No more sticking plasters?

I was not going to do a 1 minute blog on my website this week as I am currently in the weeds of reviewing data for my research. However, I received a link to the NHS Providers recent report on backlog within the NHS "No More Sticking Plasters" and felt compelled to share this.

The report is excellent on a number of fronts. Not only does it highlight the concerns of specific issues within the NHS such as the RAAC planks within a number of trusts, but it goes calls to action the DHSC to publish a long-term capital plan.

However, the report has also reminded me that we are also conflating the term ‘backlog’ and as such we are weakening the message. Given the state of the waiting lists across the NHS more and more often also being described as the ‘backlog’ within the NHS, perhaps now is a good time to differentiate the term ‘backlog’ for NHS estates.

For me, the term has always conjured up notions that perhaps one day we will catch up on the backlog maintenance. However, reality is that we are now £10bn and counting, with no line of sight to any level of realistic plan to address the issue….

Perhaps we should be re-framing the problem. Perhaps we should be just talking about Critical Infrastructure Risk and how we keep our patients, staff and visitors to our sites safe?

This is possibly not a popular opinion as it accepts the poor state of the environment as inevitable, but if it sharpens the mind and the direction of capital funds, perhaps a focus on what we need to do to keep the doors open and lights on is the best we can do… for now?

https://nhsproviders.org/no-more-sticking-plasters