The Royal Free London Group Model
Our staff are doing a fantastic job under growing pressure - treating more people than ever before. To manage this increasing demand we need to think differently about the way we deliver our services. For far too long, hospitals and other healthcare services have worked independently - collaboration and partnership working has to be the way forward.
We have the opportunity of a generation…
We have been given the opportunity of a generation to improve the care we deliver to our patients through the NHS vanguard programme.
Along with Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Guys and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, we have been chosen to set up and lead a group of NHS providers who will share services and resources in order to improve the experience of our staff and patients. As a result of this, during 2017 we will move to a group model structure
by doing things differently…
We will have a new operational structure with:
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local hospital management teams in place
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a group board and group executive team
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new divisional structures
and collaborating with our partners…
Working side-by-side with other healthcare experts we can share ways of working which we know deliver the best outcomes. By working collectively we can reduce variations in patient care and the cost of treatment that we see across the group, increasing our purchasing power.
We will also be able to share services which are essential to the day-to-day running of a hospital. By working at a larger scale, teams such as HR and finance can support a group of hospitals, rather than just one. This means we can improve efficiency and have more money to invest in patient care.
we will lead a group of NHS providers…
Our plan proposes to bring together a range of acute providers to create a ‘group’ of hospitals, connected by a single group centre – similar to models seen internationally, such as Intermountain Healthcare in Utah, USA. Individual trusts will be able to join the group under a range of membership options, from full membership to arrangements such as buddying.
to transform the experience of our staff and our patients
By working as a group, we can bring together larger numbers of clinicians to share their knowledge about the very best ways to treat patients in line with the very best care available across the globe.
How we are working with North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust
North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust (NMUH) joined the Royal Free London (RFL) group in September 2017 as its first clinical partner.
As a clinical partner, NMUH will work alongside the RFL to ensure there are consistent approaches to designing and delivering care based on evidence and best practice – nationally and internationally.
The partnership is the culmination of nearly two years of close working between the Royal Free London and North Middlesex. Doctors and nurses from across the two trusts have been sharing their expertise to help transform the standards of care that our patients and local communities will receive in the months and years ahead.
NMUH will continue to have its own separate board. A hospital chief executive – similar to the roles at that level at Barnet Hospital, the Royal Free Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital – will now be advertised.
