WIREDGOV

Promoting clinical leadership in the NHS can provide powerful incentives for staff to take on greater responsibility for the services they provide. This is one of the benefits of service-line management set out in a new guide published by Monitor, the regulator of NHS foundation trusts.

Monitor introduced the concept of service-line management into the NHS to help trusts gather reliable and robust information on service quality and productivity that, in turn, enables the delivery of a better service for patients. This is already demonstrating benefits in the trusts where Monitor has piloted this work.

The new guide contains practical examples of how service-line management has been implemented in the NHS and the way it has been adapted to suit different trusts. It is aimed at managers and clinicians beginning the process of introducing service-line management to their organisations. It pulls together the experiences of the first trusts to implement this concept and identifies key areas for development:

• Organisation - the role of service leaders within service lines and what skills they need; how service lines are organised and governed;
• Strategic and annual planning process – understanding the market and competitive position of your organisation;
• Performance management – the rewards and consequences for performance; and
• Information support – access to relevant timely information, moving towards patient-level costing.

Robert Harris, Policy Director, said:

"We introduced this concept to NHS foundation trusts because we know it can make a real and profound difference to everyone involved – that means the board, managers, clinicians, and of course, patients. Our experience with service-line management in the NHS is that significant improvements can be gained even in the early stages of implementation.

"The more you put in, the more you get out, but making relatively minor changes can have a positive impact on the overall performance of the organisation and the patient care pathway. Our evidence is showing that this is already affecting the way in which teams – incorporating clinical and non-clinical members – are delivering their current service and, more importantly, thinking about future improvements. "

Guide to implementing service-line management is available to download from Monitor's website.

Notes

1. For media enquiries contact: Michael Moruzzi on 020 7340 2438
2. An outline of service-line reporting is available to download here:
   
   Other guidance produced by Monitor on service-line management and service-line reporting includes:
   
   Getting the most out of managing service lines: using service-line reporting in the annual planning process
   Getting the most out of managing service lines: organisational change and incentive-based performance
   Toolkit for presenting service-line reporting data
   Guide to developing reliable financial date for service-line reporting
   
3. Monitor authorises and regulates NHS foundation trusts ensuring they are well-managed and financially strong in order to deliver high quality healthcare for patients.
4. Monitor was established in January 2004. It is independent of government and accountable to Parliament. Monitor’s functions and powers are set out in the National Health Service Act 2006.