Monday, 30 June 2008

Darzai report is out.The question is will it work?

The much previewed Darzai review is out and there are no surprises in its recommendations.
Its biggest being the draft consitution that will give patients choice over the GP that they choose to see and the types of treatment available.Patients views on the quality of treatment that they recieve will effect the funding of the hospitals and GP's that they have seen and there is a right to request treatment in other European countries if faced with an "undue delay".

Responding for the opposition,Andrew Lansley claimed that ths was simply just another attempt at the failed "command and control" approach to the service.

Quality in the NHS depends on responding to patients needs. This will not be helped by, it will be impeded by top down policies and the command and control approach,....

The complete lack of vision in these proposals means that, sadly, the Government has missed its "once-in-a-generation opportunity" to enact the real reform that our NHS needs.


Nigel Hawkes writing on Timesonline says

Lord Darzi’s review sets quality of care first, and everything else a distant second. Almost all the detailed changes he proposes are designed to raise standards.
Doctors and hospitals will be measured by the quality of care they deliver, and rewarded accordingly. Patients will be asked their opinion, and other more specific outcome measures - such as how many patients die - will be used to determine just how good their care has really been.


For him though

At issue is whether the levers are strong enough to bring about change. The document assumes that quality improvement will have no victims. But better quality can only come about by chasing out bad: that means eliminating poor GPs, closing failing hospital services, or even entire hospitals. Otherwise there won’t be the money to reward the good.

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