This week guest host Ben Clover is joined by Nick Kituno and Emily Townsend. They discuss one of HSJ's most-commented stories of recent months: Chairs - what they do, what they should do and whether they get paid enough. The team also analyse the recent CQC inpatient survey, which has some counter-intuitive results

This week's HSJ podcast looks at the latest development in Shropshire's troubled health system and hospitals, and NHS England's move to ramp up the rollout of the federated data platform.

https://www.hsj.co.uk/shrewsbury-and-telford-hospital-nhs-trust/ceo-who-led-trust-through-scandals-announces-departure/7037595.article

https://www.hsj.co.uk/technology-and-innovation/nhse-u-turn-mandates-trust-use-of-the-fdp/7037578.article

NHS England has announced incentives and penalties in a bid to improve the health system’s financial plans, so this week we discuss what the new regime involves and if it will make any difference to the national £3bn deficit.

Also this week we focus on two stories from Birmingham – more bullying concerns at University Hospitals Birmingham and an update on the long-delayed Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, which HSJ revealed is due to open without the funding needed to run it. 

We also take a look at the latest pledges for the NHS by the political parties as the general election draws nearer. 

With Nick Carding, Henry Anderson and Emily Townsend. 

The NHS needs “fewer layers of management” - this is according to Tory leadership hopeful Liz Truss and is one of the first significant comments made about the NHS by either candidate this summer.

We talk more about the other pledges made about health and social care so far by both candidates and where they might look to make their mark.

Also £75m has been announced to create more mental health beds - will this ease pressures in this incredibly “hot” running system? This and more from our interview with NHS England mental health director Claire Murdoch.

Link to interview: https://www.hsj.co.uk/mental-health/exclusive-new-capital-fund-to-boost-beds-and-aande-capacity/7032952.article

Featuring Annabelle Collins, Jack Serle and Emily Townsend.

This week we revisit the thorny subject of A&E standards, following calls for a new six-hour target to be introduced.

This aligns with clinical evidence about patient harm but it is at odds with NHS England’s plans to replace the four-hour standard with ‘a basket’ of ten new metrics, which does not include a six-hour target.

Also this week - we discuss news that more trusts have started publishing data showing thousands of 12-hour waits in their emergency departments, representing a huge difference to the numbers published nationally, for which the clock starts from a later point in the patient’s journey.

Annabelle is joined by Matt Discombe and James Illman.

Hospital leaders have warned there is a lack of accountability in the NHS, warning this could undermine public and political trust in the service.

In a roundtable hosted by HSJ, the most well-respected chief executives have spoken candidly about the slow pace of reform, why talking about how tired the workforce is doesn’t always help and why command and control leadership has its place.

Also in 2019, £250m was awarded to the shiny new NHS AI-lab, but a government watchdog has recently given it a damning review. We ask, what went wrong?

The NHS must find the money to fund an extra £2bn of the staff pay bill, after the government decided to increase it beyond the 3% rise that was budgeted for.

We discuss the impact this is likely to have on services and also why a particular group of senior managers are particularly demoralised.

Also this week: An HSJ investigation has highlighted the horrendously long waits faced by mental health patients while waiting for an inpatient bed in A&E. We talk more about how the health service got to this point and what should be done about it.

Link to investigation: Exclusive: ‘Outrageous’ long A&E waits for mental health patients increase 150pc | News | Health Service Journal (hsj.co.uk)

On Monday night all ambulance services in England declared the highest level of alert.

We discuss why the NHS is under such terrible pressure in July and the dangerous impact this is having on patients, staff and services.

Also more discussion about major job cuts announced within NHS England - is this a necessary change or will it consume too much time at a crucial moment for the NHS?

Tough times are ahead for the NHS, with a “nightmare” new health and social care secretary appointed and performance spiralling. On this episode we discuss the shocking true extent of the cancer care backlog after leaked figures revealed there are now over 10,000 people waiting over 104 days following a cancer referral.

Also this week, disappointing elective activity has forced NHS England to look at watering down elective financial targets, while one trust starts using “social value judgements” to decide who gets treatment first.

The NHS is facing a major reorganisation this year, including within NHS England itself.

On this episode we discuss the challenges and power struggles that lie ahead and who has the toughest job of all; the newly appointed chief workforce officer.

Annabelle is joined by HSJ editor Alastair McLellan.

Race and racism in NHS leadership and workforce, and health inequalities, are the subject of this week’s HSJ Health Check podcast.

We look back to some of the debates on the issues at – and around – last week’s NHS ConfedExpo conference. We explore the prospects for progress, and important context including diversity in integrated care system leadership and NHS England’s leadership.

With HSJ equality, diversity and inclusion correspondent Nick Kituno, finance correspondent Henry Anderson, and deputy editor Dave West.

This week the news team bring you the podcast from the NHS Confed/Expo conference in Liverpool.

Annabelle Collins, Lawrence Dunhill and Dave West are joined by guest Charlotte Augst, chief executive of charity National Voices.

We cover the biggest talking points from this year’s conference, including Amanda Pritchard’s debut NHS Confed speech as NHSE CEO, the health secretary’s vision for ‘reform trusts’  and the continued uncertainty around ICS development.

The chief executives of Sandwell and West Birmingham, Countess of Chester, King's College and Croydon hospitals trusts - some of the worst affected through the covid pandemic - discuss what lessons can be learned, including more sharing of waiting lists and staff, developing critical care, addressing unequal resources, the resource gap, fast decision making and local leadership.

Part two of two.

See hsj.co.uk for analysis on the trusts hit hardest by covid.

Rishi Sunak has called a surprise election, so we cover what could be in store for the NHS over the next six weeks and the different scenarios it could face if there is a change is government.

Plus, we consider NHS England’s intervention in the ongoing debate about productivity (and how that might affect the service’s ask for extra capital investment) and also the aftermath of NHSE’s massive restructure. 

With Henry Anderson, Annabelle Collins and Dave West. 

The chief executives of Sandwell and West Birmingham, Countess of Chester, King's College and Croydon hospitals trusts - some of the worst affected through the covid pandemic - reflect on how they dealt with the fear and uncertainty of wave one, and the impact on staff then and now.

Part one of two.

See hsj.co.uk for analysis on the trusts hit hardest by covid.

This week our focus is on new ways of delivering care in the NHS.

We discuss why the NHS is not on trajectory to meet its virtual ward ambitions and what needs to be done to gain the confidence of clinicians.

Also an update on digital health service provider Babylon and why this major player is cautious about further NHS expansion. Plus our insight on virtual versus face-to-face GP appointment trends.

Featuring Annabelle Collins, James Illman and Shruti Trivedi.

“Our project is in jeopardy.” This is according to one trust working on long-needed major hospital redevelopments, which were promised by the government in the run-up to the 2019 general election.

HSJ revealed this week each project has only been given £1m to cover their planning costs – an amount which falls far below what is needed. We discuss why this could see the critical work delayed even further.

Also an update on the ongoing ambulance crisis in the NHS after it emerged a patient waited 24-hours in an ambulance while waiting to be handed over to A&E.

Link to video: https://twitter.com/HSJnews/status/1526447482661650432

On this week’s episode we discuss NHS England’s own staff survey results, which reveals the best and worst performing departments and regions and delivers a particularly worrying verdict on the People Directorate.

We also turn again to integrated care systems, and this time focus on why in some areas a power struggle could emerge between ‘place’ and the system-wide leadership.

Also, an update on two-year waiters in the NHS, a closer look at the trusts with the longest backlogs and why for some key performance targets will likely be missed.

Three further acute trusts are considering a move to joint leadership, HSJ has learned, and mental health hubs for NHS staff are being underused — we analyse both issues on this week’s HSJ Health Check podcast.

The trusts, in Norfolk, have fiercely protected their independence in the past, but could the national shift towards collaboration see things move forward? We also give an update on the country-wide picture.

And Emily Townsend discusses her finding that mental health hubs for NHS staff — set up to protect wellbeing during the covid pandemic — are being underused, despite evidence of growing MH-related absences.

Featuring Nicholas Carding, Emily Townsend, James Illman and Dave West.

Send feedback to nicholas.carding@wilmingtonhealthcare.com

A plethora of complex governance arrangements are being  set up in and around ICSs - which are only just due to become statutory.  We discuss why these complications might hinder successful service  change.

We also hear about two senior NHS tech chiefs leaving  their positions to join a controversial private company - at a time when  NHS England is launching a major data project to drive digital  transformation across the health service.

Link to the leader discussed in the podcast: www.hsj.co.uk/policy-and-regulat…ed/7032335.article

The NHS has been told to scale back infection control measures, but what will this mean for staff and patients?

We talk about the risks healthcare leaders will have to balance over the coming weeks and the reaction from clinicians.

Also on the subject of cancer recovery, we discuss the good and the very bad news.

NHS England have asked systems to ensure their financial plans break even this year - but easier said than done when many face deficits of over £100m.

This week, we discuss why systems are pushing back and how this could play out.

Also, the latest race equality data has been published and we analyse what it says about leadership diversity in NHS trusts.

On this week’s episode we explore the pressure points hindering the NHS’s recovery this Spring.

We  draw on an interview given last week by NHS elective recovery chief Sir  Jim Mackey – he backed calls for infection control guidance to be  relaxed and warned meeting cost efficiency targets may not be possible.

Also  we discuss what trusts and systems are doing to ease the pressure,  including digital outpatients and out-of-area elective treatments.

Featuring Nick Carding, Annabelle Collins and James Illman.

We pick out the main findings from the Ockendon Review  into maternity failures at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust and  discuss what the most important lessons are for the NHS going forward.

Also  this week: The NHS Staff Survey has been published and there is more  bad news than good news. We find out just how much staff attitudes have  changed after two years of working in a pandemic, and what the key  responses have been to the survey.

Featuring Nick Carding, Emily Townsend, and Nick Kituno.

Greater Manchester ICS is under huge pressure to reduce its deficit after suffering a recent financial collapse.

And now the ICS must navigate this without its substantive chief financial officer, who has been seconded to a post within NHS England. We discuss if there is a way out of the red and what this will mean for local care quality. 

Also this week, a leaked NHSE review that concluded the NHS has a severe shortage of nurses with digital skills.

NHS spending is being scrutinised more than ever, with trusts asked to double the amount of annual efficiency savings they make. 

We discuss why more is being asked of the NHS when times are still tough and what this week’s Spring budget had in store for the health service.

Also this week: violence against NHS staff has rocketed to “dangerous levels”, according to NHS leaders who have published an open message to the public. Why have things got so bad?

Is it time to rethink how the NHS manages its elective waiting list? On this week’s episode we talk about the worryingly high number of people waiting over two years for their planned care - and the alarming number which do not even have a decision to admit.

Another factor which could impact on elective recovery is the recent spike in covid admissions. Considering how this could slow down recovery, why is the health secretary so relaxed about it?

And we ask listeners if you can help support out Ukraine appeal – this week we launched our campaign where you can bid for rewards with all money donated to the Disasters Emergency Committee Ukraine appeal.

Link to donate: https://www.hsj.co.uk/health-inequalities/new-rewards-added-to-hsj-ukraine-fund/7032067.article

As war rages in Ukraine, we discuss the impact of the West’s response against the Kremlin on NHS trusts with supply chains linked to Russia.

We also analyse the heavily-anticipated speech on NHS reform by health secretary Sajid Javid this week, which left several important questions unanswered.

NHS England has introduced significant changes to the mechanism that is used to pay hospitals, with the era of covid “block-contracts” finally coming to an end.

This week we discuss what the new national payment system means for trusts and why there are concerns it could leave services underfunded.

Also an update on the progress of ‘virtual wards’ and more on why clinicians still aren’t too happy about them.

NHS trusts are getting better – that’s the view of the Care Quality Commission, at least, which now rates only a single organisation as “inadequate”, and two-thirds as “good” or “outstanding”, a big shift from five years ago.

But how does it square with the terrible state of elective and emergency care waiting times, along with pandemic pressures?

We focus on three trusts very recently taken out of special measures and discuss why the CQC wants to see the best leaders taking jobs at the most challenging trusts.

Also, this week we discuss the potential creation of £2bn group of Liverpool hospitals and the pros and cons this can bring for trusts and patients.

The man in charge of elective recovery in the NHS has said the health service faces more scrutiny from ministers, and from the public, than ever before. But is the NHS ready to respond?

We discuss the in-depth interview given by Sir Jim Mackey, following the publication of the elective recovery plan.

Also, following news that an NHS trust was forced to apologise to a patient after denying a sexual assault happened, we ask what is being done to support victims in the NHS.

After weeks of wrangling over the elective recovery plan a compromise has been reached and on this week’s episode we get stuck into the politics surrounding it and of course what is means for NHS leaders.

Also the latest on integrated care systems - have they become more complicated than ever?

Two very different trusts are under the spotlight after concerns were raised by whistleblowers about poor culture and behaviour.

We discuss the outcome of the separate external reviews, which looked into The Christie FT and Walsall Healthcare Trust and ask whether they might instigate positive change.

Also, more on the mandatory staff vaccine U-turn and how some chief executives are relieved, while others fear for permanently damaged staff relationships.

Three national NHS England directors have announced their departures over the last few days, so on this week’s episode we discuss why this is significant and the impact it could have on future policy making.

Also, cancer performance in England is said to be hitting “new lows” and we discuss which specialties are struggling the most and why hidden referrals could be even more of a worry over the coming months.

This week we discuss the politics around the elective recovery plan, following suggestions it could be announced imminently to distract from the goings on at Number 10.

We also cover the prospect of ‘academy-style’ trusts and ask whether comments briefed to The Times signal genuine intention or just a spot of kite-flying.

Plus an update on how staff mandatory vaccination is progressing, with just two weeks to go until the deadline. Featuring James Illman, Dave West and Annabelle Collins.

The tables have turned for the Care Quality Commission. This week HSJ revealed the government is launching a review of it’s new inspection regime and whether its ratings are properly incentivising care improvements.

We discuss what prompted this review, which senior NHS figure is leading it and what it could mean for the regulator. 

Also this week, a fifth of all of England’s GP premises pre-date 1948 and we discuss how this ageing estate risks hampering the workforce plan. 

NHS trusts will soon be forced to redeploy or dismiss staff members who have not had their covid jab and this week we discuss what this could mean for the safe running of the health service.

We focus on a London trust, which has warned its maternity service could be threatened by the dismissal of unvaccinated midwives.

Also this week we discuss the latest NHS operational and performance data.

On this week’s HSJ podcast, we explain what the latest planning guidance from NHS England – published over Christmas – means for the service and its patients.

The planning guidance sets out how the NHS’s money will be used and what the service will be asked to provide in 2022-23.

HSJ’s Annabelle Collins, James Illman and Dave West translate the key themes on this week’s HSJ Health Check.

In the final episode of the year, we make our predictions for what 2022 could hold for the health service, including staff vaccination woes, spades in the ground for some ‘new hospitals’ and further delays for ICSs.

Featuring Annabelle Collins, Nick Carding, Dave West and guest Rebecca Thomas from The Independent.

Record covid cases are being recorded and the NHS must decide how to prepare for another potential wave in late December or January.

We discuss what chief execs are doing right now to keep services afloat and as many staff working as safely possible.

Also notable points from recent government briefings and an update on the operational challenges facing the booster campaign.

This week we dig into the latest NHS performance data, including the first detailed snapshot into how the NHS is coping this winter.

The figures reveal performance has never been worse and we discuss the severe harm this is having on the public, with trusts warning its becoming unavoidable.

Featuring Ben Clover, Annabelle Collins, Matt Discombe and Alison Moore.

NHS staff are facing the prospect of another difficult winter. The Omicron variant, an accelerated booster campaign and expectations of elective recovery will be an immense challenge for a completely exhausted workforce. We discuss how staff and leaders will cope.

Also, an update on who will be leading the new integrated care systems and why some key systems have still failed to recruit.

This week the HSJ Health Check podcast hears how Number 10’s mission to integrate health and social care services has ramped up with some contentious thoughts, and discuss the NHS’ overall progress in its move towards integrated care systems.

Integrating health and social care is a famously difficult task. Now, it seems, Boris Johnson himself wants to clarify local accountability for this.  We discuss the implications of this latest intervention.

We also consider what the terms of reference for the Messenger Review mean for the NHS leadership community, and we explore the strange story of a hospital charity which is not distributing much of the money it has raised.

Featuring Nick Carding, Dave West and Alison Moore.

You can listen to HSJ Health Check on this page, or subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and all the other popular podcast platforms.

Send feedback to nicholas.carding@wilmingtonhealthcare.com.

We hear what NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard and health secretary Sajid Javid had to say ahead of what everyone is describing as the NHS’ toughest winter, and discuss the implications of the news that Health Education England will be merged with NHS England.

Featuring Nick Carding, Jasmine Rapson and Lawrence Dunhill.

You can listen to HSJ Health Check on this page, or subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and all the other popular podcast platforms.

Send feedback to nicholas.carding@wilmingtonhealthcare.com.

We discuss the NHS’ performance against emergency, elective and  cancer care targets with new figures this week showing performance is  worsening despite efforts to reverse this. We also hear about national  leaders’ concerns that long waiting times are creating a worrying shift  in attitude from the public, and examine an unusual financial dispute  between two NHS bodies which harks back to the days of the internal  market.

Featuring Nick Carding, Ben Clover and James Illman.

This week we track the progress of the Health and Care Bill as the tricky April 2022 deadline closes in.

We discuss why the House of Lords could be the most challenging bit of its journey so far and delve into the power-struggle between strong provider trust collaboratives and fledging systems.

With Ben Clover, Annabelle Collins and Dave West.

We delve into the detail of HSJ's comprehensive survey of integrated care board leaders, as well as new interventions on the future of ICBs from NHS England and Wes Streeting. 

From leaders’ biggest worries, and their achievements thus far, to their plans for the future, HSJ Health Check highlights some of the more surprising findings.

Also, more on the shadow health secretary's recent comments on tensions between ICBs and foundation trusts, and NHS England's new assessment framework.

With Annabelle Collins, Nick Kituno and Dave West. 

HSJ revealed NHS England has written to all trusts and integrated care systems this week telling them to stop ambulance handover delays “immediately” after serious patient safety concerns.

This is far easier said than done and we discuss the reaction to the letter and more on what is fuelling some of the worst ambulance pressures ever experienced by the health service.

Also the outcome of the spending review and which bits of the NHS have got lucky, and which have missed out.

The health service is clearly in a jam in the wake of covid - so why have Sajid Javid’s plans for ‘a year of reform’ antagonised some managers, GPs and other staff?’

We get into some of the challenges faced by the health secretary, how to balance ambition with NHS recovery and why the NHS doesn’t want to go back to how things were before covid hit.

This week Annabelle and Dave are joined by Helen Buckingham, director of strategy at the Nuffield Trust, Richard Sloggett, programme director of the Future Health Research Centre.

Health inequalities for those with a mental illness, learning disability or autism have existed for decades and the coronavirus pandemic has made them even worse.

We dedicate this episode to talk about why patients in this group have worse global health outcomes than the rest of the population, why “sticking-plaster solutions” don’t cut it anymore and if the move towards integrated care is a reason to feel positive.

Annabelle Collins and Rebecca Thomas are joined by Andy Bell, deputy chief executive of the charity ’Centre for Mental Health’.