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02/08/2005
Patients need more than healthcare choice, says Which?
The government’s policy of extending choice in healthcare is failing to understand what patients really want, a consumer watchdog has warned.
A report, part of Which?’s research into key areas affecting consumers, found that the public wanted good local healthcare services, flexible to the needs of those using them.
The report found that 85% of respondents wanted access to a good local GP, rather than a choice of GPs, while 89% rated a good local hospital as more important than a choice of hospitals.
Seventy-nine per cent of respondents also thought that patients should be able to choose a convenient appointment time.
The Which? report also claimed that people were unaware of the choices available and felt “ill-equipped” or lacked confidence to make choices about the clinical side of their treatment.
Which? said that a more sophisticated approach was needed to ensure that “increased choice does not create more problems than it solves.”
Frances Blunden, author of the report and principal policy adviser to Which?: “Increased patient choice is not the answer to all the problems of the NHS. It will not automatically improve standards or ensure that people get the sort of care they need, when they need it.
“The government is steaming ahead with choice without many of the requirements being in place that are needed to make choice work for consumers, both as individual patients and as a whole. Without these, choice may pose significant threats to the quality of care patients receive from the NHS, particularly those who are most vulnerable or who have complex health needs.
“Better information and support is needed; the regulatory framework for professionals and services must be adapted to the new healthcare environment and a more sophisticated approach in funding individual patient choices is vital. And not least patients should be given the sorts of choices they want to make.”
A Department of Health spokesperson told the BBC that patient choice would provide hospitals with the incentive to respond to patients’ needs and provide the services they require.
(KMcA/SP)
A report, part of Which?’s research into key areas affecting consumers, found that the public wanted good local healthcare services, flexible to the needs of those using them.
The report found that 85% of respondents wanted access to a good local GP, rather than a choice of GPs, while 89% rated a good local hospital as more important than a choice of hospitals.
Seventy-nine per cent of respondents also thought that patients should be able to choose a convenient appointment time.
The Which? report also claimed that people were unaware of the choices available and felt “ill-equipped” or lacked confidence to make choices about the clinical side of their treatment.
Which? said that a more sophisticated approach was needed to ensure that “increased choice does not create more problems than it solves.”
Frances Blunden, author of the report and principal policy adviser to Which?: “Increased patient choice is not the answer to all the problems of the NHS. It will not automatically improve standards or ensure that people get the sort of care they need, when they need it.
“The government is steaming ahead with choice without many of the requirements being in place that are needed to make choice work for consumers, both as individual patients and as a whole. Without these, choice may pose significant threats to the quality of care patients receive from the NHS, particularly those who are most vulnerable or who have complex health needs.
“Better information and support is needed; the regulatory framework for professionals and services must be adapted to the new healthcare environment and a more sophisticated approach in funding individual patient choices is vital. And not least patients should be given the sorts of choices they want to make.”
A Department of Health spokesperson told the BBC that patient choice would provide hospitals with the incentive to respond to patients’ needs and provide the services they require.
(KMcA/SP)
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15 October 2010
Extending Patient Choice 'Challenging'
Government plans to introduce wider choice and shared decision making within the NHS may be challenging to implement, says an expert on bmj.com today.
Extending Patient Choice 'Challenging'
Government plans to introduce wider choice and shared decision making within the NHS may be challenging to implement, says an expert on bmj.com today.
18 October 2010
NHS 'Choice & Information Revolution' On Way
Patients will have more choice and a louder voice under major proposals set out today by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley. The White Paper, 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS', highlights the Government's ambition to give people more control over their own care, from choice of GP to which consultant-led team they are treated by.
NHS 'Choice & Information Revolution' On Way
Patients will have more choice and a louder voice under major proposals set out today by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley. The White Paper, 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS', highlights the Government's ambition to give people more control over their own care, from choice of GP to which consultant-led team they are treated by.
19 January 2005
NAO delivers report on NHS choice target
The National Audit Office (NAO) has reported "significant risks" in struggling plans to meet targets to deliver a choice of four or five hosptials to NHS patients by the end of 2005.
NAO delivers report on NHS choice target
The National Audit Office (NAO) has reported "significant risks" in struggling plans to meet targets to deliver a choice of four or five hosptials to NHS patients by the end of 2005.
22 September 2008
Scottish Government Pledges Cap On Surgery Waiting Times
Scottish patients may soon have a legal guarantee that they will wait no longer than 12 weeks for surgery. The Scottish Government's Patient Rights Bill proposes a strict limit on how long they have to wait from their surgical referral to receiving their operation.
Scottish Government Pledges Cap On Surgery Waiting Times
Scottish patients may soon have a legal guarantee that they will wait no longer than 12 weeks for surgery. The Scottish Government's Patient Rights Bill proposes a strict limit on how long they have to wait from their surgical referral to receiving their operation.
20 July 2011
More Choice For NHS Patients Across The Country
NHS patients will have more freedom to choose where they go for their healthcare from April 2012, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced today.
More Choice For NHS Patients Across The Country
NHS patients will have more freedom to choose where they go for their healthcare from April 2012, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley announced today.
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