Shared Services within the NHS

Shared Services within the NHS

By Alastair Youngson, Business Analyst

May 2019

 

It should come as no surprise that when it comes to harnessing technology and innovation in the workplace, the NHS is at the forefront. Simplifications in online appointments, the introduction of 111 and even the use of mobile apps to help people manage their own health are just recent examples of how the NHS continues to evolve to meet customer needs, and underpin them as one of the most efficient medical services in the world. However, staying at the forefront of technology comes at a price, which, aligned with recent bad press around staff wage cuts, overworked and overburdened employees and increased waiting times for local practises, casts a vast grey shadow over an organisation that should not only be praised, but one that should be celebrated.

 

It’s a balancing act, literally life and death in some cases, with people’s health pitted against organisationally beneficial new technologies, and it’s one the NHS has been successfully managing for decades.  So why does an organisation that does so much good, get such a bad name?

 

When we take a look at the NHS we don’t see a slick well-oiled machine; one which automatically retrieves your medical records from a GP prior to an operation, or one which pulls several different teams onto a patient with pin-point accuracy to provide a top class level of service. Instead we see what’s relevant to us, and what doesn’t work well, whether that’s filling in forms in triplicate, mis-communication between departments, or poor logistics resulting in overbooked appointments. Due to advances in technology, we have come to expect these things to be done automatically these days. They are basic tasks, that in other industries are picked up with little or no customer input, but are being missed by the NHS.  It’s not just tools, but the Shared Services approach that allows functions to work across entire sectors of the organisation which brings significant benefits and efficiencies.

 

So why has the adoption of a Shared Services model not been taken up by the NHS so readily? There are no longer the same hurdles as there were ten plus years ago, such as costly server upgrades or building complex bespoke systems to cater for different needs. Instead, we have tailor made solutions, driving these benefits across multiple industries which before long, pay for themselves in cost-savings. My opinion, it’s trepidation, a fear of what may be. Or more likely, what may not. For alongside all the great advances in technology that create new ways to detect malignant tumours, or build bespoke treatment plans using cognitive automation systems, we need people who are brave enough to look at the day to day processes and think what may be. Only that way will the NHS continue to evolve in a way that we, the consumer, may expect. 

 

Still hope is not lost, in recent years the NHS has been evolving at a much faster pace, with more Trusts understanding the benefits of a single point of contact for their IT, Facilities, Accounting, HR, Procurement teams.  Before long these success stories will be shared throughout all the separate Trusts, and you will once again be dealing with a NHS which shows itself as both smooth and efficient.  One which can deal with simple tasks automatically, leveraging technology to provide efficiencies, and one which is able to look across all of its platforms and drive savings and benefits year after year.  Then, who knows, perhaps with these simple mistakes rectified people will be able to open their eyes to the fantastic work everyone at the NHS does; and then we will all have a NHS that we can shout about and be proud of.