Comment / Learning across systems

As the NHS evolves, so the HFMA also changes to make sure that it is always meeting the needs of members. So, I was really pleased to chair the first meeting of the HFMA’s new Integrated Care Board (ICB) Finance Group at the end of November.

With over half of all ICBs represented on the group, covering a variety of different geographies and sizes, the group offers a fantastic opportunity for those of us working in them to share the challenges we face and support each other. If the breadth of our discussion was any indication, then we all have a lot going on and we are all trying to find the best way to address similar issues.

As a new group, I wanted to give you a flavour of some of the areas that we are talking about – our immediate concerns. I don’t think the things that we talked about will come as any surprise.

The financial situation for 2023/24 will be a big challenge. Costs are going up for everybody, but funding will not increase at the same rate. What should our strategies be as ICBs? We are charged with balancing the books for the whole system, so how do we go about finding those elusive productivity and efficiency savings across all organisations? Many of us are in newly merged organisations and we obviously need to look at whether we, as new bodies, are doing things in the most effective way.

But we also need to think about the wider system. How do we tackle the pressures in unscheduled care? What does the new funding for social care mean for us in the NHS? How will wider local authority funding impact NHS services? As you might have gathered, there are currently many more questions than answers.

But this shows why the new group will be so valuable. System working is all about transparency. We need to share information and knowledge across partners to make better decisions and use resources well for the population. But, as a group, we realised that that same transparency does not happen between systems, and we would all be better off if it did. As a network of ICBs, we have committed to sharing information with each other to allow us to benchmark our activities and learn from good practice. And even though we are necessarily an England focused group, we can learn from colleagues across the whole of the UK. Members are getting involved in some HFMA research looking at how the different approaches to integration across the four nations can support, or hinder, the NHS’s aims.

Some members are going to get together to think about what the 2023/24 financial regime should look like, to best support us all to meet the challenges ahead. Part of the role of the new group is to feedback thoughts and concerns to national decision makers, and work with them to develop solutions. The broad participation in the ICB Finance Group means that we can be truly representative of the wider membership, which is really helpful.

One of the priorities for ICBs and the wider NHS is to tackle health inequalities, and the HFMA has a lot of work going on in this space. As a group, we are really pleased to get involved in projects that will help in this area, such as developing tools for ICBs to use and considering how to overcome the barriers to investing in prevention.

Just one meeting in and our agenda is already full and varied. I am looking forward to enabling this group to make a difference across all of our local systems, through working together and learning from each other. We have a brilliant opportunity ahead of us to shape how we work and really improve the health outcomes for our populations.

Claire Wilson is director of finance of Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board.

The ICB Finance Group is part of the HFMA Hub and the wider committee structure at the HFMA. It will work with other HFMA groups to address areas of common concern, for example audit, contracting, and the transformation of services across systems. It is here to represent the views and concerns of all HFMA members who work in ICBs If there is something you think the group should be exploring contact [email protected]