Four new digital exemplars expected, including Imperial

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust is likely to be named as a global exemplar, in conjunction with the neighbouring Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

Digital Health News understands the trusts will likely be named along with three other hospital trusts. These are understood to be Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals, and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS foundation trusts.

The five trusts would join the 12 global exemplars, previously known as Global Digital Centres of Excellence, named in September, which between them are set to share £100m of national investment. 

Announcements on the latest exemplars are expected within weeks if they receive regulatory approval, although Cambridge remains in special measures.

NW London’s draft sustainability and transformation plan show that both Imperial and Chelsea and Westminster’s expect to be announced as a joint exemplar. The plan stated that the two trusts “are expected to be nominated by NHS England as a global digital exemplar and will provide leadership the rest of the footprint”.

All five trusts were on the 26-strong shortlist of global exemplars, released in August.

Imperial runs a Cerner electronic patient record and Chelsea and Westminster announced last month it would also deploy Cerner, joining the same instance used by its neighbour.

Newcastle also runs Cerner. If both Newcastle and a combined Imperial and Chelsea Westminster site are picked, six of the 16 global exemplars would be Cerner sites.

If Cambridge is included it would be the first Epic trust, and Alder Hey would be the second Meditech trust. 

A further announcement is also expected this month on the first ‘national exemplars sites’, which earlier this month NHS chief information officer Will Smart said would be expanded to included mental health, specialist and ambulance trusts.  Approximately 20 trusts are expected to receive up to £5m each.

The hospital exemplar programme is key part of NHS England’s drive to digital transform the NHS by 2020. It is largely based Dr Bob Wachter’s review of a digital NHS, released in September.

That review recommended splitting NHS trust into three groups, depending on their digital maturity, and prioritising funding for the most digital advanced trust, group A, first and the least advanced trust, group C, last. Watcher estimated that half of all NHS trust would fall into group C.

Wachter, and subsequently NHS senior national leaders, have argued that group A, or the global exemplars as they have been labelled, would provide support and a digital blueprint for other less advanced trust to follow.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who described the global exemplars as an ‘Ivy League’, has likened the set-up to the professional football with well-performing trusts being elevated to exemplar status and poor performing trusts being relegated to the lower groups.

However, critics have said the plan could divide the trusts between the haves and the have-nots, potentially leaves those in greatest need further behind.

Exactly how much funding will be available to the exemplars is also unclear. An initial pot of £100 million was set aside, with each exemplar able to claim up to £10 million that they would then have to match locally.

However, with 12 exemplars initially selected, and another four on their way, it is unclear whether this pot will increase or be divided into small chunks.

NHS England has also not yet indicated whether the upcoming national exemplars, trusts that fall into Wachter’s middle group B, would also have to compete for some same funding allocation.

Read our in-depth analysis of the global digital exemplar programme here (log-in required)

The other global exemplars include:

North
– Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Trust
– Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
– City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust
– Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust

Midlands and East
– West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
– University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
– Luton & Dunstable University Hospital NHS Trust

London
– Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust

South
– Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
– Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust
– University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust
– University Hospitals Southampton NHS Foundation Trust