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Six GS1 and PEPPOL demonstrator sites chosen

Six acute trusts have been selected as demonstrators to pilot the use of GS1 and PEPPOL (Pan European Public Procurement On-Line) standards as part of the government’s eProcurement strategy, endorsed in the Carter Review.

Each site will receive support and a slice of the £12m Department of Health funding to demonstrate significant efficiencies and cost savings, reduced errors and better patient outcomes by adopting GS1 barcoding standards.

The six chosen demonstrator sites are:

• Derby Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
• The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
• North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust
• Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust
• Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust
• Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust

As outlined in the eProcurement Strategy, the implementation of GS1 and PEPPOL standards across the NHS will kick off this month, with the central £12m fund released in four phases over the next two years.

The government expects that implementing electronic procurement systems can deliver efficiency savings of up to £800m, with simplified supply chains for hospitals helping cut down on the estimated £150m the health service wastes each year on oversupplied or perished products.

Last year’s interim Carter Review also stated that introducing these standards will allow every NHS hospital to save on average up to £3m each year.

Speaking to NHE, Lord Carter said: “We can track purchase orders and track invoices, but unless you track stock you don’t know what the usage has been.

“And that has been a really difficult thing to ascertain because we suspect various hospitals use much more of certain supplies because they haven’t got a good materials management system.

“We haven’t been able to get the answer to that so we are pressing hospitals on better materials management systems. We need to barcode everything. We just have to get there.”

Tony Whitfield, director of finance at the Leeds site, said the provider was thrilled with the “opportunities provided” by being appointed a demonstrator.

“The [trust] is fully committed to the implementation of GS1 and PEPPOL standards in order to further drive patient safety and increase efficiency,” he said. “Being selected offers us the chance to harness the potential of GS1 standards for patients and the taxpayer and support the trust in developing best practice for procurement.”

In November 2014, NHE also spoke to the trust’s head of supplies and procurement, Chris Slater, and its e-business manager, Graham Medwell, about the provider’s pioneering work on e-enablement, inventory control and materials management.

The Leeds trust marked the health service as the first hospital in Europe to trade electronically with its major suppliers through the Global Healthcare Exchange back in 2002. It has, since then, been a leader on e-procurement, with its approach to barcoding, tracking technology, e-catalogues and inventory management releasing critical nursing and clinical time back to the front line.

In April of last year, NHE also spoke to the chief procurement officer at Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust, one of the other providers acting as demonstrators, about some key trends and innovations in procurement and logistics.

Today, the trust’s chief executive, Ann James, said: “We are delighted to have been chosen as one of only six sites of excellence to be at the forefront of rolling out these new, national standards.

“Our selection comes as a result of a lot of hard work and commitment to this partnership from our staff. We look forward to the challenges and improvements this will bring.”

Developing guidance for all trusts

Late last year, all NHS acute trusts in England were registered as GS1 UK members, as also mandated by the department’s strategy – meaning every supplier and every trust must adopt the GS1 barcoding standards.

But today’s initiative will be able to give “invaluable insight” into the trust costs, practical challenges and opportunities and benefits embedded in adopting the GS1 and PEPPOL standards “in a live healthcare environment”.

A major result of the demonstrator, for example, will be developing clear guidance and best practice with UK-based exemplars that all acute trusts can then learn from.

The head of healthcare at GS1 UK, Glen Hodgson, warmly welcomed the six trusts, claiming their commitment in championing these standards along the whole patient pathway “will help the chosen sites to shift towards improved patient-centric care provision, and increase their overall efficiency”.

Hodgson also explained how standardising medicines management will improve patient experience and safety outcomes in the latest NHE November/December 2015 edition.