Darzi will highlight underinvestment in NHS managers

The imminent review of NHS performance by Lord Ara Darzi will highlight the need to invest more in NHS management and leadership, HSJ understands.

The former minister, eminent surgeon, and academic, was commissioned by the new government to carry out an independent review of NHS performance.

His report is due in the next fortnight and will seek to paint a hard-hitting picture of the severity and breadth of the service’s problems.

One trust CEO who had been briefed by the review team said it would “highlight low manager and leader numbers compared to other health services” – a message, they predicted, that the government “won’t want to hear”.

Another well-placed source said the review was likely to make clear that the NHS needed to invest more in good management, particularly in managers with the right skills and capabilities, and that it should not use reduced management costs as a barometer for success.

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Source: HSJ, 6 September 2024