Scotland’s auditor general warned that the NHS is not financially sustainable in its present form. In her annual review, Caroline Gardner warned that board were struggling to deliver efficiency savings, that targets were being missed, and new cost pressures were being imposed by staff shortages, drug costs and backlog maintenance. In England, NHS Providers warned that this winter could be worse than last winter, while the UK government struggled to explain how it would maintain drug supplies post-Brexit. Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust started the long process of implementing its Epic electronic patient record, while a trial of the DrDoctor online appointment service was extended to another 11 trusts, with the aim of cutting ‘did not attend’ appointments and saving money.
Healthcare Roundup 26 October 2018
