Hospitals trust gains foundation status
The Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust, one of the University’s key NHS partners, has been granted Foundation Trust status by the Independent Regulator Monitor.
This status gives greater freedoms to the Trust to manage its own affairs and improve services; this includes the opportunity of using surpluses to invest in new capital developments.
The Trust has already embarked upon a major £300m building programme that will transform the hospitals in Newcastle, providing state of the art facilities for the broad range of clinical services it delivers. This will generate an exciting and almost unparalleled environment for clinical academics engaged in ‘bench to bedside’ research.
It is of great importance to the Faculty of Medical Sciences that academic development and innovation is one of five priorities laid out in the plan for their first year as a Foundation Trust.
The Trust is one of the key partners with the University in the development of Science City including stem cell initiatives and the Campus for Ageing and Vitality on the Newcastle General Hospital site.
Professor Alastair Burt, Dean of Clinical Medicine, said: “The Newcastle Trust has been extremely successful in developing and delivering the highest quality clinical services.
"Foundation Trust status should further strengthen the symbiotic relationship between the University and the Trust, with real benefits for our translational research programmes and for maintaining excellence in undergraduate medical and dental training.”
Picture of the Royal Victoria Infirmary courtesy of BBC Online.
Article submitted by: Prof Alastair Burt, Dean of Clinical Medicine and Professor of Pathology. Contact: A.D.Burt@newcastle.ac.uk
published on: 7th June 2006