Chair, Richard Evans, CEO at the SCoR welcomed delegates to a conference which, he said, “has gone from strength to strength, getting bigger and better each year.”
This year’s event promised a packed programme designed to give attendees plenty to think about and take away, to implement change and improvement in their own departments and hospitals.
“We have had a tumultuous year,” said Richard “a referendum, a new Prime Minister, Donald Trump, a parliamentary election, a cyber-attack on the NHS and not least of all, terrorist attacks in London and Manchester.
“On the positive side, we have seen a gradual shift in media coverage of the NHS in the past year – from scandal and outrage to the realisation of how difficult it is at the frontline. I have been the SCoR CEO for the past 13 years and one of my favourite and best times is meeting people at the frontline.
“It is vitally important for us to know what is going on at the frontline of clinical services and especially from the point of view of people at the really sharp end – the managers,” he added.
Richard urged delegates to make the most of the day and particularly to take advantage of the exhibition and the opportunities to network with likeminded professionals.
“The three Ps theme of the conference is patient, performance and productivity, but there are another three – ‘Philips, perfect partners’, as without them we couldn’t get it started,” he concluded.