Radical move may reassure staff and patients (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Radical move may reassure staff and patients

1:20pm Thursday 9th February 2012 in Opinion By Gazette comment

Assurances that the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust (UHMBT) is getting to grips with its problems have been severely undermined in the latest damning indictment by the NHS watchdog Monitor.

Chief executive Tony Halsall’s claim that he and his current management team are best placed to sort out the problems is now ringing very hollow after Monitor this week parachuted in a new board chairman and ordered other high-profile appointments in a radical bid to turn the troubled trust around.

The choice of Sir David Henshaw, the former chairman of NHS North West, as top man is a decisive move.

Although at times a controversial figure - he has not always seen eye to eye with regional MPs and other public sector figures - he has a reputation for getting things done.

An example is the work he did to turn round the fortunes of Liverpool City Council during his six years as its chief executive.

There is no doubt the trust needs such a strong and effective leader right now.

One of the first considerations for Sir David will surely be what role he has in mind for Mr Halsall now that Monitor has ordered UHMBT to appoint a new ‘turnaround’ director and chief operating officer.

There will doubtless be the potential for overlapping responsiblities and authority - maybe even conflict.

Mr Halsall has made it clear he has no intention of resigning, despite having patently failed to gain the trust of Monitor.

He may, in due course, be forced to reconsider his difficult position further.

Alternatively, the new chairman may wish to make the decision for him - as he clearly has the power to do.

Meanwhile, the dramatic changes at UHMBT may go some way to reassuring hospital staff and local patients that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Throughout this crisis, the medical and other staff at the trust have conducted themselves in an exemplary way, despite the obvious stress they have found themselves under.

Whatever happens at the top of UHMBT, we should not forget their remarkable fortitude and professionalism.