This publication looks at why the NHS needs managers and dispels some of the myths that surround NHS management.
The NHS is one of the largest organisations in the world – employing 1.3 million staff,with an annual budget of around £80 billion. Indeed, if the NHS was a country, it would be 33rd in the OECD list of countries with the biggest economies.The NHS treats over one million people every 36 hours.
The size of individual NHS trusts vary, from incomes of £70 million to £650 million. This compares to other organisations such as the smoothie makers Innocent Drinks which has an annual turnover of around £75 million and Nuffield Hospitals which has an annual turnover of £524 million.
Any organisation of such a scale would be expected to value management, yet NHS managers often find themselves criticised and derided for being faceless bureaucrats or pointless pen pushers.
So, in the face of such public criticism, why does the NHS need managers?