Over the last 12 months, we have worked on your behalf - both publicly, but more often behind the scenes - on a range of acute-specific and across-the-board issues.
Our achievements for acute trusts include:
The future of the local hospital
The Confederation played a key role in the work of the National Leadership Network that produced a set of design principles so that service reconfiguration can be planned without resorting to the centralisation of all services. We published the report, Personal reflections on the future of acute hospitals, by health services consultant Andy Black, to help members promote discussions locally. As a part of the work surrounding Modernising Medical Careers, we have also been looking with NHS Employers at the doctor of the future.
Contact with key policymakers
In 2005, we held a series of forums, bringing together members, key civil servants and policy drivers to discuss future health service policy, health sector regulation and other key issues.
Integrated care
We have been exploring the case for vertical integration and the circumstances in which hospitals would benefit. Our report, Building integrated care (170Kb PDF), reviewed the evidence about integration, provided a conceptual framework, and focused on some of the pitfalls that must be avoided if successful integrated services are to be created. This work stream is continuing.
Dispelling the money myths
We undertook proactive work to dispel the criticism of the levels of investment in the NHS. Our briefing, Money in the NHS: the facts (260Kb PDF), shows that the chronic underinvestment in the NHS throughout the 1980s and 1990s was underestimated and that a considerable amount of the 'new' funding has been spent on compensating for this. Of new investment, we found 50 per cent had been spent recruiting new staff and paying higher salaries - the benefits of which will come over time.
Our cross-sector achievements last year include:
Making the case for our members
We were the only organisation to strongly and consistently make the case for our members on finance, the independent sector treatment centres programme, the regulatory burden, deficits, Commissioning a Patient-led NHS, the reform agenda and Herceptin. We believe our approach of lobbying from within and using our public voice wisely has led to more real changes in policy than could have been achieved through grandstanding press releases.
Surveying trusts facing turnaround teams
In an increasingly negative media environment the Confederation completed the only in-depth survey of trusts facing turnaround teams. We successfully shifted the media focus on to the need for politicians to have the courage to take long-term difficult decisions.
Fulfilling the objectives of the 17 Million Reasons campaign
The campaign, set up by the NHS Confederation, put long-term conditions on the agenda and saw all of its objectives met with the publication of the White Paper on out-of-hospital care. The White Paper also contained a raft of policies that the Confederation had been consistently calling for on end-of-life care, sexual health, mental health and learning disabilities.
Tackling the MRSA furore
During the general election campaign, the Confederation stepped into difficult waters to defend our members on MRSA. Our approach led to a swift resolution and the withdrawal of inaccurate campaigning letters.
Building relationships with the political parties
We continued to meet with ministers frequently and have an extensive contact programme with special advisers and senior civil servants. We gave evidence to the Health Select Committee six times last year and continued to build solid relationships with all the major political parties.
