Future of NHS Wales shared services in doubt

16 September 2009:

The future of shared services across NHS Wales is uncertain following the reconfiguration of local health boards, PM has learnt.

Twenty-two local health boards will be replaced by seven larger ones from the beginning of October, but the future responsibilities of the NHS Wales Business Services Centre (BSC), which provides HR, finance, counter-fraud and IT services to the current configuration of boards, has not been confirmed.

Marcus Adams, director of HR and organisational development for the BSC, said: “The future of shared services in Wales is still under discussion nationally.” He added that the organisation, which has 500 staff, faced a challenging future but its HR team had been heavily involved in the disaggregation of health boards. If existing in-house activity across the new boards was expanded, the BSC “will exist but not in the same form and the management arrangement would change”, he said. A decision by the Welsh Assembly Government is expected early next year.