We’ll pay you £67,000 to save cash (From Bromsgrove Advertiser)

We’ll pay you £67,000 to save cash

1:10pm Friday 20th July 2012 in Local

HOSPITAL bosses are prepared to pay someone up to £67,000 help find ways to save trust money.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, which manages the Alexandra Hospital, would pay the “head of transformation” between £54,454 and £67,134 a year and are still in the process of recruiting for the post.

The trust is seeking to recruit at a time when the NHS is engaged in a joint services review to try and save £50 million over the next few years, plans which could result in the closure of an accident and emergency department at either the Alex or the Worcestershire Royal Hospital and changes to other hospital services.

However, trust leaders have said the post has little to do with that.
Chris Fearns, director of strategic development at the trust, said: “The role head of transformation exists within most public organisations, in one form and or another, and certainly in most trusts nationally.

“Non-clinical senior management in Worcestershire Acute Hospitals makes up an extremely small percentage of our workforce and we are not unique in recruiting to such a position in the Midlands and we therefore need to pay the same rates as other trusts under the NHS pay scale, Agenda for Change.

“This post has very little to do with the joint services review and everything to do with Worcestershire Acute Trust’s ability to deliver savings over the next few years.”

Mr Fearns added: “It has been created at the request of our clinicians and management team to ensure patient-facing time is not lost.

“He or she will work closely with clinicians to allow them to keep their focus on patients and have the support they need to deliver changes which improve patient services and deliver the savings we must make.”