Hospices ‘are struggling with red tape burden’

Help the Hospices surveyed its members between March and May about arrangements for the coming year. The survey showed that under the new arrangements, commissioning – the process of identifying which healthcare services are needed, buying them and monitoring their delivery – has become more complex.

A quarter of hospices surveyed said they were working with four or more statutory commissioners, 38 per cent were working with three or more, while one hospice reported working with eight separate commissioners.

Jonathan Ellis, from Help the Hospices, said: “Many hospices are managing a hotchpotch of different funding arrangements, dealing with multiple commissioners, some only have short-term agreements and all are battling with increased bureaucracy.

“This combines to create instability and extra costs for hospices, which in the long term will adversely impact on patient care.”