ALE assessment says NHS has shown significant improvement
The 2007/2008 Auditor's Local Evaluation (ALE) of NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) has just been published, and on the whole things are looking good.
The auditor's assess the trusts on their money management skills and the value for money they are getting for the financial resources available to them.
The assessments are carried out under five themes:
- financial reporting
- financial management
- financial standing
- internal control
- value for money
The scores for each category are then combined to give an overall Use of Resource score, which is then used by the the Healthcare Commission in its Annual Health Check.
Some of the key results in this year's report include:
- 282 NHS bodies meeting or exceededing minimum standards for their overall use of resources;
- 151 are performing well in their use of resources;
- 14 are performing strongly - the highest level; and
- only 20 failed to meet minimum standards.
You can read the full report online on the Audit Commission webiste