By Vivienne Russell | 8 June 2011
More efficient management of the NHS estate could save the health service an extra £1bn a year, according to consultants.
A report published today by EC Harris says that management of the NHS estate in England is improving but there are further opportunities to make savings.
Efficiency measures such as better procurement of common goods and services and a more streamlined supply chain would save more than £1bn, according to the report, Seizing the opportunity.
Another £1bn could be realised by selling off just half of the empty and underused space in the NHS, it adds. This amounted to 2.1 million square metres in 2009/10, a fall from more than 3 million square metres the previous year.
There are also concerns about the wide variation in trusts’ management of their estates. The consultants recommend that trusts benchmark themselves against their best performing counterparts.
Conor Ellis, lead author of the report, said: ‘There may be many months spent finetuning the current Health Bill, not least due to the intensifying opposition, but this should not stop legitimate and necessary changes being made to reduce expenditure on the NHS estate and to improve service delivery.’
