17:11 Friday 31st August 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
DAVE WEBSTER: Twelve months after an investigation into the financial situation at the county’s biggest hospital, they’re under investigation again for the same issue. This time part of the problem Monitor the health regulator are looking at is the eHospital computer programme. It cost £200 million. The patient record system promised to put all information available on a patient and their treatment in one place, allowing doctors to provide efficient and effective treatment. Well that was ten months ago, and the system and the finances surrounding its introduction are now under the microscope. Joining me now is Stephen Hay who is the managing Director of the health regulator Monitor. Good evening Stephen. Thanks for joining us.
STEPHEN HAY: Good evening Dave. Pleased to be here.
DAVE WEBSTER: So why just a year after you ended action over concerns about finances and the way the hospital’s run, have you opened up a new file?
STEPHEN HAY: Well the situation has deteriorated very quickly in the last few months. We’ve got significant concerns about the financial and operational position of the hospital. It looks like it could well be related to the introduction of the new eHospital IT system, and we are going in very rapidly in the next two or three weeks to investigate why things have deteriorated so quickly.
DAVE WEBSTER: Can things really rotten that quick?
STEPHEN HAY: They can, yes, particularly with the implementation of a big as you say it’s a £200 million system being put in over a ten year period. They certainly can.
DAVE WEBSTER: So what action did you take last time?
STEPHEN HAY: The last time we were very focused on a number of operational issues around A&E and the RTT target, as well as the numbers. And we were satisfied back in July 2014 that the issues had been fixed. But unfortunately in the last three or four months they’ve reoccurred.
DAVE WEBSTER: And could you be taking action this time?
STEPHEN HAY: Obviously we have to investigate over a two to three week period. We then will see what the team that are going into look at these issues tell us, and we’ll take a view as to whether further regulatory action is required, probably in early September.
DAVE WEBSTER: And I think it’s important to ask, it’s not the actual care of patients that you’re investigating, it’s the running of the hospital.
STEPHEN HAY: It is very much focused on financial operational and this IT system. The CQC have been looking at the care at the hospital, and they will be publishing a report in due course.
DAVE WEBSTER: Thank you very much for joining us this evening.
STEPHEN HAY: Thanks very much Dave.
DAVE WEBSTER: That’s Stephen Hay who’s the Managing Director of health regulator Monitor.
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