By Paul Dicken
20 August 2009
The increasing bill for negligence claims in the Welsh NHS has prompted criticism over the cost of reorganisation.
The NHS (Wales) summarised accounts 2008/09 showed trusts had put aside almost £309m for contested claims of alleged medical or employer negligence.
Actual and anticipated liabilities for clinical negligence claims amounted to £222m across local health boards and trusts.
Shadow health minister Andrew Davies blamed two ‘destabilising, bureaucratic, costly’ restructurings for increasing costs.
‘Reorganisation after reorganisation has hit patient care just as we said it would, millions are being paid out because of negligence and admin and agency costs are rising,’ he said.
From October, six new local health boards will be fully operational, replacing 21 of 22 previous LHBs. The new boards and the existing Powys Teaching LHB will make up the health service in Wales along with the national trusts: Public Health Wales, Velindre (specialist services) and the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust.
At the end of the 2008/09 financial year, all LHBs were within budget, although Swansea and Powys boards were allocated £31m of non-repayable funding in March to achieve financial balance.
Overall, NHS Wales made a surplus of £3.4m, compared with a deficit in 2007/08.
20 August 2009
The increasing bill for negligence claims in the Welsh NHS has prompted criticism over the cost of reorganisation.
The NHS (Wales) summarised accounts 2008/09 showed trusts had put aside almost £309m for contested claims of alleged medical or employer negligence.
Actual and anticipated liabilities for clinical negligence claims amounted to £222m across local health boards and trusts.
Shadow health minister Andrew Davies blamed two ‘destabilising, bureaucratic, costly’ restructurings for increasing costs.
‘Reorganisation after reorganisation has hit patient care just as we said it would, millions are being paid out because of negligence and admin and agency costs are rising,’ he said.
From October, six new local health boards will be fully operational, replacing 21 of 22 previous LHBs. The new boards and the existing Powys Teaching LHB will make up the health service in Wales along with the national trusts: Public Health Wales, Velindre (specialist services) and the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust.
At the end of the 2008/09 financial year, all LHBs were within budget, although Swansea and Powys boards were allocated £31m of non-repayable funding in March to achieve financial balance.
Overall, NHS Wales made a surplus of £3.4m, compared with a deficit in 2007/08.
