Following news that Oxfordshire’s PET CT Scanner contract would be awarded to InHealth, Victoria Prentis MP joined a cross-party group of MPs from across Oxfordshire to express concerns about a change in contract.
The world class service is currently provided by Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUHFT) at the Churchill Hospital, Oxford. It serves thousands of patients every year from across Oxfordshire and its bordering counties. NHS England ran recently a procurement procedure and announced private provider, InHealth, would take over the running of the service. This has led to wide-scale concern over the safety and outcomes for patients in Oxfordshire.
In April, the Oxfordshire Joint Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee (HOSC) referred this matter to the Department for Health, outlining the issues with a change in provider.
Elected officials and residents were particularly worried about whether this change of procurement will maintain the high quality service provided by OUHFT. Medical professionals working on the Churchill Hospital site also share this view, particularly given the level of expertise in the team. An additional mobile service, as suggested by InHealth, will not offer the accuracy of the current scanner, already afforded to patients in and around the county.
Unfortunately the Department for Health have not accepted HOSC’s referral, citing ongoing discussions between NHS England, In Health and the OUHFT about a potential partnership.
Victoria remains concerned about the situation and has requested an urgent meeting with Health Ministers to discuss the issue in more detail. It is hoped that this meeting will be joined by cross-party representatives in Oxfordshire.
