Landmark deal secures premium pathology services for half a million people in the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells area
Roche Managed Laboratory Service (MLS) predicted to save Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust at least £2.5million over next 7 years
In a landmark deal with Roche, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust has opted for a fully automated, Managed Laboratory Service (MLS) solution that will enable them to provide an excellent, patient-focused pathology service, whilst meeting demands for greater cost effectiveness.
Under the terms of the MLS agreement, Roche will provide everything the Trust needs (enabling instrumentation, service and maintenance, consumables and equipment/software updates) to deliver its analytical requirements in chemistry, haematology, immunoassay and coagulation testing services, as well as making substantial savings to the Trust over the duration of the contract.
Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust Chief Executive Glenn Douglas said, “Our Pathology Department serves hospitals and the primary care sector across Kent and Sussex. Over 150 GP practices send samples to us for diagnosis. This new Managed Service Agreement with Roche provides everything we need in a single package to provide a first-rate service with no waste of precious resources. We will be able to treat more patients, with improved outcomes and at lower cost. It will bring major benefits to our patients and save at least £2.5 million over the seven year contract.”
Processing around 5000 blood samples every day, the new equipment supplied under the Roche MLS will allow the Pathology Department to reconfigure and streamline their services to benefit both staff and patients.
“The new Managed Service Contract will give the opportunity for unprecedented change as our pathology and laboratory medicine services seek to modernise in line with new technology, patient focused care, evidence based practice and the demand for greater cost effectiveness,” commented General Manager, Pathology, Nigel Leftley.
“Having Roche as the single source of supply for the Trust means greater cost effectiveness and reduced administration costs,” Nigel continued. “In addition, the introduction of the Roche inventory management package (cIMS) will also provide benefits in controlling stock expenditure. The single contract for all locations will also provide greater standardisation across the laboratories, increasing productivity and improving communication and connectivity. ”
“All in all,” Nigel concluded, “this helps us to meet key performance objectives by enabling effective financial control of variance. Furthermore, by transferring risk to Roche, the Trust will be able to recover VAT in full.”
The Roche MLS at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust will run for a term of 7 years, with the flexibility to expand the equipment and services covered by the agreement over the life of the contract in order to meet the changing needs of the Trust.
“We are delighted to be given the opportunity to work with Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust over the next seven years on such an exciting and transformational project”, said Ian Parfrement, Director of Hospital IVD, Roche. “We are looking forward to fully implementing this broad ranging Managed Laboratory Services agreement and installing state of the art technology and IT systems to help underpin the development of patient services while at the same time contributing to delivering significant productivity improvements.”
Roche is one of the leading suppliers of innovative Managed Laboratory Services in the UK. Its strong and experienced team offers a wealth of expertise to ensure the ideal solution that will meet the financial and performance demands of today’s NHS laboratories. For further information, please contact telephone 01444 256000 or visit the Roche website at www.roche-diagnostics.co.uk