Diagnostics
CDCs: the challenges and triumphs
Following an inquiry into Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs), the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Diagnostics has published its first report, highlighting the benefits of the programme, as well as its concerns. This article provides an overview of the report findings, highlights CDCs’ efforts to tackle the backlog, and looks at the role of investment in MedTech in driving efficiency.
As part of its inquiry into CDCs, the APPG for Diagnostics held two roundtables in June and July 2023 to investigate the current state and future of the programme. Chair and former health minister, Maggie Throup MP, led discussion with the support of the joint secretariat, The Royal College of Pathologists and The Royal College of Radiologists. The report, CDCs Unveiled: Challenges &
Triumphs; An Inquiry into Community Diagnostic Centres shows that NHS England and the government have made strides in delivering the CDC programme, approving 174 CDC sites and opening one in each Integrated Care System (ICS).1
However, concerns persist about unequal
geographic distribution and funding constraints for future expansion. CDCs are multi-diagnostic facilities created
to bolster local diagnostic capacity; enhance patient access, experience and outcomes; alleviate hospital burden; and address regional disparities in healthcare. They provide a range of imaging, endoscopy, physiological science and pathology services. Initially proposed in Professor Sir Mike
Richards’ report, Diagnostics: Recovery and Renewal, CDCs stemmed from the need to separate emergency and elective diagnostics for improved efficiency.2
Sir Mike Richards’
report also advocated for investments in new service models, equipment, digitisation, and
workforce. These topics formed the core focus of the APPG for Diagnostics’ inquiry.
Progress NHS England (NHSE) representatives reported progress on two of the four CDC programme targets, as 127 CDCs are currently operational, ensuring the presence of at least one regular or large-sized CDC in each ICS in England. However, the pace of activity is slow, as only 6.5% of the total diagnostic activity reported on
The government’s announcement that they will speed up opening 160 CDCs by March 2024 is a good thing for capacity in the NHS, but it is important that this increased pace does not eclipse the ambition for the new centres to improve access for underserved communities. Charlotte Wickens, Policy Adviser at The King’s Fund.
by NHSE occurred in CDCs in September 2023, and around 5 million tests have been conducted since July 2021 against a target of 17 million by 2025.
While collaboration with the private sector has expanded service provision, persistent high demand and limited capacity present ongoing challenges, and the impact on patient outcomes remains unclear, emphasising the need for continuous evaluation and transparency. The inquiry recommended: l In addition to grouping CDC sites under providers, NHSE should also ensure that activity of individual sites is reported in the NHSE Monthly Diagnostics Data dataset so that local activity levels and progress to address waiting lists can be better scrutinised.
l NHSE should publicly release data – by patient pathway – showing the time taken between referral to the reporting of all tests, checks and scans undertaken within CDCs, to allow greater scrutiny of diagnostic pathways.
March 2024 I
www.clinicalservicesjournal.com 19
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