The government has revealed more details on how the functions of NHS England will be absorbed into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), saying the move will reduce bureaucracy, make savings and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients.
The abolition of NHS England will put an end to the duplication resulting from two organisations doing the same job in a system currently holding staff back from delivering for patients, says the government. By stripping back layers of red tape and bureaucracy, more resources will be put back into the front line rather than being spent on unnecessary admin.
The reforms will reverse the 2012 top-down reorganisation of the NHS which created burdensome layers of bureaucracy without any clear lines of accountability. As Lord Darzi’s independent investigation into the state of the NHS found, the effects of this are still felt today and have left patients worse off under a convoluted and broken system.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “This is the final nail in the coffin of the disastrous 2012 reorganisation, which led to the longest waiting times, lowest patient satisfaction and most expensive NHS in history. When money is so tight, we cannot justify such a complex bureaucracy with two organisations doing the same jobs. We need more doers and fewer checkers, which is why I’m devolving resources and responsibilities to the NHS frontline.
“NHS staff are working flat out but the current system sets them up to fail. These changes will support the huge number of capable, innovative and committed people across the NHS to deliver for patients and taxpayers. Just because reform is difficult does not mean it should not be done. This government will never duck the hard work of reform. We will take on vested interests and change the status quo, so the NHS can once again be there for you when you need it.”
Sir James Mackey, who will be taking over as Transition CEO of NHS England on 1 April, said: “We know that while unsettling for our staff, today’s announcement will bring welcome clarity as we focus on tackling the significant challenges ahead and delivering on the government’s priorities for patients. We now need to bring NHS England and DHSC together so we can deliver the biggest bang for our buck for patients, as we look to implement the 3 big shifts - analogue to digital, sickness to prevention and hospital to community - and build an NHS fit for the future.”
Work will begin immediately to return many of NHS England’s current functions to DHSC. A longer-term programme of work will deliver the changes to bring NHS England back into the department, while maintaining a focus on the government’s priorities to cut waiting times and manage finances responsibly. It will also realise the untapped potential of the NHS as a single payer system, using its centralised model to procure cutting-edge technology more rapidly, get a better deal for taxpayers on procurement and work more closely with the life sciences sector to develop the treatments of the future.
The reforms to deliver a more efficient, leaner centre will also free up capacity and help deliver significant savings of hundreds of millions of pounds a year, which will be reinvested in frontline services to cut waiting times through the government’s Plan for Change.
The changes will crucially also give more power and autonomy to local leaders and systems - instead of weighing them down in increasing mountains of red tape, they will be given the tools and trust they need to deliver health services for the local communities they serve with more freedom to tailor provision to meet local needs.