Healthcare newsbrief: Winter 2017 edition now available
Welcome to the winter edition of Hempsons’ Healthcare newsbrief.
Many of you will be reading this at the NHS Providers conference where many of the issues we are writing about – from moving towards digital records to the issues around moving to an accountable care organisation – will be either discussed or on the minds of delegates.
We kick off this issue with a look at an important merger of two Manchester trusts to form the largest foundation trust in the country. As many of you will know, guiding such mergers through the competition and Markets Authority is no easy task. The two trusts involved were able to demonstrate clear benefits for patients – a crucial point in getting clearance.
We move on to look at digital transformation. Many trusts will be aware of the benefits of having digital records but may not have thought about the implications for intellectual property rights and data protection.
Even if you are not involved in the Global Digital Exemplar programme you need to be aware of the General Data Protection Regulation which comes into effect in May next year. This will apply to all NHS organisations and is more onerous than the current Data Protection Act. We are running hour long sessions for boards to help you understand the changes and what you need to do.
We also take a look at accountable care organisations and systems where we have updated our guide, produced with NHS Providers, on the steps you should consider as you move towards an ACS or ACO.
Consent is always a difficult area but consent around the use of embryos is particularly emotive. We take a look at a case where an IVF clinic was taken to court by a man whose former partner had an embryo transferred without his consent or knowledge. The claim failed but there are lessons for trusts around the importance of informed and enduring consent to treatment.
Employment law is also a fast-moving area trusts need to be on top of. We look at the potential impact of the dropping of fees for employment tribunals and also the latest ruling on holiday pay. There’s bad news here for trusts which employ a lot of staff who regularly do overtime or get on-call payments, as these now need to be reflected in holiday pay.
We hope you enjoy reading these articles: we have given contact details with each of them should you need further advice or alternatively please call, tweet or email us.