HSJ Health Check

Amid four “inadequate” ratings and a new leadership inspection, is the writing on the wall for one of the NHS’ worst performing trusts over the last decade? We discuss what the latest inspection of Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust means for the organisation’s future, and whether the trust will survive in its current guise with two local MPs now in charge of the government. Also on this episode...

NHS trusts have more than £18bn in covid cash reserves, but how helpful is this extra money? We cover why cash levels are three times higher than before the pandemic, whether this money will help trusts cope with final pressures and the “technical accounting” measures being used to keep the bottom line healthy. Also on this episode, just a few weeks before its move to a new, smaller building, Roya...

In a week that saw Liz Truss replace Boris Johnson as prime minister, the HSJ team assess the challenges faced by her new health secretary Therese Coffey, plus the dire state of ambulance services. Ms Coffey set ambulances as one of her four “ABCD” priorities, alongside the elective backlog, care and doctors and dentists. Bureau chief Ben Clover is joined by Alison Moore and editor Alastair McLell...

The NHS has been told by the government to cut management consultancy spend and completely freeze recruitment at a national level. Is this Steve Barclay’s first - and maybe last - move to force the NHS be more efficient? Also this week we discuss the dire impact midwife shortages are having on the quality of maternity services and how these shortages have threatened the roll-out of an NHS England-...

This week HSJ revealed the final trusts added to the ‘new hospital’ programme, which are also thought to have some of the most dangerous estates in the NHS. We discuss why only now they are in line for an upgrade and also what the perfect ‘new’ hospital might look like. Also this week - what do we know so far about the NHS winter plan? We ask whether it is radical enough to contend with the troubl...

Significant tensions between a mental health trust and an ICS have prompted the trust’s chief executive to resign. We discuss how things escalated to become quite this bad and whether we could see more power struggles as ICBs find their feet. Also this week, the government is investigating a surge in excess deaths in England and we ask what’s causing this rise, plus warnings from an A&E depart...

The NHS needs “fewer layers of management” - this is according to Tory leadership hopeful Liz Truss and is one of the first significant comments made about the NHS by either candidate this summer. We talk more about the other pledges made about health and social care so far by both candidates and where they might look to make their mark. Also £75m has been announced to create more mental health be...

This week we revisit the thorny subject of A&E standards, following calls for a new six-hour target to be introduced. This aligns with clinical evidence about patient harm but it is at odds with NHS England’s plans to replace the four-hour standard with ‘a basket’ of ten new metrics, which does not include a six-hour target. Also this week - we discuss news that more trusts have star...

Hospital leaders have warned there is a lack of accountability in the NHS, warning this could undermine public and political trust in the service. In a roundtable hosted by HSJ, the most well-respected chief executives have spoken candidly about the slow pace of reform, why talking about how tired the workforce is doesn’t always help and why command and control leadership has its place. Also in 20...

The NHS must find the money to fund an extra £2bn of the staff pay bill, after the government decided to increase it beyond the 3% rise that was budgeted for. We discuss the impact this is likely to have on services and also why a particular group of senior managers are particularly demoralised. Also this week: An HSJ investigation has highlighted the horrendously long waits faced by mental health...

On Monday night all ambulance services in England declared the highest level of alert. We discuss why the NHS is under such terrible pressure in July and the dangerous impact this is having on patients, staff and services. Also more discussion about major job cuts announced within NHS England - is this a necessary change or will it consume too much time at a crucial moment for the NHS?

Tough times are ahead for the NHS, with a “nightmare” new health and social care secretary appointed and performance spiralling. On this episode we discuss the shocking true extent of the cancer care backlog after leaked figures revealed there are now over 10,000 people waiting over 104 days following a cancer referral. Also this week, disappointing elective activity has forced NHS England to look...

The NHS is facing a major reorganisation this year, including within NHS England itself. On this episode we discuss the challenges and power struggles that lie ahead and who has the toughest job of all; the newly appointed chief workforce officer. Annabelle is joined by HSJ editor Alastair McLellan.

Race and racism in NHS leadership and workforce, and health inequalities, are the subject of this week’s HSJ Health Check podcast. We look back to some of the debates on the issues at – and around – last week’s NHS ConfedExpo conference. We explore the prospects for progress, and important context including diversity in integrated care system leadership and NHS England’s leadership. With HSJ equal...

This week the news team bring you the podcast from the NHS Confed/Expo conference in Liverpool. Annabelle Collins, Lawrence Dunhill and Dave West are joined by guest Charlotte Augst, chief executive of charity National Voices. We cover the biggest talking points from this year’s conference, including Amanda Pritchard’s debut NHS Confed speech as NHSE CEO, the health secretary’s vision for ‘reform...

The chief executives of Sandwell and West Birmingham, Countess of Chester, King's College and Croydon hospitals trusts - some of the worst affected through the covid pandemic - discuss what lessons can be learned, including more sharing of waiting lists and staff, developing critical care, addressing unequal resources, the resource gap, fast decision making and local leadership. Part two of two. S...

The chief executives of Sandwell and West Birmingham, Countess of Chester, King's College and Croydon hospitals trusts - some of the worst affected through the covid pandemic - reflect on how they dealt with the fear and uncertainty of wave one, and the impact on staff then and now. Part one of two. See hsj.co.uk for analysis on the trusts hit hardest by covid.

This week our focus is on new ways of delivering care in the NHS. We discuss why the NHS is not on trajectory to meet its virtual ward ambitions and what needs to be done to gain the confidence of clinicians. Also an update on digital health service provider Babylon and why this major player is cautious about further NHS expansion. Plus our insight on virtual versus face-to-face GP appointment tre...

“Our project is in jeopardy.” This is according to one trust working on long-needed major hospital redevelopments, which were promised by the government in the run-up to the 2019 general election. HSJ revealed this week each project has only been given £1m to cover their planning costs – an amount which falls far below what is needed. We discuss why this could see the critical work delayed even fu...

On this week’s episode we discuss NHS England’s own staff survey results, which reveals the best and worst performing departments and regions and delivers a particularly worrying verdict on the People Directorate. We also turn again to integrated care systems, and this time focus on why in some areas a power struggle could emerge between ‘place’ and the system-wide leadership. Also, an update on t...

Three further acute trusts are considering a move to joint leadership, HSJ has learned, and mental health hubs for NHS staff are being underused — we analyse both issues on this week’s HSJ Health Check podcast. The trusts, in Norfolk, have fiercely protected their independence in the past, but could the national shift towards collaboration see things move forward? We also give an update on the cou...

A plethora of complex governance arrangements are being  set up in and around ICSs - which are only just due to become statutory.  We discuss why these complications might hinder successful service  change. We also hear about two senior NHS tech chiefs leaving  their positions to join a controversial private company - at a time when  NHS England is launching a major data p...

The NHS has been told to scale back infection control measures, but what will this mean for staff and patients? We talk about the risks healthcare leaders will have to balance over the coming weeks and the reaction from clinicians. Also on the subject of cancer recovery, we discuss the good and the very bad news.

NHS England have asked systems to ensure their financial plans break even this year - but easier said than done when many face deficits of over £100m. This week, we discuss why systems are pushing back and how this could play out. Also, the latest race equality data has been published and we analyse what it says about leadership diversity in NHS trusts.

On this week’s episode we explore the pressure points hindering the NHS’s recovery this Spring. We  draw on an interview given last week by NHS elective recovery chief Sir  Jim Mackey – he backed calls for infection control guidance to be  relaxed and warned meeting cost efficiency targets may not be possible. Also  we discuss what trusts and systems are doing to ease the press...