● QIPP is an umbrella term used to describe the approach the NHS is taking at a local, regional and national level to reform its operations and design services in the light of the economic climate.
● Over the current spending period (2011-12 to 2014-15) the NHS will face significant additional demand for services arising from the age and lifestyle of the population as well as the need to fund new technologies and drugs. To keep pace, the NHS needs to make efficiency savings of up to £20 billion by 2014-15. The Government has asked the NHS to do this whilst simultaneously driving up the quality of services it provides and the outcomes it achieves.
● At a local level, commissioners working with clinicians, identify opportunities to improve quality and efficiency and produce local integrated plans. At a regional level, strategic health authorities coordinate action in workstreams and create regional integrated plans. At a national level, the Department provides support through national policies, communication, national workstreams, and planning support, oversight and monitoring.
● At a local level, providers can achieve efficiency savings by either reducing input costs or by redesigning services to achieve the same or better outcomes with less resource. Commissioners can achieve efficiency savings by securing the same services for a lower cost, by reducing demand, or by redesigning services.
● Strategic health authorities have identified that to meet the QIPP challenge efficiency savings of £16.4 billion by 2014-15 will need to be made (the challenge is to make savings of up to £20 billion). They have identified potential efficiency savings of £17.4 billion. Figure 1 overleaf shows the intended contribution of each strategic health authority to this total.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Figure 1 Contributions of strategic health authorities to the £17.4 billion of
efficiency savings identified
| Strategic health authority | Saving as a percentage of total saving | Saving as a percentage of planned regional budget for 2011-12 |
|
| (%) | (%) |
| North East | 4.9 | 17.3 |
| South Central | 6.4 | 19.2 |
| West Midlands | 8.8 | 16.2 |
| East Midlands | 8.9 | 21.2 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 9.2 | 17.3 |
| South East Coast | 10.1 | 24.7 |
| South West | 10.5 | 21.3 |
| East of England | 12.0 | 23.2 |
| North West | 13.7 | 18.2 |
| London | 15.5 | 18.5 |
Source: Strategic health authority integrated plans (March 2011 submissions) and
Department of Health resource allocations.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________