Director for Women and Children’s and Support Services, has been appointed as the Programme’s Medical Director. Last month, Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, accepted advice from an independent panel of experts that the reconfiguration should be allowed to go ahead. The Independent Reconfiguration Panel visited the county to speak to our clinicians, and those who have objected to the plans, and were unanimous in their recommendation that the work should go ahead without further delay. In its advice, the independent panel said: “The opportunity to visit the services and test the evidence with those involved locally served to reinforce the written evidence about the case for change. “Even if the ever-present problems of recruiting clinical staff to achieve safe rotas were resolved, the current model of emergency services provided through the two hospitals compromises safety and quality.
SaTH has now submitted its Strategic Outline Case (SOC) to NHS England and NHS Improvement, which details the Trust’s plans to address the significant challenges to the safety and sustainability of patient services, specifically in Emergency and Critical Care. PRH will become a dedicated Planned Care site and RSH will become a specialist Emergency Care site. Both hospitals will have a 24-hour urgent care facility. This will allow specialist doctors to treat the most serious cases at the Emergency Care site, which is safer and will provide better results for patients and reduce the amount of time people have to stay in hospital. You may have heard the term A&E Local; we are working with NHS England and NHS Improvement on an enhanced model which will ensure as much clinically appropriate care as possible is delivered at Princess Royal Hospital. We will continue to work with our stakeholders, including commissioners and the ambulance services, to look at how this can be implemented locally. The development of the Outline Business Case (OBC) is now under way. This will include more detail and analysis and will aid the creation of the Full Business Case (FBC) which will include the final proposals. We acknowledge and recognises the impact these changes will have on staff, patients and the public and are committed to working hard to understand and mitigate this impact where possible. Later this month, the Hospitals Transformation Team will be engaging with various specialities through Task and Finish Groups as well as meeting with staff groups, the People’s Academy and attending Care Group meetings to keep colleagues up-to-date on the programme.