HC Deb 11 April 2000 vol 348 cc132-3W
Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proposals he has to pilot the clinical applications for logistics management, developed at the Royal Shrewsbury hospital, in other NHS trusts; and if he will make a statement. [118673]

Yvette Cooper

Ministers welcome and want to encourage examples of good practice in the National Health Service. Systems such as Royal Shrewsbury hospital's Clinical Applications for Logistics Management (CALM) system will be studied further by the new patient access teams set up by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health. In addition, work is shortly to be commissioned by the Department on improving bed management.

Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment the Emergency Services Advisory Team has made of the clinical applications for logistics management used at the Royal Shrewsbury hospital; and if he will make a statement. [118674]

Yvette Cooper

During 1997, the Emergency Services Advisory Team (ESAT) evaluated all bed management systems in the National Health Service, including the Royal Shrewsbury hospital's Clinical Applications for Logistics Management system.

I understand that the report by ESAT published in 1998 commended Royal Shrewsbury hospital's innovative, advanced bed management system.

Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the clinical applications for logistics management used at the Royal Shrewsbury hospital; and if he will make a statement. [118675]

Yvette Cooper

I am aware that the Clinical Applications for Logistics Management (CALM) system used by Royal Shrewsbury Hospital National Health Service trust was identified as an example of good practice in a National Audit Office report. The system was also awarded beacon status in 1999.

I understand that a visit has been planned by the Department's head of hospital development to the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital in the near future to make a further evaluation of the CALM system.

Mr. Paul Marsden

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate the number of patients annually who would not have operations cancelled if the clinical applications for logistics management, as used by the Royal Shrewsbury hospital, was implemented nationwide. [118672]

Yvette Cooper

Ministers are aware of the reduction in cancelled operations achieved by the Clinical Applications for Logistics Management (CALM) system at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital. Other National Health Service hospitals operating their own independent decision support systems for effective bed management also claim improvements in lowering the number of cancelled operations.

Successful replication of systems such as CALM depends at least as much on people, knowledge, commitment and local circumstances as on specific technology. Therefore, it is not possible to extrapolate Royal Shrewsbury Hospital's reduced figures for cancelled operations to all other NHS hospitals.

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