MORE than 200 NHS jobs have been lost since two commissioning boards joined together last year.
NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB) joined with Coventry and Warwickshire’s ICB in a bid to save millions in administration costs, but stopped short of a full merger.
By the end of October, 241 employees had left the two organisations either through redundancy or other measures.
SAVINGS: Simon Trickett said money saved by the restructure of the ICBs is going into frontline care (Image: NHS)
This helped NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB save £12m, meeting the target it was set of reducing its running costs by 43 percent.
ICB chief executive Simon Trickett spoke at a meeting of Worcestershire County Council’s health overview and scrutiny committee on Wednesday (November 11).
“A significant number of people have left the organisations,” he said. “Over 90 percent have been either through natural wastage, turnover – deleting vacancies – or through a voluntary redundancy programme, that was funded and subsidised nationally.
“Less than 10 percent of those departures are going to be on a compulsory redundancy basis, which I’m quite proud of because it shows we’ve worked with the staff to try and do this in the kindest and most humane way possible, as well as delivering a significant amount of change.”
Mr Trickett said the ICB has had a “difficult year of change” and is now focussed on improvement and transformation.
Councillors were told the Coventry and Warwickshire ICB had also met its savings target of £10m.
Mr Trickett said a cost cutting scheme was being launched in the civil service, adding: “If I was in a national leadership role I’d be pointing to some of this work to what’s possible with the right type of focus.
“It’s a significant amount of money released, which has gone into frontline patient care and services.”
NHS bosses say more healthcare workers need to get vaccinated
Stroke cases in Worcestershire set to rise 70% by 2040, NHS bosses warn
NHS in Worcestershire ‘failing’ says chair of health committee
Councillor Bakul Kumar asked how the ICBs ensure funds are not moved from Worcestershire to Coventry, for example, if the needs are greater.
Mr Trickett said the two ICBs remain separate organisations with their own budgets.
The government has decided not to merge the ICBs because the boundaries are likely to change as part of local government reorganisation.
Mr Trickett said in the long-term there will be a bigger role for strategic authorities and directly elected mayors in commissioning local health services.
“The idea is ultimately, the boundaries of integrated care boards will fit within new strategic mayoral authorities,” he said.