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10/04/2003
'Child-friendly' NHS services to receive £70m
A £70 million investment in neonatal intensive care facilities and new national standards to deliver more "child-friendly" services in hospitals have been launched today by Health Secretary Alan Milburn.
The new standards cover the design and delivery of hospital services for children, the safety and quality of care and could help to ensure children are cared for in hospital settings which adequately reflect the needs of their own age-group.
The new standards mean NHS hospitals should consider introducing education support so children do not fall behind in their schooling, dedicated children's units in A&E departments, specialist training for staff dealing with children and play specialists who help children cope with the distress of being in hospital.
The £70 million will provide over the next three years up to 75 new cots and other specialist equipment designed for babies weighing less than 1500 grams. In addition, the report of an inquiry into caring for newborn and premature babies, published today for consultation, estimates that 200-300 lives could be saved each year by restructuring services to concentrate the most modern equipment and the most highly skilled staff in a network of specialist centres.
Speaking on a visit to children's facilities at Homerton Hospital, East London, Mr Milburn said: "No-one wants their child to have to go into hospital, but if they do it is important their stay is safe, comfortable and that the care they receive is of the highest standard. Children are not mini-adults. They have particular needs which hospitals should address."
However, Mr Milburn warned that the standards "cannot be delivered overnight", and could only be delivered in a "sustained period of expansion".
Also following recommendations made in the Kennedy Inquiry, hospitals will now be expected to appoint a 'children's champion' at board level to ensure that the standards are met.
In addition to that, recommendations by the Laming Inquiry are set to be introduced that no child should be discharged from hospital without a care plan.
(GMcG)
The new standards cover the design and delivery of hospital services for children, the safety and quality of care and could help to ensure children are cared for in hospital settings which adequately reflect the needs of their own age-group.
The new standards mean NHS hospitals should consider introducing education support so children do not fall behind in their schooling, dedicated children's units in A&E departments, specialist training for staff dealing with children and play specialists who help children cope with the distress of being in hospital.
The £70 million will provide over the next three years up to 75 new cots and other specialist equipment designed for babies weighing less than 1500 grams. In addition, the report of an inquiry into caring for newborn and premature babies, published today for consultation, estimates that 200-300 lives could be saved each year by restructuring services to concentrate the most modern equipment and the most highly skilled staff in a network of specialist centres.
Speaking on a visit to children's facilities at Homerton Hospital, East London, Mr Milburn said: "No-one wants their child to have to go into hospital, but if they do it is important their stay is safe, comfortable and that the care they receive is of the highest standard. Children are not mini-adults. They have particular needs which hospitals should address."
However, Mr Milburn warned that the standards "cannot be delivered overnight", and could only be delivered in a "sustained period of expansion".
Also following recommendations made in the Kennedy Inquiry, hospitals will now be expected to appoint a 'children's champion' at board level to ensure that the standards are met.
In addition to that, recommendations by the Laming Inquiry are set to be introduced that no child should be discharged from hospital without a care plan.
(GMcG)
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