Putting patients first
Posted: April 3, 2013
Posted in: Medical Negligence
The Government has announced that the quality of patient care will be put at the heart of the NHS in an overhaul of the health and care system in response to the Francis Inquiry.
Hospitals and care homes will be encouraged to strive to be the best, the basic values of dignity and respect will be central to care training and, if things go wrong, patients and their families will be told about it.
Radical new measures will be introduced to achieve this including Ofsted-style ratings for hospitals and care homes, a statutory duty of candour for organisations which provide care and are registered with the Care Quality Commission, and a pilot programme which will see nurses working for up to a year as a healthcare assistant as a prerequisite for receiving funding for their degree.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said:
“I can pledge that every patient will be treated in a hospital judged on the quality of its care and the experience of its patients. They will be cared for in a place with a culture of zero harm, by highly trained staff with the right values and skills. And if something should go wrong, then those mistakes will be admitted, the patient told about them and steps taken to rectify them with proper accountability.”
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