Finances at the Department of Health and Social Care are improving, despite another plea for extra funding.

That was the message from Health Minister David Ashford after he was forced to go to Tynwald this week and seek an extra £4 million due to another overspend.

Tynwald approved the extra money, but only after several members blasted the department.

The plea for extra money came under the looming shadow of a major debate on reforms to health service funding in May.

Mr Ashford acknowledged that and the fact that health chiefs seeking extra money after going over budget had become an annual event - but said: ’I am confident we are making progress and that our financial position is improving.’

The minister said not all of the £4m might be needed, but it was prudent to be prepared.

He said the fact it had taken until March before the call for more money was made was an improvement. Usually it is January when the Department of Health and Social Care goes cap in hand to Tynwald.

Increased costs at Noble’s Hospital, including drugs funding and a staff pay award along, accounted for the majority of the overspend.

The minister admitted a ’genuine sense of disappointment’ among health chiefs that they had not kept within their budget targets.

He outlined the ’financial challenges’ faced this year, after being told to find savings of £7m in last year’s budget.

’We started this year with a cost improvement challenge of £7 million,’ said Mr Ashford. ’Pay awards granted or offered have added an estimated £1.4 million.’

Other identified cost pressures could add £4 million to the budget.

’In a department which spends £600,000 per day, there is a margin of error in any forecast and I have had to take a prudent view as to our likely year-end position,’ he said. ’I remain very hopeful that our final figures will be better than this.’

Acute care services, mostly at Noble’s Hospital, were expected to come in at £9.5 million over budget, he said.

Meanwhile the cost of treating patients in the UK was expected to be £695,000 more than budget, but that was down on the previous year’s £1 million overspend.

But Mr Ashford insisted it was ’not all doom and gloom’ and the position was improving year on year.

quality

’The people of the Isle of Man deserve a high quality National Health and Care Service, which also crucially gives value for their money,’ he said, ’and I am determined to do everything in my power to deliver both of those.’

In two months’ time Tynwald is due to debate damning reports into the department by the Public Accounts Committee, and also a review of service funding by Sir Jonathan Michael.

Jane Poole-Wilson said: ’Without wishing to pre-empt the debate in this court in May on the future provision of health and social care in this island and the recent reports published by the public accounts committee, it is of serious concern that there is evidence, particularly at Noble’s Hospital, of failures by the employed leaders in the DHSC to manage effectively and efficiently to ensure proper value for money.’

Lawrie Hooper (LibVannin, Ramsey) said he had warned last year the department would be forced to come back asking for money and accused Mr Ashford of a ’comprehensive failure of leadership’.

But Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan came to his cabinet colleague’s defence.

’There has not been a comprehensive failure of leadership on the minister’s part,’ he said. ’That is utter nonsense.

’He has had to deal with a number of significant cost issues that we all knew and recognised.’

He said the debate in May came out of a recognition of the problems facing the health service and that it needed a fundamental review to its structure.