Annual Report 2006/07 - Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital

Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation Trust Annual Report 2006/07
Chief Executive’s Statement
In this Annual Report we profile the activities
of the RD&E over the last 12 months and
highlight the significant progress we have made
in developing the range and scope of services
we provide for people across Devon and the
surrounding areas, to ensure patients receive the
right treatment in the right place at the right time.
Throughout 2006/07 there has been a growing
awareness of the financial and service challenges
facing the PCTs who commission our services
on behalf of local people, and the wider NHS.
Despite this the RD&E has continued its
programme of service redesign and improvement,
and increased the overall number of staff it
employs, particularly in medicine and nursing.
During the course of the year the RD&E has
moved from having waiting times for routine
MRI and CT scans of up to 50 weeks to the
current longest waiting time of 13 weeks;
we intend to reduce this further to 6 weeks,
matching the best-performing NHS organisations
across the country.
The Trust has previously faced the challenge
of providing sufficient intensive care capacity
to meet the increasing but fluctuating demand
among our most critically ill patients. Building
work to enable the creation of five additional
ITU beds (a 50% increase) is now nearing
completion and will significantly reduce the
number of cancelled operations for our
complex surgical patients.
Ten years ago the major strategic priority was
to relocate maternity, gynaecology and neonatal
services from the Heavitree site to the Wonford
site. Whilst the case for relocation was well
accepted, for many years it was not possible
to identify the funding needed to support the
scheme. In 2004 the contract was awarded,
funded by a combination of Department of
Health capital, and capital
borrowed for investment by using
our Foundation Trust freedoms; the
service will relocate into excellent
new facilities on the Wonford site
in June 2007.
Partnership working with our
primary care, social care and commissioning
partners underpins the range and quality
of care we offer local people who benefit
from the ongoing strength and focus of the
RD&E. Last year we reported a small surplus
of £500,000. For 2006/07 the Board set a
more challenging financial target of achieving
a surplus of £2.4 million. During the year, in
recognition of the financial challenges faced
by our main PCT commissioner, and to support
the RD&E’s commitment to partnership working
and comprehensive healthcare within Devon,
the Trust agreed to make a £2 million financial
contribution to help resolve Devon PCT’s
projected deficit. Despite this unplanned
change, the RD&E has exceeded its target and
generated a £2.9 million surplus.
None of these achievements could have been
realised without the focus of all Trust staff
on managing resources and driving quality
improvement through innovation, service efficiency
and effectiveness. Thanks to our staff, and their
continuing efforts, we are now in a strong position
to face the challenges of the year ahead.
Angela Pedder, Chief Executive
Taking into account the financial constraints placed on the service, the Trust makes every effort to
balance value for money with the meeting of patient clinical need. By assessing research evidence the Trust
ensures effective clinical outcomes. There are carefully devised systems to ensure not only the quality of care
but also to enable an openness of ideas leading to innovation and changes in practice.
The Governors received regular reports from the Chief Executive, the Medical Directors, Director of Finance and
other Directors, enabling us to question progress on a wide range of issues. We are pleased to recognise the
positive outcome of last year’s financial statement and look forward to a continued improvement.
Overall, the Governors feel that the Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation Trust has continued its exemplary
service to its catchment area.
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