The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Future Hospital Programme has launched its final report this week and this provides an opportunity for the RCP to look back at the considerable impact that the programme has had. The Future Hospital Commission was a rare thing in medicine – a report that was radical, engaging and popular, full of new ideas and solutions to the common problems that beset the NHS.
The Future Hospital Programme has been a 3-year project funded by the RCP to implement the recommendations of the commission. It has moved the report from concept to implementation working with partners across the UK to increase patient satisfaction, meaningfully engage patients, create efficiencies, develop clinician engagement and deliver higher morale in FHP pilot sites. The learning from the FHP pilot sites have led to the development of best practice with new models of care tailored for delivery elsewhere, recognition from ministers and parliamentarians and a number of projects recognised on the national stage.
The Future Hospital Programme has seen the launch of our flagship Chief Registrar leadership programme, developing the next generation of clinical leaders. The scheme offers senior leadership roles which focus on developing high quality patient care and providing junior doctors with a voice. The project continues to grow year on year, and we hope that the project will grow the next generation of medical directors and chief executives.
Although the formal Future Hospital Programme is drawing to a close, the learning will be incorporated into the RCP’s new Quality Improvement Programme, which will provide support to clinicians and their teams to deliver improvements in care and services. The Hub will include a faculty of QI experts, develop training and education in QI, create networks and offer bespoke support to physicians, teams and organisations. The Chief Registrar scheme which has been so successful in engaging our trainees in quality improvement programmes will continue to be developed, including an ongoing network to support career development in QI after leaving the scheme.
The executive summary and the full report can be found on the RCP website
