National Treatment Centre 'on target' for April opening in major treatment time boost for NHS Highland
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NHS Highland has been able to recruit more than 78 per cent of the staff it needs for the new National Treatment Centre Highland that will provide additional acute, diagnostic and treatment capacity.
The building itself will be completed by the end of January which will be followed by the technical commissioning being finalised by the end of February as the process of transfer and mobilisation to take place.
The facility comprises 24 beds, five operating theatres, 13 consulting rooms, four virtual consulting rooms and a full range of ophthalmic diagnostic and treatment services that allow NHS Highland to meet the Treatment Time Guarantee.
From the start there was huge pressure to deliver the centre to ease waiting lists but it was delayed several times after originally earmarked to open in August 2021, while the cost has risen from £32 million to £48.6 million.
Persistent concerns have also dogged the development that the health board’s long-standing issues with recruitment would badly affect its opening and though they have to a degree progress has been made.
According to Deborah Jones, the director of strategic commissioning, more than 78 per cent of the total number of staff to operate the facility have now been recruited and more will be done to secure the services of the rest.
That means 163 whole time equivalent (WTE) of a total 208 have been recruited and that includes 100 per cent of those on NTC, and 100 per cent for orthopaedic theatre – perhaps the worst or most pressured waiting list in the region.
However, only one ophthalmic theatre is fully staffed at this stage and further recruitment is underway to secure two theatre practitioners and two admission/ discharge nurses.
The out of hours medical cover recruitment is only at 50 per cent with locums planned to fill those places while more staff are found.
The remainder of those yet to be recruited are in the so-called to the band 2-3 soft facilities posts – portering/security (61 per cent), catering (64 per cent), domestic services (51 per cent), Highland Table at (50 per cent) and stores (75 per cent).
Ms Jones said: “As at the time of writing this paper 78.5% of the total number of staff (163.39 of 208.22 WTE) have been recruited with further efforts being made to recruit to the residual posts by the end of March 2023.
“A detailed transfer and mobilisation plan has been developed to ensure that all equipping, staff orientation and staff training can be undertaken within the timescale required prior to opening in April 2023.
“The programme is on schedule to deliver the building and new service model as planned from Monday 3rd April 2023. Known risks to the programme are being monitored and managed to minimise any potential delay occurring.
“The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care has confirmed his availability to officially open the new NTC-H on Monday June 5, 2023.”
She concluded: “Progress is being made across all areas of the programme with a range of risks and associated mitigation plans in place aimed at ensuring the NTC-H can open as planned on Monday April 3.
“Significant effort has been made to secure the clinical and support staff required with further recruitment effort ongoing. A phased opening plan is being developed to reflect available staff. This is being closely monitored by the project team with the Board being updated on progress as we move towards April 3.”
