23.11.12
‘Deep concerns’ about procurement failings
The Health Care Supply Association (HCSA) says it has “deep concerns” about a report this week into price variations across the NHS.
The report, by Ernst & Young and product comparison website Peto, suggested that £1bn of potential savings could be “lost” by the next election, because too many trusts are paying over the odds.
Following up work by the National Audit Office and FTN, the organisations say the situation has not improved, with the same box of medical forceps costing £13 for some trusts and £23 for others, for example.
NHE got very detailed information from the NAO at the time of its last report on procurement about what should be done – that is available here.
Ernst & Young said that despite the time that’s passed since the NAO warning, and despite various Department of Health interventions, cost-efficient buying among the NHS has not improved.
Eugene Cooke, chairman of the Health Care Supply Association and associate director – national head of procurement at NHS Blood and Transplant, said it has “deep concerns” about the findings of the report. He said: “We would expect some variation for differing volume commitments and contract terms but these levels of variation don’t represent the ‘fair’ pricing regimes a publicly funded NHS should expect.
“The HCSA is already working with organisations such as Peto, ADB Multiquote and the Advisory Board to encourage much faster NHS adoption of technologies and practices that deliver product price transparency and comparison. We also agree that the DH's GS1 programme will benefit product comparison. Following another successful annual conference last week, which focused on improving access to better procurement management information and price benchmarking, HCSA is rolling out a series of webinars on these topics to ensure that its members and their NHS Trusts are fully aware of what is already available to support them now in the pursuit of a more efficient and transparent health system.”
Nigel Clifford, CEO at Procserve, said: “Ernst and Young’s recent report has highlighted the fragmentation and lack of sharing in NHS procurement, leading to some hospitals in England paying more than they need to for medical supplies. This is bad news when funding pressures are being felt in the health sector. Fortunately, there are better models in other areas of the public sector.
“Police forces across the UK are adopting a standardised platform to help with their procurement needs. The National Police Procurement Hub (NPPH) uses a central system for all procurement, meaning that all purchases are made at pre-negotiated prices and each individual force is getting better value for money.
“Using technology to transform the procurement process across the forces has also enabled them to improve back office efficiency on invoice processing and realise further savings beyond spending, ultimately freeing up resources which can then be redistributed to frontline police work. This would seem an example worth examining.”
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