6th NHS Urgent and Emergency Care Conference
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6th NHS Urgent and Emergency Care Conference
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Current Landscape
The NHS Urgent and Emergency Care system continues to face substantial challenges, with persistent issues such as rising demand, systemic inefficiencies, and workforce shortages. Despite the implementation of the UEC 10-Point Action Plan, critical concerns remain, including high bed occupancy rates, delayed patient discharges and pressure on emergency services. These challenges highlight the need for a focused and strategic approach to overhaul UEC services and enhance their efficiency and effectiveness.
Importance and Timeliness of the Event
This conference comes at a crucial time as the NHS seeks to refine and implement its UEC strategy, focusing on both technical and operational challenges. The event is an essential platform for addressing the urgent need to optimise service delivery, improve resource utilisation and build a sustainable workforce. Given the ongoing pressures on the UEC system, this conference provides an opportunity to discuss innovative solutions and strategies that can be implemented in the short to medium term to improve outcomes and service efficiency.
Key Content Streams
The conference will feature several critical content streams, each focusing on a different aspect of UEC service transformation:
- Enhancing 999 and 111 Services: This stream will explore the success and limitations of recent initiatives aimed at improving call-handling capacity, reducing call abandonment rates and managing ambulance handovers more effectively. The use of data analytics to predict demand and optimise resource allocation will be a key focus.
- Maximising Urgent Treatment Centres: This stream will provide an in-depth analysis of UTCs, examining their role in alleviating pressure on emergency departments. Discussions will include the integration of UTCs with primary care and the use of real-time data to improve patient routing and care delivery.
- Strengthening Diagnostics and Acute Services: A focus on improving access to diagnostics and acute care within UEC settings will be central to this stream. Topics will include the deployment of advanced imaging technologies, the development of rapid diagnostic pathways and the integration of point-of-care testing to reduce delays and improve patient outcomes.
- Building a Sustainable UEC Workforce: This stream will address long-term workforce planning, including the expansion of training programs, the development of new care models such as Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) and strategies to reduce reliance on locum staff. The role of AI and automation in supporting clinical decision-making and reducing workload pressures will also be explored.
Why Attend
Attending this conference provides a unique opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge of the latest data-driven strategies and technological innovations that are critical to transforming UEC services. Participants will have the chance to engage with leading experts, policymakers and practitioners, offering valuable networking opportunities to share best practices and explore collaborative solutions to common challenges.
These insights will equip attendees with the tools and knowledge needed to address the complex demands of managing UEC services, making this conference an essential event for those involved in the strategic planning and operational management of NHS UEC services.
Sponsors & Partners
Event Speakers
Dr Gordon
McNeish
Associate Medical Director and Emergency Medicine Consultant at NHS Lanarkshire
Read biography
Mr Reiss
Bond
Deputy Director Urgent and Emergency Care- Urgent Treatment Centres
DHU Healthcare
Read biography
Nikki
Teesdale
Director of Health and Care Integration and Improvement
Medway and Swale Health and Care Partnership
Read biography
Sarah
Williams
Associate Director for UEC and Patient Flow
Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB
Read biography
Troy
Profit
Senior Commissioning Manager – Urgent and Emergency Care
South East London ICB (Bromley Place)
Read biographyThe programme
Registration & Networking
Registration - Open from 8:30 am - Closes at 11:00 am
All delegates must complete their registration process before the 11:00 AM cut-off time. Please arrive in a timely manner to allow for registration and to avoid any inconvenience. Delegates who arrive after the registration deadline will be refused entry to the event.
We appreciate your cooperation in helping us maintain the event's schedule and ensuring that everyone can fully participate in the Conference. If you have any questions or require assistance, our event staff will be available to assist you with the registration process.
Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to an insightful and productive event together!
Chair Opening Address (Confirmed)
Chair Opening Address (Confirmed)
Keynote presentation: Confronting the Challenges in Urgent and Emergency Care: Navigating the Current Landscape and Strategizing for the Future (Confirmed)
The opening keynote will focus on the pressing challenges currently facing the NHS Urgent and Emergency Care system. It will provide a detailed analysis of the current landscape, emphasizing the persistent issues of high demand, workforce shortages, and operational inefficiencies that strain the system.
The address will explore how these challenges have impacted patient care and service delivery, setting the stage for discussions on strategic solutions and innovations. This keynote will equip attendees with a comprehensive understanding of the critical areas needing transformation, highlighting the urgency of collaborative efforts to drive sustainable change within UEC services.
The Coal Face of Urgent and Emergency Care: Insights from the Front Line Panel Discussion
This panel discussion will bring together service heads and frontline leaders from across the NHS Urgent and Emergency Care system to share their firsthand experiences of what is working—and more importantly, what isn’t—in the current UEC landscape.
The discussion will delve into the operational challenges that persist at the coal face, such as workforce shortages, patient flow inefficiencies, and resource constraints. Panelists will candidly assess the effectiveness of recent initiatives, highlighting areas of success and identifying critical pain points that require immediate attention.
Panellists:
- Catherine Withers, Assistant Director of Programmes, Regional UEC & VC Improvement Team, NHS England – East of England (Confirmed)
- Sarah Williams, Associate Director of UEC and Patient Flow, NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire (Confirmed)
- Alison Johnson, SVP UK Health, ORCHA Health (Confirmed)
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Paul Vinters, Senior UEC Operations Manager, NHS England (Confirmed)
Morning Break
Morning Break
Chair Morning Reflection (Confirmed)
Chair Morning Reflection (Confirmed)
Case Study - Learnings from North of the border: Flow navigation in Scotland (Confirmed)
Case Study - Consultant Connect Limited
This session will showcase how rapid access to clinical advice improves patient flow, reduces hospital conveyances and addresses system pressures, with Single Point of Access examples from across England, Scotland and Wales. Scotland's NHS Lanarkshire will give a closer insight into their set up of a Flow Navigation Centre, which includes a “Call Before Convey” initiative in collaboration with the Scottish Ambulance Service. They will cover the lessons learned from the initial set up, further developments along the way as well as how to scale and sustain these patient-centred pathways successfully.
Fireside Chat - Unlocking the Potential of Urgent Treatment Centres: Enhancing Service Integration and Impact (Confirmed)
Fireside chat exploring options for improving patient flow, care and staff wellbeing and performance.
Presentation - Enhance, Enable and Effect
The presentation seeks to introduce the role and purpose of SCCs as part of the Enhance, Enable, Effect theme – as the enabler. The first 2 slides will introduce the concept so the entire audience is familiar with the role, and the need for a system response.
The presentation will also highlight how the SCC can support teams across the UEC pathways, and note some of the menu of actions it can implement.
The successes and achievements of the SCC network will also be highlighted including 100% digital enablement. This will also include an offer of access to the webinar and tools made available to the SCC network that the wider teams in UEC pathways can also access and find of relevance.
Lunch & Networking
Lunch & Networking
Chair Afternoon Address (Confirmed)
Chair Afternoon Address (Confirmed)
Keynote presentation - Access Across the UEC System: Exploring Front Door Models and Pathways (Confirmed)
This session will explore the diverse access points within the Urgent and Emergency Care system, focusing on the effectiveness and challenges of various "front door" models.
Presentation - Independent evaluation of NHS England’s 2023-2025 UEC Recovery Plan (Confirmed)
Introduce our evaluation activities and areas of interest for enquiry.
Balancing Data-Driven Insights with Practical Implementation Panel Discussion
This panel debate will bring together experts and healthcare leaders to discuss the integration of innovative strategies within the Urgent and Emergency Care (UEC) Recovery Plan.
The debate will examine approaches to identifying inefficiencies and improving patient outcomes across UEC services. Panellists will address the challenges of implementing data-driven recommendations while balancing these insights with the practical realities of frontline care. The discussion will explore differing perspectives on sustaining long-term improvements and driving systemic change in UEC services.
Panellists:
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Catherine Withers, Assistant Director of Programmes, Regional UEC & VC Improvement Team, NHS England – East of England (Confirmed)
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Troy Profit, Commissioner UEC, SEL ICB (Confirmed)
Hot Buffet Food & Drinks
Hot Buffet Food & Drinks
End of Day
End of Day
NHS Urgent and Emergency Care Event Gallery Series
