Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust.
How CitySprint delivered a 99% success rate for NHS Foundation Trusts.
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Pathology transportation, pharmaceutical and hospital logistics
Formed in 2011, Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS Foundation Trusts providing community mental, physical and learning disability health services, as well as community hospitals and specialist inpatient units, for a population of 1.3 million people.
Also established in 2011, Solent NHS Trust provides community, mental health, learning disability services and specialist services to communities in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, for over 976,000 service users.
The Trusts were looking for a delivery provider who could re-model the service to ensure that at least 98% of collections would be completed at the required times and that at least 99% of pathology samples would be delivered to the labs within 2 hours of being collected.
In early 2020, CitySprint were awarded the contract for the provision of non-patient courier services for Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust & Solent NHS Trust.
CitySprint worked alongside the Trusts to carry out a detailed route optimisation exercise to re-model the entire service and implement a new route model to consistently achieve the required KPIs for collection times and pathology transport times.
Deploying our services in unique circumstances
Resource allocation
As part of the mobilisation, 35 couriers, 4 office staff and 1 warehouse operative were transferred via TUPE to CitySprint.
Launch week provisions
Over the weekend of the 18th and 19th April, 1,500 new mail and pathology bags were barcoded, 27 vehicles were delivered and distributed to the couriers and the mail room was set up to be fully operational ready for Monday 20th April.
This was a massive undertaking for the CitySprint contract team, wider operations and senior management teams and enabled a seamless transition of service from the previous incumbent to CitySprint.
The trusts were very pleased with the way that the contract was implemented, especially considering the unique and challenging circumstances.
Providing consistent service levels
40+ dedicated routes
CitySprint operate 44 dedicated routes for the NHS trusts, including 38 daily weekday routes, 6 Saturday routes, 2 pharmacy routes and 1 dedicated medical records route.
780+ ad-hoc, same day deliveries completed in 12 months
Ad-hoc same day requests are also provided for the trusts with 786 ad-hoc same day deliveries being completed in year 1 of the contract. In year 2, CitySprint provided transport for Covid-19 vaccinations to secondary schools throughout Hampshire, working directly with the community nursing teams.
By utilising route optimisation software, CitySprint transformed the operational routes to regularly meet our contractual KPIs for collection times and pathology transport times.
Emission-free vehicles and fully compliant couriers
CitySprint operate 2 full time EVs with, with emissions data provided in the monthly MI.
In addition to our regular induction and on-boarding process, healthcare drivers will complete enhanced training in line with client requirements, for example: handling of patient specimens, medication, medical records, medical devices, finished products and blood products.
Our drivers are GDP-trained to ensure compliance with ISO, CPA and MHRA regulatory requirements and we provide further instruction on infection control, handling dry-ice, stick injury, handling fixed items and how to manage a spillage of biological or hazardous substances.
Monitoring and accessibility
Temperature monitoring is in place for pharmacy movements via a cloud-based temperature monitoring system. The real time system is configured to automatically send e-mail alerts to nominated contacts should a temperature excursion occur.
Random temperature monitoring is in place for pathology samples, with temperature sensors inside the pathology bags recording temperature of samples in transit. Detailed results are shared with the Trusts and Lab managers monthly. Incidents of temperatures exceeding the agreed threshold are reviewed and correction actions taken, including communications to GP practices with guidance for how to ensure samples are stored in a compliant manner prior to collection.
“CitySprint provide tailor-made, reliable courier services capable of getting pathology samples to our labs at speed but also with care and sensitivity. They operate flexibly with the ability to respond to ad hoc demands efficiently, optimising routes where possible.”
Sophie McConville, Category Manager and Commercial Lead – Estates and Facilities, Solent NHS Trust “CitySprint provide a consistent compliant approach and are very proactive with the needs of the service. Through utilising route optimisation software, CitySprint were able to assist the Trust in ensuring that collection and delivery times met the needs of the service.”
Sally Banbery, Project and Contract Manager, Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust
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