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The Carter Review

In June 2014 the Secretary of State for Health asked Lord Carter of Coles to look into what could be done to improve efficiency and productivity in acute hospitals in England. 

Whilst he recognised that the NHS ranks as one of the best healthcare systems in the world, over the next few years efficiency savings of 2-3% per annum are required. 

Within the NHS, acute hospitals account for over half of the health budget and therefore are a very important part of healthcare provision within England.

In June 2015 Lord Carter released an interim report based on the findings of his studies in 30+ acute hospitals, in which he identified widely varying resource utilisation across the NHS. He estimated that if the NHS reduced this ‘unwarranted variation', then at least £5 billion of the £55.6 billion annual spend within acute hospitals could be saved.

This was followed by a final report in February 2016 detailing how these efficiencies could be achieved by 2020. 

The final report detailed 15 recommendations designed to tackle this variation and help Trusts improve their performance. 

Whilst the recommendations are based on different areas and activities within acute care, it is expected that Pharmacy will deliver savings of over £700 million per annum by 2020. By April 2017 Trusts were required to complete a ‘Hospital Pharmacy Transformational Plan' (HPTP). The HPTP detailed how each Trust intended to deliver the recommendations of the report and the subsequent saving efficiencies. 

As a major supplier of medicines and services to the NHS, Alliance Healthcare is in a unique position within the health sector to assist Trusts to meet their aims and objectives.

Existing further support

Whilst our main role within hospitals is to provide a consolidated medicines supply provision for pharmacy, most recently we have been assisting Trusts further by:

  • Reducing the amount of medicines inventory stock held
  • Optimise & reduce the amount of deliveries they receive from our Group
  • Increase the amount of medicines Alliance Healthcare can provide

Alliance Healthcare - Vision for Secondary Care

‘Pharmacy at the heart of clinical care'

Key to optimising future medicines management is to put pharmacy at the heart of clinical practice- optimising clinical interaction and intervention with both clinicians and patients.

This ensures the patient has the right medicines at the right time facilitating the speed of recovery and supporting wellbeing.

Pharmacy Expertise & Clinical Deployment

To facilitate this transition to clinical support, it is critical that non acute pharmacy activity including medicines logistics and distribution are redesigned, automating current manual process, creating greater visibility and control within medicines management. 

Our belief is that there is a need to look holistically at medicines management solution requirements, utilising a wide range of existing and future technologies to deliver an optimum model and release pharmacy resource for front line clinical activity. This also will deliver reduced service costs and reduce medicines spend.

Alliance Healthcare's team of specialists are available to assist individual Trusts to meet the requirements of The Carter Review and drive innovation in current practice to deliver the efficiency savings required and focus resource on front line patient care.

For more information please contact Sarah-Jane Boniface – Head of Hospitals or any member of our commercial team: 

Sarah-Jane.Boniface@alliance-healthcare.co.uk

 

 

 

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