User:Duncan Graham/Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Overview

Barnsley Hospital is an NHS Foundation Trust based in South Yorkshire, England.

Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is a small and friendly hospital rated as Excellent by the Healthcare Commission and with with low levels of hospital superbug MRSA The hospital was founded on 1 January 2005 under the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003, as re-enacted in the National Health Service Act 2006 (the 2006 Act).

As an associate teaching and research hospital affiliated to the University of Sheffield, it provides a range of acute hospital services to a population of around 220,000 and has 450 beds. Services include emergency, maternity, general and specialist surgery, critical care, medicine, elderly people’s services and medical imaging.

History

Barnsley Hospital was built in two phases. The foundation stone was laid in September 1967 by then Minister for Health Rt. Hon. Kenneth Robinson for the first stage costing £2.2m. The second stage costing £5.5m, was completed in 1978. The site covers 8.2 hectares. Prior to this and the birth of the NHS in 1948, there were various hospitals that served the Barnsley region.

Beckett Hospital was the first hospital in the area which opened in 1865 as a voluntary hospital and was financed through endowments and voluntary donations. St Helen Hospital opened later in 1880 initially for the poor, destitute and elderly. Later in 1929, Barnsley Council began to provide a maternity service from the site. A third hospital based at Kendray opened in 1887 as a result of the smallpox outbreak and became the region’s ‘fever hospital’ treating typhoid and scarlet fever. The final notable hospital in the area was Mount Vernon Sanatorium which was acquired by Wakefield and Barnsley Councils in 1915 to be used for tuberculosis patients.

Information about the hospital

Barnsley Hospital is regulated by independent foundation trust watchdog, Monitor and in the 2008 Healthcare Commission’s Annual Health check was rated as ‘excellent’ for quality of services and ‘good’ for use of resources.

In 2007/2008, almost 24,000 had elective surgery, 29,000 people went through A&E and over 243,000 attended an outpatient appointment.

The region of Barnsley is in the top 12% of English ‘hot spots’ for multiple deprivation, and has a significant number of public health indicators which reflect this:

•	32.5% of children overweight or obese •	13.2% of the population are ‘workless’ •	Over 25% of the population are smokers

Other indicators, which reflect the health challenges facing the community, include;

•	Median household income of £24, 570 •	32% of households across Barnsley have no access to a car or van (5.4% lower than English average) •	12.9% (in 2006) of working age population were claiming Incapacity Benefit/Severe Disablement allowance

Barnsley Hospital operates within the same boundaries as the local Primary Care Trust (NHS Barnsley), and Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council (BMBC) reducing health inequalities in the region.

Foundation Trust

Barnsley Hospital achieved foundation trust status in 2005. The trust is managed by executive and non-executive directors who together they make up the Board of Directors and are responsible for all strategic issues. Sandra Taylor is the chief executive for the trust and the chairman is Stephen Wragg. The board also, with input from the Governing Council (a publicly elected group of staff, partner organisation representatives and members of the public) set the strategic direction of the Trust.

References

Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council Healthcare Commission ‘The Health Service in Barnsley and District’ (1998). Wharncliffe Publishing. ISBN: 1-871647-46-0 NHS Barnsley

Links

Barnsley Hospital website Healthcare Commission NHS Barnsley