There are many opportunities to be examined which will make the slight adjustments to the system needed to get more innovation in, provide better access to suppliers, deliver cash releasing savings and help meet laboratories meet their sustainability targets (less equipment, less power, less consumables etc.
The first to develop into a plan is the potential to do a mass KPI replacement across managed services and in return provide a cost reduction (based on the removal of risk).
Some of you may remember Jacqui Rock coming to the AGM in March and referring to this project as a workstream to look at with BIVDA and our members and this is the first steps in a challenging, but potentially revolutionary project.
The delivery of managed service contracts across the NHS varies, and in practice, the choice of contract by the laboratories, contributes to a dis-jointed, complex, costly and anti-competitive market which stifles innovation due to a series of separate and unrelated operational issues when occurring concurrently compound into a systematic challenge for both the NHS and the UK Diagnostic Supply base.
The contract mechanism has many benefits, if NHS and Industry could work through the challenges and issues, the delivery method could satisfactorily deliver the vast majority of operational conveniences that the laboratories need, but also deliver the policy objectives of the UK which are currently restricted.
There is much work to do and the devil as always will be in the detail. But as we stand at the moment, everyone is in agreement (in principle).
Key impact areas are:
- better access for competition
- routes for innovation adoption
- cash releasing savings
Detailed programmes are in development, to gain the best alignment between industry and the NHS, and work is ongoing. We anticipate that the Procurement working party will be the primary meeting in which this is developed, with subject specific work groups being set up where required.
If you want to be part of this project, please email helen@bivda.org.uk
