Privatisation could be Dangerous for Healthcare
- 06 Mar
Chairman of the Academy of Royal Medical Colleges has written to the health minister to express concern about the affect privatisation will have on health services.
He says that the competition created by splitting up NHS services to private companies could cause dangerous fragmentation.
The House of Lords will be debating new rules for the Health and Social Care Act for the role that private firms will have today.
The changes are likely to give more power to individuals such as doctors, nurses and clinicians, but campaigners believe it should be MPs who make these decisions, not individuals.
Prof Terence Stephenson has said in a letter to Lord Howe that he believes this move will mean services from the NHS are not joined together.
The complications from this could be a danger to patients, in particular those patients with serious health conditions who require multiple services from the NHS, and he has requested an urgent meeting to discuss this.
While competition between NHS and private providers already exists in areas such as physiotherapy, hearing tests and dermatology, the new rules mean it could be expanded to many other areas of care.
The private sector already provides some care for NHS patients. Under Labour it was used to provide extra capacity for non urgent operations, allowing patients faster access and shorter waiting times.
Prof Stephenson said he was concerned that healthcare services would be disrupted:
Children and adults with complex serious diseases need a joined-up service. We're very keen that that shouldn't be just like buying a mobile phone.
When you are dealing with very complex things, like transferring patients with complex heart surgery from one part of the country to the other, they need post-operative care and rehabilitation. That all has to be joined up.
If you have a private provider just offering to do one bit of that, we're very worried that the service won't be joined up, that medical records won't be open to everyone and there won't be joint accountability.A Department of Health (DH) spokesperson said they were working to address the concerns:
The regulations will make sure that doctors and nurses can decide when and where to use competition so they can improve services for patients.
However, we do recognise that concerns have been raised about the way in which the regulations could be understood and we want to do everything we can to address these issues and provide clarity for all concerned.
Related articles
- 10 Aug
New social enterprise to help adults with vulnerabilities
Aspire Community Benefit Society is taking over the council’s Learning Disability Service for a five year contract, reports the Yorkshire Evening Post.This new model will see the Learning...
- 30 Jul
New app hopes to bring smarter housing for social landlords
The ZONR app combines the latest intelligent sensor technology, smart data transmission and decision engine analytics to centrally monitor and support heating systems across social landlord’s...
- 05 May
New model of care homes in Wakefield to go ahead
WDH's vision was being able to help people live longer, healthier lives and see support by co-ordinated services delivered as close to their homes as possible under the banner of ‘Connecting Care',...
- 29 Dec
App to support young people with autism with social interactions
This new app launched by Samsung aims to help treat the inability to make eye contact. The app, called Look at Me, has been developed with Seoul National University Bundang Hospital and Yonsei...
- 27 Oct
3D maps could help people with visual impairments navigate cities
The official mapping body for Japan GSI have already developed paper maps for those with visual impairments using embossed surfaces to mark out roads, and is now planning a programme which will do...
- 21 Oct
A paralysed man has been able to walk again following cell transplant
Darek Fidyka, who was paralysed from the chest down following a knife attack in 2010, is now able to walk using a frame, reports the BBC. The treatment is a world first and was carried out by...
- 08 Jul
Breakthrough blood test for Alzheimer's cure
An international collaboration led by scientists from King's College London and Proteome Sciences has published a study identifying a set of ten proteins in the blood. This test will then predict the...
- 04 Jul
Trials for Alzheimer's disease is declining
US scientists have said there is an urgent need to increase the number of potential therapies being investigated. They say that only one new medicine has been approved since 2004, reports the BBC.The...
- 02 May
Study into the possibility of delaying the onset of dementia
One third of a million adults in the UK are taking part in a trial, funded by the Medical Research Council to try to predict what factors increases the risk of a person developing dementia.Each of...
- 10 Mar
Scientists believe a blood test could detect the early signs of Alzheimer's
Researchers have found that changes in the blood may signify Alzheimer's disease in its earliest stages. The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, has identified ten molecules in blood...
Responding to the DWP Consultation: Housing Benefit Reform - Supported Housing "I thought this briefing was very good and very useful. The presentation was clear, well argued and I always find Michael gives me food for thought even if I don't agree with everything he says. I really like the way he facilitates a discussion in the room and I learn as much from other participants as I do from the presenter which is always good. Right length, right tone." R.P. - Richmond Fellowship
