This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Shake up at Argyll and Clyde NHS
17/12/2002
Sweeping changes designed to restore confidence in NHS
Argyll and Clyde were announced today.
A new interim management team has been sent in to tackle
strategic and operational challenges and get the
development of health services in the region back on track
in an area serving a population of 423,500 people with an
annual budget of £434 million.
Argyll and Clyde was found to be lacking in strategic
direction and incapable of effective decision making
resulting in mistrust and loss of confidence.
The Chief Executives of the NHS Board and the three NHS
trusts in the area have agreed to step down to make way for
a fresh approach. They will receive severance/retirement
packages on standard NHS terms.
Health Minister Malcolm Chisholm said:
"There can be no doubt that changes were needed in NHS
Argyll and Clyde. There have been problems of collective
leadership in tackling what I acknowledge to be tough and
demanding issues. That was clear from the findings of the
Support Group which I asked to go in to help the NHS Board
in October.
"Through the interim management team, I and the
Executive's Health Department are giving all the support we
can to John Mullin (chairman of NHS Argyll and Clyde) and
his colleagues at NHS Argyll and Clyde. We need to ensure
that we now move forward, for the benefit of patients, the
public, and NHS staff.
"There are thousands of dedicated and professional
health service staff in Argyll and Clyde, all keen to
continue to do a good job for their patients and the public
generally, and to develop better services and improve
quality of care.
"The new interim management team will help to ensure
that this commitment and enthusiasm are harnessed for the
benefit of everyone who uses NHS services, by ensuring that
resources are planned and deployed effectively and
sustainably, and in ways that engage partners and involve
patients, the public and staff.
"I am absolutely determined that we see management
approaches adopted that devolve responsibility and decision
making to staff who are directly involved in delivering
health care. That is the best way to achieve an effective
health service which responds directly to patients' needs
and which motivates staff to really give of their best.
"NHS Argyll and Clyde now needs to look ahead. It will
take time to develop the right strategic approaches, to
build the right partnerships, and to get decision making
devolved as far as possible."
John Mullin said:
"We can now look forward to re-establishing confidence
with the general public, patients and staff in Argyll and
Clyde.
"In September, Argyll and Clyde NHS Board announced
plans to look at a better integrated and more unified
structure. The interim management team will develop this
with the active involvement of staff, trades unions and
professional organisations.
"We will work together to remove organisational and
bureaucratic barriers. This collective and collaborative
approach will mean better planning and more coherent
delivery of health services and more effective linkages
with our partners in local authorities and beyond."
Trevor Jones, Chief Executive of NHSScotland, said:
"It had become clear that major changes were needed.
Difficult decisions had been taken in the light of the
Support Group's conclusions. The key thing now is to move
forward.
"I am confident NHS Argyll and Clyde is very well placed
to resolve outstanding problems, build on the achievements
of its workforce and develop excellent healthcare services
which are equal to any in Scotland."
The interim management team comprises: Neil Campbell,
Chief Executive of Grampian NHS Board; Terry Kirchin,
former General Manager of the Scottish Centre for Infection
and Environmental Health and former Director of Human
Resources for Lanarkshire Primary Care NHS Trust; and James
Hobson, senior manager Public Sector Advisory Division,
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Glasgow.
The Chief Executives who have stepped down are Mr Neil
McConachie (Argyll and Clyde NHS Board); Mr David Sillito
(Argyll and Clyde Acute Hospitals NHS Trust); Mr Michael
Bews (Lomond & Argyll Primary Care NHS Trust); and Mr
George Buchanan (Renfrewshire and Inverclyde Primary Care
NHS Trust).
The Support Group comprised: Peter Bates, Chairman of
NHS Tayside; Neil Campbell, Chief Executive of Grampian NHS
Board; and Cameron Revie, Regional Lead Partner, Public
Sector Advisory Division, PricewaterhouseCoopers,
Glasgow.
The group last night (Monday 15) gave a presentation of
its findings to Argyll and Clyde NHS Board.
A written copy of its conclusions will be made available
shortly. The main findings are:
- Lack of strategic direction and clarity of goals
for the NHS in Argyll and Clyde
- Loss of confidence and reputation giving clinicians
the perception that the system is incapable of making
decisions
- Mistrust and blame culture instead of team
work
- A "them and us culture" at certain levels between
NHS trusts and the NHS board
- Ineffective relationships with local authority and
planning partners, clinicians, MSPs and other
stakeholders.
- A lack of shared understanding over strategic
direction and the true financial position which
comprises a shortfall of between £25 million and £30
million
- Some evidence of robust planning but little
actually implemented in practice
- Little has changed in the wake of previous attempts
to create a cohesive team approach.