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Peterborough NHS Trust facing £7m overspend
Peterborough's primary care trust could be around £7 million in the red at the end of the financial year.
Peterborough's primary care trust could be around 7 million in the red at the end of the financial year.NHS Peterborough, which provides health services in the city, is predicted to spend 326.9 million by the end of April which is 7 million over its annual budget set at 319.866 million by the Department of Health (DoH).
The news comes as a blow to the PCT, who reported in September, that they were introducing measures to balance a projected overspend of just 1.9 million.
But while PCT director of finance David Bacon has announced he hoped to reduce the budget overspend to 6.4 million by April, the trust could face a tough time with any overspend being deducted from next year's grant from the DoH.
Chief executive Angela Bailey said: "If we don't balance the books next year, things will be even harder as any overspend will be taken off the funding we receive from the Department of Health."
Over 1 million of the deficit has been caused by a seven per cent rise in the number of patients seeking help from Accident and Emergency at Peterborough District Hospital compared to last year.
There has also been a high number of patients requiring specialist treatment at Papworth and Addenbrooke's hospitals which the PCT has to fund.
Resources have been stretched by the number of patients needing long-term Continuing Healthcare almost doubling from 115 to 200 in the nine months between January and September 2009.
Other areas contributing to the financial problems include a 239,000 overspend on the City Care Centre, 235,000 overspend on ambulance services and 108,000 overspend on responding to swine flu.
Angela Bailey added: "We appreciate that the NHS can be confusing with the variety of services that people have, but locals can help by using the right services such as NHS Direct, pharmacies and walk-in centre facilities.
"This is particularly important at the moment where many services are stretched over difficult winter months."
A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "We will look to develop recovery plans with any PCT that overspends to help them to return to financial balance."
City MP Stewart Jackson said: "I think one of the problems might lie with the figures of how many people are actually in Peterborough.
"Some, especially immigrants, do not realise they have to register for health care. That means when they use services they are not recognised in the budget decisions coming from the Department of Health."
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