19.09.12
FTs would not be awarded status if applying now – Monitor
Eleven NHS FTs are facing serious financial problems, and key services are set to end at hospitals run by one south London trust, the public accounts committee has heard.
MPs were told that if they were applying for FT status now, the 11 would not be awarded it.
South London Healthcare NHS Trust is the first to be put into administration, with debts totalling £150m. Administrator Matthew Kershaw, director of provider delivery at the DH, has said private providers may end up delivering some of the services in its three hospitals in Sidcup, Woolwich and Orpington.
David Flory, chief executive of the NHS Trust Development Authority, told the committee: “I think that the full range of services which are provided on all of those sites will change. They will be provided but not on all of the sites that they are provided [at] now.”
Monitor is investigating the financial viability of the 11 NHS FTs, including Mid Staffordshire and Peterborough & Stamford. Chief executive David Bennett told MPs that the trusts would not be awarded FT status if they were applying for it now.
Mike Farrar, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: “We know that the NHS as a whole has the cushion to achieve financial balance. But it's a real worry that an increasing number of organisations are getting into difficulty and the issue is likely to get worse.
“It is critical that trusts in difficulty can steer themselves away from the rocks by reshaping what they do in a planned and organised way. Just saying no to change will cause more problems in the long run.”
Chris Hopson, chief executive of the Foundation Trust Network said: “It’s no surprise that Monitor is concerned about a number of foundation trusts. The issue is what we do now to help those trust boards improve their financial viability.
“That requires Monitor, the rest of the NHS in the relevant local area and politicians to support plans that will involve difficult and unpopular changes. The test for the NHS and our politicians is whether we can all work together to make those changes before more trusts effectively become bankrupt”.
A Department of Health spokesman said: “The NHS ended last year in a strong overall financial position, while improving services and delivering £5.8bn of savings. We are working with a small number of hospitals with longstanding financial problems to tackle their issues, with the aim of making them all sustainable by 2014.”
Tell us what you think – have your say below, or email us directly at [email protected]