Last month, NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey wrote to NHS chief executives and chairs on the twin priorities of service recovery and financial discipline. It was replete with non-negotiable targets and priorities, organisational discipline and forms of hierarchical intervention – described by one NHS wag as ‘blood, sweat and tiers'.
Sir Jim, who has an impressive record as an acute trust leader, even offered to intervene personally to help failing organisations get back on track.
