9 November 2021
We were proud to present the BIR/Canon Mayneord Award to Professor Clive Kay (Chief Executive, King’s College Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust). Accepting his award, Professor Kay went on to deliver a fascinating talk called “Integrated Care – reasons to be cheerful and reasons to be watchful” at teh BIR Annual Congress on 5 November. The theme chimed with the overall theme of the Congress this year “Working together to achieve excellence”.
The BIR Canon Mayneord Memorial Lecture is an annual award made to an individual or a group of collaborators in recognition of recent or current contributions in the wide and expanding field of radiology. It was founded in 1984 in memory of Professor William Valentine Mayneord CBE FRS, past president and honorary member of the BIR.
Professor Kay, a gastrointestinal radiologist by background, outlined both the challenges and the reasons to be positive about how to implement an Integrated Care System in the UK.Integrated care systems (ICSs) are new partnerships between organisations and services to improve population health and reduce inequalities between different groups.
He gave six “reasons to be cheerful” about how the ICSs could be successfully implemented. Looking at examples from around the world including New Zealand, Spain and Sweden he cited the concept of giving providers control over a finite budget rather than being contracted in a fragmented way; he said investment in early diagnostics and technical efficiencies is essential; wider use of data to target those most needed; a focus on culture, behaviour and clinical collaboration rather than finance and governance; more clinicians in senior leadership positions; and long term thinking focussing on outcomes not just activities are all required.
However, he also warned against the misconception that ICS is a commissioning group. He said the focus should be on wider collaboration which will reduce unwanted variation in clinical practice, more access to services for all more efficient and effective corporate and clinical support services, better ability to manage demand and the ability to alleviate workforce issues such as better training and skilling staff which leads to better staff retention and recruitment. Other benefits include greater resilience, better deployment of staff in areas that are hard to recruit in.
There are some examples of poor collaboration and poor decision making that has prevented a positive culture within organisations. He also warned of the burden of over-regulation which doesn’t always work in and a “one-size-fits-all” approach. He cited the “Richards Report” and “Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) as examples of pivotal work which can spearhead reform.
Our thanks go to Canon Medical Systems UK the sponsor of this BIR award for the past three years which recognises values, skills and contributions at the forefront of medical imaging. This is in line with Canon Medical Systems’ commitment to education.
Previous recipients include Professor Evis Sala (2020) Professor Mathias Prokop (2019), Professor Perry Pickhardt (2018), Professor Keith McNeil (2017), Professor Adrian Dixon (2016), Professor Sir Muir Gray (2015), Professor John Buscombe (2014), Professor Richard Ehman (2012), Professor Sir Mike Richards (2011) and Lord Darzi (2010).
The lecture is available for everyone who registered for the event to view at no charge in the online learning library at www.bir.org.uk
