Summary
Smaller community hospitals have a continuing role in the NHS, particularly in the care of older patients and in providing care closer to home. Chief executive Simon Stevens has said hospitals serving smaller communities are sustainable and have important roles to play, particularly in elderly care, care in the community, physiotherapy, rehabilitation and palliative care. Some further closures cannot be ruled-out however.
Reference
New NHS chief Simon Stevens backs more local hospitals. London: BBC News, May 30th 2014.
This relates to:
Reference
Interview with Simon Stevens. London: NHS England, June 2nd 2014.
See also Simon Stevens’ Address to NHS Confederation Annual Conference.
According to a report from Monitor, smaller acute providers are likely to face greater financial challenges, and worsening performance.
Reference
Facing the future: smaller acute providers. London: Monitor, June 2014.
Possibly also of interest:
Reference
Triggle, N. (2014). Should the NHS be more like the phone industry? London: BBC Health News, July 1st 2014.
Regional Trauma Networks
An audit, commissioned by NHS England and produced by the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN), indicates that patients in England have a 30% improved chance of surviving severe injury following the introduction of Regional Trauma Networks across England in April 2012. Roughly 600 more patients are surviving major trauma since the changes in April 2012.
Reference
NHS saves lives of hundreds more trauma victims just two years after changes to care – Independent audit. London: NHS England, July 1st 2014.
