The Southern Health Trust will not have a budget deficit for the financial year 2024/25, the interim chief executive, Steve Spoerry, reported on Thursday.
Mr Spoerry took up his post on April 1, replacing outgoing acting chief executive, Colm McCafferty.
Addressing the Trust board, Mr Spoerry stated: “[my report] provides a broad range of metrics, which inevitably is a mixed bag around challenges that the Trust faces. But it’s also important to point out there are some trajectories that we are seeking to improve.
“A particular reference is our theatre activity which is really relevant in terms of addressing waiting lists and so forth. And we’re in a fairly good place in relation to Children’s Services, particularly around child and adolescent mental health services.
“And we’re also in an improving trajectory with regards to some of our AHP (Allied Health Profession) services, which is obviously to be very welcome in areas we need to build on.
“Having said that, there continues to be quite a number of significant challenges associated with waiting lists (…) that will absolutely require some regional collaboration, and indeed, our ministers committed to that.
“I’m delighted to report that we will be in a break-even financially for the 2024/25 financial year.
“Having said that, we are now entering choppy waters [as we face] very challenging targets around efficiency savings and the finance available to us. Colleagues will be very well aware of ministerial announcements with regards to the shortfall.
“We will have to deal with that, there are ongoing discussions across the Executive table in terms of any potential easement, so we will have to wait and see how that will pan out, but as a Trust, we are working tirelessly in terms of seeking to manage that as best as we possibly can, and to ensure minimal impact on frontline services, so that is a significant balancing act we’re likely to face in the year ahead.
Interim chief executive of the Southern HSC Trust, Steve Spoerry. Credit: Southern HSC Trust
“Despite that, it’s important to also note there are welcome investments. A recent ministerial announcement [that we are getting] £61m in regional investment for Multidisciplinary Teams (MDTs) within Primary Care. That has to be very much welcome.
“There will be MDTs introduced to Dungannon and Craigavon which will see nursing, AHP, social work and other key services around early intervention and prevention aligned to Primary Care. And that’s a positive development.
“There are some issues for us in terms of workforce planning, but again, we will work through that in the months ahead.
“Finally, the very significant challenges we have in this Trust is our Unscheduled Care, our Emergency Department (ED) pressures in particular.
“We are acutely aware of that as an organisation, we’re doing everything we possibly can in terms of finding marginal, incremental gains. I want to thank our staff who are at the forefront of working in hugely pressured circumstances.
“I want to acknowledge the role of the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, in terms of working within that environment, and working with us in managing those delays. Likewise for our Primary Care colleagues and so forth.
“The winter situation remains very challenging, but again I can assure the Trust Board, and indeed the public, we are doing everything we can already in terms of looking towards next winter, and seeking to find any gains that we can with regards to improving the patients’ experience.”
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