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National Director for Emergency Access - Sir George Alberti
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Last modified date:4 March 2008
Prof Sir George Alberti
As the National Director for Emergency Access, Professor Sir George Alberti is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Reforming Emergency Care strategy.
Working closely with emergency care leads (ECLs), one of Sir George's overarching aims is to help organisations rethink the way access to emergency care is delivered. He is also focusing on improvements to the way health communities co-operate and communicate with each other to improve the patient's overall experience of emergency care.
Sir George was appointed as the first National Clinical Director for Emergency Access in 2002.
He said: "We need to get a real integrated feel about the organisation of emergency care across the country. Emergency care is delivered against a background of frenetic activity. One of the biggest challenges is to ensure people across the system are able to create the 'think time' to look positively at the way services are delivered."
Professor Alberti is clear that reducing waits in A&E is not simply an issue for A&E departments themselves.
"A lot of this is about changing the way we organise the work, and it's not just a question of Emergency Departments, it is a question of the rest of the hospital, as well as coordinating help for people at home and in the community."
This is why ECLs are needed to work in and across their local emergency care networks, linking up the efforts of local ambulance services, primary care organisation and social services in improving emergency care for patients.
Skills and experience
Professor Sir George Alberti was president of the Royal College of Physicians London (PRCP) until July 2002. He was also professor of medicine at University of Newcastle upon Tyne and professor of metabolic medicine at Imperial College.
As PRCP he was in close contact with the Government and the Department of Health, providing advice and feedback from a medical viewpoint to ensure the highest standards of patient care in the implementation of new developments in the NHS.
He was co-chairman of the first of the national service frameworks (NSFs) on coronary heart disease. He is a member of the Modernisation Board and the Council of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Send your feedback to Sir George
Sir George would like to hear views, ideas and feedback from frontline staff who are delivering the reforms in emergency care. He welcomes emails using the link below. Please mark your message 'FAO Sir George Alberti'
Additional links
Bed capacity ready reckoner
A simple desktop Ready Reckoner has been developed specifically for operational managers enabling you to predict whether you will have sufficient beds or a bed shortage on any particular day, allowing you to take pre-emptive management action to prevent a beds crisis.
Emergency Medical and Surgical Admissions guidance
This document provides best practice guidance on emergency medical and surgical assessment and admission as well as the supporting processes that need to be in place. These guidelines aim to extend the high quality of care seen within the A&E department to the rest of the emergency pathway within the hospital and will also contribute toward further embedding the operational standard.
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