PRESS RELEASE
19th July 2019
New UK and Ireland Healthcare Advisory Board created to guide and influence leading workforce optimisation software provider
Allocate creates new advisory board to help shape innovation and service
Allocate Software has created a new advisory board, including members from key stakeholders in the healthcare industry as well as its own customers. Given the NHS’s priorities around ensuring that technology interoperability can drive efficiencies to free up the workforce to spend more time on and improve patient care, the UK & Ireland Healthcare Advisory Board will work closely with the Allocate leadership team to ensure further innovation. It will focus on how Allocate’s software platform can best support healthcare organisations as they manage the demand for more care in the context of the 20% global shortage of healthcare workers[1]. The board is chaired by Sir Andrew Cash, OBE, and led from Allocate by its CEO, Nick Wilson.
The inaugural meeting of the board took place last month, discussing topics such as safe staffing in the context workforce shortages, technology innovation and interoperability. The next meeting will take place in October.
One of the main goals of the UK & Ireland Healthcare Advisory Board is to steer Allocate’s direction of technology innovation to deliver on its commitment to work in partnership with healthcare organisations and stakeholders. With the global workforce crisis continuing to dominate the industry’s agenda, gaining feedback and acting upon agreed priorities will help unlock the potential that technology solutions can deliver.
“Bringing together informed and experienced representatives from our industry, who live and breathe the challenges of the global workforce crisis every day, and who also have an understanding of Government policy too, is an important step forward. We need to ensure technology works hand-in-hand with the industry so that it invests in the right developments to deliver a step-change in the way technology can positively impact care delivery. I’m delighted to see the proactive approach that Allocate is taking, especially with challenges such as interoperability, which has the potential to have a profound impact on staffing issues in our sector,” comments Sir Andrew Cash, OBE, chair of the UK & Ireland Healthcare Advisory Board.
“We are proud of the progress that has been made within the healthcare sector around its use of our digital workforce management tools. We strive to support healthcare professions to deliver the best patient care, whilst ensuring the fair and flexible treatment of staff. But there is still a long way to go to ensure all staff groups benefit from these innovations, and that organisations can be assured of access to the best possible systems. For me, the top of the agenda is further interoperability and innovation – so that healthcare professionals gain control and choice from a connected view of workforce management and patient care. The insight from the advisory board members is critical is giving us the unique understanding into the needs of the sector and to steer the direction of our technology investment to the right places,” comments Nick Wilson, CEO at Allocate Software.
In addition to the UK & Ireland Healthcare Advisory Board, Allocate also runs a National User Group Steering Committee, which is impartial and is representative of the customer base across all healthcare sectors; Acute, Primary Care, Mental Health, Ambulance and the Private Healthcare sector. The group, which is chaired by Michael Brown – the former Chair of the Royal College of Nursing Council – meets throughout the year to support the regional user groups that meet regularly and allows users to create a network of local organisations to share ideas and best practice to help them to get the most out of Allocate solutions.
Members of the Healthcare Advisory Board are as follows:
- Sir Andrew Cash, CEO, Sheffield Teaching Hospital’s NHS Foundation Trust and former Chair of the Shelford Group
- Paul Stefanoski, Director of Finance and Business, West London Mental Health NHS Trust
- Professor David Foster OBE, Non-Executive Director, Queens Nursing Institute
- Anne Cooper, Non-Executive Director, Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, Ex Chief Nurse NHS Digital
- Stephen Dorrell, Chair, NHS Confederation and owner of the Dorson Group
- Sam Foster, Chief Nurse, Oxford University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Anne Drake, Director of Nursing, Letterkenny University Hospital, Ireland
- Andy Haynes, Executive Medical Director, Sherwood Forest NHS Foundation Trust
- Nick Wilson, CEO, Allocate
- Hugh Ashley, Managing Director, UK & Ireland, Allocate
- Paul Scandrett, International Director of Healthcare, Allocate
- Lyn McIntyre MBE, UK Director of Healthcare, Allocate
Notes to editors
About Allocate Software
Allocate Software is a leading international provider of workforce and resource planning solutions, supporting the operational and administrative needs of healthcare, defence and maritime sectors.
In the health and care sector, Allocate is enabling the delivery of safe and effective care at optimal cost, by helping organisations to have the right people in the right place at the right time. With over 800 clients and over a million staff rostered daily, Allocate serves the largest public and private sector institutions around the world. Its Optima, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), platform including HealthRoster and HealthMedics, optimises the complex staffing requirements of large health and care organisations. Alongside automating sophisticated scheduling and ensuring accurate pay for staff that have complex pay rules, it is unique in providing additional benefits to improve the safety of staffing given changing patient needs, the management of contingent workforce, and the engagement of staff through the dedicated app. Optima is used to plan the working lives of half million staff across all workforce groups including doctors, nurses, therapists, care staff, operational staff and administrators.
Allocate Software is headquartered in the United Kingdom, with 500 employees, including over 190 in research, development and product management functions. It provides services and support to its international customer base through regional offices in the UK, Sweden, France, Germany and Australia.
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Clare Wall
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Andrea Hounsham
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[1] Source: ‘Human: Solving the Global Workforce Crisis in Healthcare’ by Mark Britnell
