The Conservative’s health green paper
There’s a growing acceptance that the Conservatives will win at the polls next time so what are David Cameron’s plans for the NHS? This week he set out his reform plans for the NHS with the launch of a green paper, “Delivering some of the best health in Europe”. It’s all about health outcomes. Apparently by getting Britain’s standards up to the international average, 38,000 lives could be saved.
The green paper proposals include:
- No structural reorganisation but ‘steady, purposeful change’
- Foundation hospitals will stay, and be improved
- Commissioning by GPs will stay, with stronger control over budgets for GPs
- Patient choice will be essential
- More patient-doctor accountability, less influence from the DoH
- More emphasis on outcomes, less process-driven targets
This is another step towards a consumer-centred health economy….one where the best providers should flourish and others will fade by the wayside. Mr Cameron confirms this in the closing remarks of his speech to the Royal College of Surgeons…
“It goes without saying that by making outcome information readily available, we will introduce an element of healthy competition between different care providers. They’ll be able to see what works and what doesn’t - what different practices are doing to achieve results and how they can learn from them. This isn’t about creating a cut-throat business environment. It’s about understanding that everyone who works in the NHS is rightly proud of where they work and will do everything and anything to provide the best possible care.”
