North Manchester General Hospital joins eight Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) hospitals benefitting from a 15-year technology partnership with Siemens Healthineers. The expansion of the partnership represents an additional £40 million investment in work to transform care delivery in Greater Manchester, following on from an initial £125 million investment in 2021. The Value Partnership ensures provision and replacement of key radiology equipment, in addition to research and development collaboration opportunities, and a range of value-add services including consulting support to optimise delivery of imaging services and patient care.
18 months into the partnership with Siemens Healthineers, MFT had received around 80 new items of imaging equipment, predominantly X-ray and ultrasound systems with multiple large imaging installations in process. A single hospital service for the City of Manchester and Trafford was created when North Manchester General Hospital joined MFT in 2021, with the trust now having 28,000 staff, the largest NHS provider in the country. This expansion of the Value Partnership now takes the total number of imaging assets under the management of the partnership close to 300 and enables investment in specialist services – ensuring access to innovative technology across the Trust.
The Value Partnership also includes developing a roadmap for the future of MFT, with consulting support to optimise efficiency and workflows. Projects analysing ultrasound imaging pathways and booking processes for CT services have already taken place. Facilitated by in-depth study of ultrasound patient pathways from referral to report, the team at MFT has developed new ways of working – addressing day-to-day challenges such as patient flow, ensuring that scans are appropriate, booking and scheduling. An additional project to harmonise booking processes for CT services across Trust sites is ongoing, with the aim of supporting the provision of an efficient and cohesive imaging service for excellent patient care.
The partnership underlines a close working relationship between MFT and Siemens Healthineers, which recently confirmed the establishment of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The University of Manchester. The MoU formalises and draws together plans to tackle several key innovation priorities for Greater Manchester, including earlier detection and intervention of cancers and other health conditions disproportionally affecting the region’s population.
“Imaging touches every patient, so it is essential to have the provision of that service efficient and effective,” says Helen Kenyon, Divisional Director of Imaging at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust. “The extension of the Value Partnership to include North Manchester General Hospital is just the next step to ensuring better, safer and more consistent care to Manchester, Trafford and wider communities. The partnership has enabled us to look to the future, keep existing equipment up to date and ensure access to new technology, supporting us as we work towards digitalisation with the inclusion of innovations like artificial intelligence.”
“Our partnership with Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust extends beyond assets and equipment management alone,” states Andy Wilks, Head of Enterprise Services at Siemens Healthineers GB&I. “Our team works alongside staff at the Trust to understand the challenges and areas where we can support the transformation of the provision of healthcare in Greater Manchester, whilst aligning with priorities set in the Manchester Population Health Plan. 1 Developments such as the extension of our Value Partnership to include the North Manchester General Hospital and the establishment of the Memorandum of Understanding, are a product of shared understanding and mutual commitment to delivering improved patient outcomes.”