Title: The question of architecture
Authors: Philip Boxer & Tom Flynn
Published: Working paper
The pathfinder project is aiming to generate three kinds of benefit in order to deliver step-change improvements in orthotics:
• Level I – defining current demand and realigning product/service protocols to it
• Level II – re-organizing referral protocols and configuration of clinics to improve delivered health care within existing catchments
• Level III – extending organization of hubs-and-spokes to include re-organization of catchments within Primary Care Trusts
The pathfinders have so far established that the scale of level II benefits are significantly greater than Level I benefits, because of the role of the clinic within the larger Primary, Acute and Long Term care contexts. It is expected that this will continue to be true for Level III benefits, although these will not be examined until the end of the pathfinder process. The question addressed by this paper is how these different levels of benefit are to be achieved on a larger scale across the UK’s National Health Service.