University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust (UHS) faces an estimated £54.9m deficit for the full year, which has sparked concern from the city council’s cabinet member for public health.
It has been cutting 785 full-time roles in a bid to meet ‘extremely challenging’ financial targets, but has accumulated a £30.8m deficit as of November, despite making £43.5m in savings.
As reported, the bid to save cash has become so desperate that free staff coffee, tea and milk has been axed.
The trust has made two requests for cash support from NHS England – £21.3m in October and £16.7m in November – but was only given £10m in October.
It has already received payment advances from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, which it says prevented it from falling into a negative cash balance.
The papers also reveal that the trust is among a handful of trusts in the country under scrutiny at the highest level with its finances being looked at by a national team.
University Hospital Southampton (Image: Supplied)
Job reductions have come from removing permanent and temporary positions, but the trust said most of these have happened through not replacing vacancies.
A spokesperson for University Hospital Southampton said: “We have been working hard to respond to a requirement for all NHS Trusts to deliver the national priorities of reducing waiting lists, providing safe and effective emergency care and living within our financial means.
“The cost saving target we were given at the start of the financial year was significant.
“In response, we developed an ambitious and challenging financial plan to meet the requirements asked of us, while maintaining quality and safe care.
“This included reducing our workforce and we challenged ourselves to finish the year with 785 fewer roles than we started.
“We are about halfway in that process and the reduction has come from a mix of temporary and substantive workforce and achieved mostly through natural attrition.
“Savings have also come from closing a number of beds.”
Southampton City Councillor, cabinet member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, Marie Finn, described her concern about the hospital.
Speaking to the Echo, Cllr Finn said she was working closely with council colleagues and the hospital to help patients and ease pressure on the service through preventative care, such as community hubs, and reducing delayed discharges.
She said: “I am really concerned to hear about the financial situation they are in.
“At this time of year, when the demand on the service is going to be so high.
“It is important to stress that some really good work happens at the general hospital, but it would take the pressure off to move to the community hubs.”
University Hospital Southampton (Image: Newsquest)
It comes as 350 patients were left waiting more than 65 weeks for treatment.
The spokesperson added: “Although the Trust had been delivering considerably more work than before Covid, earlier this year we also had to make the difficult decision to reduce some of the extra elective work we were undertaking.
“We have now been able to resume some of that work on evenings and weekends as we continue to tackle the waiting list, prioritising those who have been waiting the longest as well as those with most urgent clinical need.
“Whilst the financial position is improving, it is likely the Trust will fall short of its savings target for this financial year.
“We continue to work closely with our healthcare partners across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight to deliver strong financial performance alongside providing outstanding care for patients.”
UHS is also under additional financial pressures due to several unplanned reductions in income, such as reductions in Channel Islands activity, a loss of pathology income, and a decrease in private patient activity.