What are the Hidden Costs Behind new Financial Forecasts for our Local Health Trusts?
September 3, 2007 12:00 AM
The just published quarterly update on NHS Finance, Perfomance and Operations forecasts that both West Hertfordshire PCT and West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust will have cleared their financial deficits by the first quarter of the 2007/8 financial year.
The document forecasts that West Hertfordshire PCT, which had a deficit of £24.5 million in 2005/6, increasing to £26.6 million in 2006/7, will be exactly in balance by the first quarter of 2007/8. For the West Hertfordshire Hospitals Trust, which had a deficit of £26.7 million in 2005/6 falling to £11.4 million in 2006/7, it is forecasting a surplus of £5 million in the first quarter of this financial year.
Commenting on these projections, Sandy Walkington, Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for St Albans, said: "Hats off to the bean counters for achieving this hand-brake turn in the state of local health finances. But we do not yet know what hidden costs in terms of patient care, health outcomes and staff morale lie behind these results until more figures are published.
"I know from my own conversations with health professionals, patients and their families that there has been some real pain, as these savings have been achieved. If they are mostly in streamlining bureaucracy, more cost-effective procurement and eliminating inefficiencies, then three cheers," he said.
"But everyone will want to see that front-line services have not been damaged just to turn round the financial position," Sandy concluded. "Where over-vigorous cuts have been made, I hope that the Trusts will make use of their new financial position to make careful corrections.
"The current survey of local health services being conducted by the Liberal Democrats will provide a valuable barometer of what is happening on the ground. Already we have had many hundreds of responses and they are flooding in every day. All the information will be collated and shared with the Trusts."
ENDS
For more information, please call Sandy Walkington on 07802 177317.
The full survey is on the Department of Health website at http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/DH_078045
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