When Coral was engaged by this London PCT, it was in the worst shape of any she’s come across. There were a raft of serious clinical safety issues, staff absence was over 30% and services were crippled by MP scrutiny, Serious Untoward Incidents and the number of patient complaints. To compound matters, there was poor financial control, relationships with the acute and local authority were severely strained and the recent turnaround had resulted in the installation of a completely new management team.
Coral had to start from the ground up to get this organisation back on track. Responsible for a portfolio of services worth £27 million and over 350 staff, she initially addressed the structural issues to ensure resources were being used in the most efficient manner. This involved identifying the value of each service line and completely re-organising every single team, and finding or replacing Heads of Service for 7 out of 9 services. Coral then conducted appraisals and security checks (the first time they had been done in two years) and subsequently reduced headcount by 10%. She re-built internal relationships to break down silos between teams, integrating the nursing and rehabilitation teams for example, and ensured consistent communication between them. She also secured £2million to improve care standards; this resulted in a reduction in patient stay which further improved their financial position.
Coral’s impact was both far reaching and sustainable. By the time she exited the PCT she had achieved the following:
- Reduced staff absence from 30% to 10%
- Improved District Nursing efficiency by 20%
- All services were 18 weeks ready for compliance (Neurological and Stroke was previously on 40+ weeks)
- Reduced delayed transfer of care by more than 50%
- Took financial position from deficit to surplus
Furthermore, she had embedded a culture of ownership in nursing staff, upskilled the new Service Directors and ensured all services were producing accurate data to enable them to manage services more efficiently after her departure. She had restored faith in the services from both the local authority and the acute and put in place stable and effective leadership across all services. The PCT was previously rated as ‘poor’ in assessments, but is now rated as ‘good’. This was all achieved through sheer tenacity and hard work, and extensive experience of turnaround in healthcare.
The Interim Director of Provider Services & Estates at the PCT commented: “Coral has demonstrated outstanding skills in leading a process of clinical change for Health & Care. She led a number of complex teams, setting clinical standards, successfully writing and presenting business cases, and appointing high quality new staff members. Coral has a strong focus on detail whilst always having one eye on the bigger picture so is able to implement strategic change on the ground.
"Coral always ensures that performance is high on the agenda, and has a clear understanding of policy that enables her to be an effective and influential member of the team who commands great respect and loyalty from colleagues. Her communications skills are excellent and her commitment and dedication to work of the highest order.”
