The new temporary CEO for NHS England will be Sir Jim Mackey on loan from Newcastle Hospitals Trust – brought in by Health Secretary Wes Streeting to mastermind reforms.
When Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary was told in June 2023 by the Care Quality Commission that it had declined from “outstanding” to “requires improvement,” there was only one person to call in – Sir Jim Mackey. Highly regarded for his work at Northumbria Health Care Trust, Sir Jim was appointed to turn things around. On Monday he told staff in a letter “We have achieved massive improvements in just a short space of time
Achievements
He will be sorely missed when he goes down to London. One out-patient attending a recent clinic said staff were devastated that Sir Jim would be leaving – even if it was only temporarily – saying he had improved morale incredibly.
Sir Jim is known as an action man, someone who gets things done and cuts through red tape. During the covid pandemic when other hospitals were panicking about the lack of PPE equipment, Sir Jim set up a factory to make what was required.
The factory produced isolation gowns, scrubs, theatre hoods, masks, theatre hats and pillows at a 40,000sq/m site in Seaton Delaval, Northumberland. The space was eventually purchased by the NHS, officially opened by then Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and expanded to supply the whole country.
While CEO for Northumbria Health Trust, Sir Jim masterminded the building of the Cramlington Emergency Care Hospital. The plan was controversial as it involved the closure of A&E departments at Wansbeck, North Tyneside and Hexham.
There were a large number of local objections, campaigns and a great deal of media coverage. But Sir Jim and his clinical team were convinced that given the vast area covered by Northumbria, and a budget under increasing pressure, a centre of excellence for emergency care was the right thing to do.
“Cramlington was a very important element of our plans in order to deliver the standard we wanted. We had to be imaginative. It was a difficult and controversial model but given our geography it was important,” he told North East Bylines, in an interview in early 2023.
And the building of Cramlington threw up another opportunity for Sir Jim. Some years after completion building defects were discovered. There were problems with the roof, flooring, external wall, pipework, drainage, landscaping and the hospital’s helipad.
The Trust sued Lendlease, the company who built the £75mn facility, asking for £140mn in compensation – double the original construction price. It argued that a new wing would have to be built onto the hospital and patients transferred out while the repairs took place.
In the end, Lendlease settled out of court for a sum believed to be in the region of £100mn. What happened next showed Sir Jim’s canny side. Repairs were made at a fraction of the cost. It was decided a new wing was not required after all, and the excess money was made available for other uses.
During his time at Northumbria Sir Jim established the trust as one of the best in the country for shorter waits in A&E and for routine operations. Maternity care was also one of the best. National awards came to doctors and nurses. Northumbria also began the first trial in the country using drones to deliver medical and blood supplies.
He also set up a new care system to reduce hospital bed shortages. Northumbria Care is NHS owned and bids for social care contracts, competing with private suppliers. This helps move patients through the system more quickly. Other Health Trusts around the country have followed the initiative.
New role
Sir Jim will need all his skills working in his new role as interim head of NHS England, following the shock resignation of the current CEO, Amanda Pritchard. There are reports that as part of his reforms, Health Secretary Wes Streeting wants to axe up to a thousand jobs which he feels are duplicated at the Department of Health. It is being seen as a massive power grab.
Streeting said “I’m delighted that Jim Mackey has agreed to step up to provide new leadership for a new era. The next few months will be pivotal moments on the road to NHS reform. Jim knows the NHS inside out, can see how it needs to change, and will work with the speed and urgency we need.”
Clearly there’s a lot of work to be done and Sir Jim Mackey is seen as the right man to see it through. One former governor of Northumbria Health Care Trust said “Jim is not an obvious civil servant and this is basically a civil service role. He won’t kowtow. It’s going to be very interesting.
“But I just hope it is only a temporary position and that it doesn’t turn into something permanent. We need Jim Mackey back up here in the North East,” she added.
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