As one of the sponsors of the conference Skills for Health was pleased to see the number of the great and the good of NHS management who came together in Liverpool in June to discuss the 'biggest financial and organisational challenge ever'.
The impact of the economic downturn and the need for NHS organisations to continue to deliver high quality innovative service redesign, whilst saving money in the process, was the underlying message from the three days.
David Nicholson, NHS chief executive praised the service for delivering on key targets such as the 18 week wait and improved GP access but said that the NHS needed to act now to mitigate against the risk of potential funding problems in the future. The service has adequate time to plan and if this opportunity is not taken there could be problems with dissatisfaction with the service from staff as well as patients.
NHS Confed chief executive Steve Barnett said strong leadership and sustainability of solutions are crucial for the NHS going forward - themes that echoed discussions at Workforce Projects Team's 'Clincial Leadership in the delivery of EWTD' conference on 15th May.
Working Time Directive 2009 
