Two new clinical leads have joined Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) to lead the programme’s focus on improving adult neurology services across England.
Dr Niranjanan Nirmalananthan (consultant neurologist at St George’s University Hospitals NHS Trust) and Dr Adrian Wills (consultant neurologist at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust) take over from Dr Geraint Fuller, who retired from GIRFT recently after seven years in the role.
As joint clinical leads, Niran and Adrian will focus on benchmarking, tackling unwarranted variation and supporting trusts with challenged neurology services.
The scope of the role includes adults accessing all levels of secondary and tertiary care neurology services, and the leads will work collaboratively with stakeholders including the Association of British Neurologists and the Neurological Alliance, as well as specialty networks, the national Neurology Services Transformation Programme, NHS England policy and commissioning teams and ICBs.
One in six people in England has a neurological condition, with the specialty covering conditions such epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. Neurology care is largely outpatient-based, with around 1.3m patients seen in outpatients annually.
Dr Geraint Fuller was appointed to the GIRFT programme in 2017 to lead an in-depth review of services across England. In September 2021, he published his GIRFT national report for neurology, highlighting that the experience of patients with neurological disorders can vary significantly depending on where they live, with some patients admitted to sites with a full range of services seven days a week and others to sites with access to neurology services only a few days a week.
The report made a series of 26 recommendations for improving services, in particular addressing the variation in equity of access.
Professor Tim Briggs, GIRFT Chair and NHS England National Director for Clinical Improvement and Elective Recovery, welcomed the two new clinical leads.
He said:
“Geraint has done a sterling job over the past seven years in reviewing neurology services nationally and then supporting implementation of his national report recommendations. We are grateful for his tireless work.
I am sure that Niran and Adrian will now successfully build on the significant progress to date, working closely with trusts, ICBs and regions around the country to address their challenges and improve access to much-needed neurology services.”
