30
Oct 2015
Hospital would have had to close A&E nine days in every 10 to break even
An ex-chief executive of Addenbrooke’s Hospital, which is part of Cambridge University Hospitals Trust, has said that in order to break even, Addenbrooke’s Hospital would have to close its accident and emergency department on nine days in every ten.
Keith McNeil, who quite Addenbrooke’s in September, said that a funding standard, which means that hospitals are reimbursed 30% of the cost of accident and emergency beds compared to planned surgery, had had an impact.
Dr McNeil said that the formula was not sustainable, that it did not appropriately reimburse the hospital based on its performance, and that it had a high number of A&E admissions due to its role in specialist care delivery and the local ageing population.
He went on to say that due to the funding shortfall caused by the high number of A&E beds, the hospital would need to use 210 of its 850 adult beds each day for planned surgery “to break even”, and that if the hospital did “ring fence” these beds, it would “mean shutting the emergency room nine days out of ten.”
A spokesperson from the Department of Health said “We know finances are challenging for certain parts of the NHS, that’s why we are giving the health service the £10bn extra during this parliament that it has said it needs.
“However, trusts must also show tight financial grip and live within their means.”
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Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), Medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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