NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) has announced the acquisition of McKesson Shared Services for an undisclosed sum.

NHS SBS is a 50/50 joint venture between the Department of Health and French service provider Sopra Steria. McKesson Shared Services is the outsourced HR, Payroll and Pensions arm of McKesson UK.

The NHS claims that this acquisition will enable NHS SBS to extend its employment services to support the NHS centrally.

David Morris, NHS SBS managing director said: “This strategic acquisition complements our existing service provision particularly as MSS mirrors our own approach of working closely in partnership with clients to help them achieve greater efficiency rather than the function being merely a commodity transaction.

“In the face of immense budgetary pressures and tight resources, it is vital that NHS back office functions such as recovering overpayments, processing the monthly payroll run or processing expenses payments are carried out smoothly and accurately.

“We have already proven our capabilities in this respect and now with this acquisition we can broaden the support we provide across the NHS that can ultimately free-up more funds and resource for frontline care.”

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