Part (b) for 10 marks required identification and explanation of four strengths within the hospital’s operating environment and a description of an improvement to provide best value for money for the hospital. Candidates performed well in the explanations of the strengths within Bluesberry with many scoring full marks.

The scenario contained a number of strengths and hence it was relatively straightforward for candidates to identify four. Where candidates failed to score well this was due to a failure to explain their strengths.

The requirement was to “identify and explain”, where a strength was identified then ½ mark was available, another 1 mark was available for a clear explanation of each strength. In addition a significant minority misread the question requirement and identified weaknesses rather than strengths.

The second part of this question required improvements to the strengths identified. Performance on this question was adequate. The majority of candidates attempted this part of the question, and were able to identify a few relevant points. However answers were often too vague or unrealistic.

A significant number of candidates presented their answers to part b(i) and (ii) in a columnar format and this seemed to help them to produce concise and relevant answers.