Member to member / There are plenty of opportunities in NHS finance

Bill Gregory, chief finance officer & deputy chief executive at Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust, is the HFMA president for 2018/2019. He took up the position during the HFMA annual conference in December last year and is excited about the year ahead. His presidential theme Value the opportunity will bring a focus to costing, value and the opportunities to influence the national picture. Find out what he did before joining the NHS and why is the HFMA such a key part of his life.

How did you start your NHS finance journey?

My NHS finance career started in 1992, but before that I worked in software and then consultancy. I took a diploma in accounting and finance with the ACCA, whilst working in the software industry, which enabled me to change career to finance.  Working with Deloitte I qualified as an accountant, whilst working with a number of NHS clients.  For me it seemed a natural progression to work in the health service once I became qualified. The diploma was a great way to get a taste for accounting and finance, before jumping in with both feet. I am really glad I did, and with first-hand experience I greatly value introductory qualifications as an excellent route to achieving a full professional qualification.

Why did you get involved with the HFMA?

My first encounter with the HFMA was when my then director of finance at the North West Regional Office, Mervyn Bonnet, encouraged me to join. That was back in the mid-1990s. At the time I assumed it was part of his membership campaign but very quickly appreciated the networking and professional development opportunities HFMA offered.  I joined the North West branch research committee, and attended many of the branch annual quiz nights in the old Broadgreen Hospital social club. Membership also gave me the opportunity to attend and eventually contribute to some of the excellent events the HFMA puts on for members including the north west summer school and the national conference.

What’s the biggest challenge you face on a day-to-day basis and how does the HFMA support you in coping with it?

I think one of the biggest challenges we face is integrating health care services, particularly as the purchaser provider split has pulled us in the other direction for many years. However, we all face challenges in our day to day jobs. The indirect benefit I have found from being involved with the HFMA is the ability to email or call people I have met to see if they have encountered similar problems and what they did. Those calls rarely provide the immediate answer to your problem, but they quite often open up possibilities that I hadn’t previously considered that enable me to tackle the challenges I face more effectively.

What’s behind your presidential theme Value the opportunity?

My theme has three elements:

The first is valuing the opportunity to influence the shape of the 10-year plan, and in particular the financial architecture, which is one of the key enabling programmes of the plan. I think HFMA’s role is to help shape the future by contributing and influencing the thinking nationally. I also think there is valuable opportunity for the branches and special interest groups to help us ensure any national, regional or sector specific issues are surfaced as the new architecture gets developed and implemented.

The second dimension of my theme is the opportunity to make better decisions using the concept of value in healthcare and taking forward the work of our Healthcare Costing for Value Institute.

The final dimension of my theme is valuing the opportunities available for personal and professional development and the support offered by the association to its members. The professional accounting bodies many of us are members of, have provided us with the technical skills and effectively provides our licence to practice as accountants. For me what the HFMA adds to this is sector-relevant continuing professional development, and the support to be as effective in our roles as we can be. An important part of this is the HFMA qualifications which appeal to a wide NHS audience, and we are looking to expand these to include apprentice level qualifications that offer a pathway to full professional qualifications.

What piece of advice do you have for people who are starting their NHS finance journey now?

For those starting out in the NHS, you are going to be working in a great service that you will be able to feel really proud of. I can’t see any shortage of opportunity for individuals in the future, the challenge for individuals and their organisations is to take all the opportunities for personal development and make sure we are fit for the future.