Blackpool hospital praised for innovative working

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive, Wendy Swift, Lord Carter and Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Chairman, Ian Johnson

Lord Carter, author of the Carter Review into NHS productivity, visited Blackpool Teaching Hospitals today and said the rest of the country could learn from the innovation happening at the Trust.

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During his visit to Blackpool Victoria Hospital, Lord Carter heard about innovative working practices within the Trust’s procurement department and visited the Lancashire Cardiac Centre to learn about the ground-breaking, nationally recognised pathways for elective cardiac surgery and patient care.

In June 2014, Lord Carter was asked by the Secretary of State for Health to look at what could be done to improve efficiency in hospitals in England.

The Carter Review, published last year, suggested improvements which could be made by the NHS to ensure the provision of high quality clinical care and good resource management go hand-in-hand.

Today’s visit was arranged by the Lancashire Procurement Cluster which represents  Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust who have been working together to create a collaborative procurement service.

After hearing about how his review is being put into practice within procurement, Lord Carter told Blackpool staff: “Not everyone is as good as you, but it is beginning to happen and innovative savings are being made. These are not easy times, but you have held up well and have used innovative ways of working to make savings.

Mike Doyle, Deputy Director of Procurement, Lancashire Procurement Cluster; Trust Chairmen, Ian Johnson; Lord Carter, Director of Procurement, Lancashire Procurement Cluster, Sharon Robson and  Trust Chief Executive, Wendy Swift.

“I have found the work being done at Blackpool very impressive and the rest of the country can learn from the things that are going on here.”

Chairman of the Trust, Ian Johnson, said Lord Carter’s visit had been extremely positive.

“We are very proud of the work going on here at Blackpool and honoured to be part of the wider Lancashire Procurement Cluster which is helping us all to deliver the Carter Review recommendations,” the Chairman added.

The three trusts have created a shared procurement cluster service which allows them to work more efficiently and more productively.

Mike Doyle, Deputy Director of the Lancashire Procurement Cluster, said: “A collaborative approach to procurement is one of the key recommendations from the Carter Review and we have made this a reality.

Dr Helen Saunders, Divisional Director of Scheduled Care, said: “Lord Carter was very impressed with the work being done locally by our Heart Failure Team and was pleased to hear how new technology is improving outcomes for our patients.

“He was keen to make a return visit to learn more about the innovative work being done by our cardiac team.”

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