Latest news with #NHSConfederation
Sky News
26 minutes ago
- Health
- Sky News
Hundreds of NHS quangos to be axed - as plans unveiled for health funding to be linked to patient feedback
NHS funding could be linked to patient feedback under new plans, with poorly performing services that "don't listen" penalised with less money. As part of the "10 Year Health Plan" to be unveiled next week, a new scheme will be trialled that will see patients asked to rate the service they received - and if they feel it should get a funding boost or not. It will be introduced first for services that have a track record of very poor performance and where there is evidence of patients "not being listened to", the government said. This will create a "powerful incentive for services to listen to feedback and improve patients' experience", it added. Sky News understands that it will not mean bonuses or pay increases for the best performing staff. NHS payment mechanisms will also be reformed to reward services that keep patients out of hospital as part of a new 'Year of Care Payments' initiative and the government's wider plan for change. 2:04 Speaking to The Times, chief executive of the NHS Confederation Matthew Taylor expressed concerns about the trial. He told the newspaper: "Patient experience is determined by far more than their individual interaction with the clinician and so, unless this is very carefully designed and evaluated, there is a risk that providers could be penalised for more systemic issues, such as constraints around staffing or estates, that are beyond their immediate control to fix." He said that NHS leaders would be keen to "understand more about the proposal", because elements were "concerning". Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: "We will reward great patient care, so patient experience and clinical excellence are met with extra cash. These reforms are key to keeping people healthy and out of hospital, and to making the NHS sustainable for the long-term as part of the Plan for Change." In the raft of announcements in the 10 Year Health Plan, the government has said 201 bodies responsible for overseeing and running parts of the NHS in England - known as quangos - will be scrapped. These include Healthwatch England, set up in 2012 to speak out on behalf of NHS and social care patients, the National Guardian's Office, created in 2015 to support NHS whistleblowers, and the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). Royal College of Nursing General Secretary chief executive Professor Nicola Ranger described the move as "so unsafe for patients right now". "Today, in hospitals across the NHS, we know one nurse can be left caring for 10, 15 or more patients at a time. It's not safe. It's not effective. And it's not acceptable. "For these proposed changes to be effective government must take ownership of the real issue, the staffing crisis on our wards, and not just shuffle people into new roles. Protecting patients has to be the priority and not just a drive for efficiency." Elsewhere, the new head of NHS England Sir Jim Mackey said key parts of the NHS appear "built to keep the public away because it's an inconvenience". "We've made it really hard, and we've probably all been on the end of it," he told the Daily Telegraph.
The Guardian
35 minutes ago
- Health
- The Guardian
NHS hospital funding could be tied to patient satisfaction under government plans
Money for hospitals could be linked to patient ratings, it has been reported, as one of the health bosses tasked with implementing the government's 10-year plan for the NHS warns it faces an existential threat unless it reconnects with the public. The measure, under which services could lose a proportion of their funding if patients were unhappy, is reportedly part of a package due to be announced by the prime minister next week. But clinicians have expressed concern that the proposal risks performing surgery on the NHS with a blunt instrument, rather than the scalpel required. According to the Times, patients would be contacted shortly after their treatment. If they reported themselves dissatisfied, about 10% of 'standard payment rates' would be diverted to a local 'improvement fund'. The report suggested it could first be implemented in areas of the service with a poor record of care. Maternity services are said to be among the first to test the system after the health secretary, Wes Streeting, launched a national investigation into NHS maternity services in England, saying 'maternity units are failing, hospitals are failing, trusts are failing, regulators are failing'. But Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: 'None of our members have raised this idea with us as a way of improving care and, to our knowledge, no other healthcare system internationally adopts this model currently. 'Patient experience is determined by far more than their individual interaction with the clinician and so, unless this is very carefully designed and evaluated, there is a risk that providers could be penalised for more systemic issues.' It came as the new head of NHS England said the service has 'built mechanisms to keep the public away'. Sir Jim Mackey told the Telegraph: 'We've made it really hard, and we've probably all been on the end of it. You've got a relative in hospital, so you're ringing a number on a ward that no one ever answers. The ward clerk only works nine to five, or they're busy doing other stuff; the GP practice scrambles every morning. 'It feels like we've built mechanisms to keep the public away because it's an inconvenience.' Mackey warned that the disconnect between NHS services and the public could result in the loss of the public health service altogether. 'The big worry is: if we don't grab that, and we don't deal with it with pace, we'll lose the population. If we lose the population, we've lost the NHS. For me, it's straightforward: The two things are completely dependent on each other.' Streeting said on Wednesday that the government's 10-year plan would also aim to 'address one of the starkest health inequalities', which he claims is the unequal access to information and choice when it comes to healthcare. Mackey said: 'We've got to somehow reorientate it; think about how do we find people who need us, how do we stop thinking 'it's going to be a pain in the arse if you turn up because I'm quite busy' and instead think about how do we find out what you need and get it sorted.'
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Plans unveiled for NHS funding to be linked to patient feedback
NHS funding could be linked to patient feedback under new plans, with poorly performing services that "don't listen" penalised with less money. As part of the "10 Year Health Plan" to be unveiled next week, a new scheme will be trialled that will see patients asked to rate the service they received - and if they feel it should get a funding boost or not. It will be introduced first for services that have a track record of very poor performance and where there is evidence of patients "not being listened to", the government said. This will create a "powerful incentive for services to listen to feedback and improve patients' experience", it added. Sky News understands that it will not mean bonuses or pay increases for the best performing staff. NHS payment mechanisms will also be reformed to reward services that keep patients out of hospital as part of a new 'Year of Care Payments' initiative and the government's wider plan for change. Speaking to The Times, chief executive of the NHS Confederation Matthew Taylor expressed concerns about the trial. He told the newspaper: "Patient experience is determined by far more than their individual interaction with the clinician and so, unless this is very carefully designed and evaluated, there is a risk that providers could be penalised for more systemic issues, such as constraints around staffing or estates, that are beyond their immediate control to fix." He said that NHS leaders would be keen to "understand more about the proposal", because elements were "concerning". Read more from Sky News Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: "We will reward great patient care, so patient experience and clinical excellence are met with extra cash. These reforms are key to keeping people healthy and out of hospital, and to making the NHS sustainable for the long-term as part of the Plan for Change." In the raft of announcements in the 10 Year Health Plan, the government has said 201 bodies responsible for overseeing and running parts of the NHS in England will be scrapped. These include Healthwatch England, set up in 2012 to speak out on behalf of NHS and social care patients, the National Guardian's Office, created in 2015 to support NHS whistleblowers, and the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). Elsewhere, the new head of NHS England Sir Jim Mackey said key parts of the NHS appear "built to keep the public away because it's an inconvenience". "We've made it really hard, and we've probably all been on the end of it," he told the Daily Telegraph. "The ward clerk only works nine to five, or they're busy doing other stuff; the GP practice scrambles every morning."
Sky News
an hour ago
- Health
- Sky News
Plans unveiled for NHS funding to be linked to patient feedback
NHS funding could be linked to patient feedback under new plans, with poorly performing services that "don't listen" penalised with less money. As part of the "10 Year Health Plan" to be unveiled next week, a new scheme will be trialled that will see patients asked to rate the service they received - and if they feel it should get a funding boost or not. It will be introduced first for services that have a track record of very poor performance and where there is evidence of patients "not being listened to", the government said. This will create a "powerful incentive for services to listen to feedback and improve patients' experience", it added. Sky News understands that it will not mean bonuses or pay increases for the best performing staff. NHS payment mechanisms will also be reformed to reward services that keep patients out of hospital as part of a new 'Year of Care Payments' initiative and the government's wider plan for change. 2:04 Speaking to The Times, chief executive of the NHS Confederation Matthew Taylor expressed concerns about the trial. He told the newspaper: "Patient experience is determined by far more than their individual interaction with the clinician and so, unless this is very carefully designed and evaluated, there is a risk that providers could be penalised for more systemic issues, such as constraints around staffing or estates, that are beyond their immediate control to fix." He said that NHS leaders would be keen to "understand more about the proposal", because elements were "concerning". Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: "We will reward great patient care, so patient experience and clinical excellence are met with extra cash. These reforms are key to keeping people healthy and out of hospital, and to making the NHS sustainable for the long-term as part of the Plan for Change." In the raft of announcements in the 10 Year Health Plan, the government has said 201 bodies responsible for overseeing and running parts of the NHS in England will be scrapped. These include Healthwatch England, set up in 2012 to speak out on behalf of NHS and social care patients, the National Guardian's Office, created in 2015 to support NHS whistleblowers, and the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). Elsewhere, the new head of NHS England Sir Jim Mackey said key parts of the NHS appear "built to keep the public away because it's an inconvenience". "We've made it really hard, and we've probably all been on the end of it," he told the Daily Telegraph.
Daily Mail
13 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Funding for hospitals will be linked to patient feedback ratings in Starmer's 10-year NHS overhau
Patients' ratings of hospitals will be directly to the funding they receive from the government, under Prime Minister Keir Starmer 's plans to overhaul the NHS. The Labour leader is set to unveil a 10-year plan for the NHS next week, in which he is expected to make the bold move. Starmer is also set to link doctors' and nurses' pay to their success in bringing down waiting lists, as part of the massive revamp of the UK's health service. Under the proposed plans, NHS patients would be contacted several weeks after receiving treatment and asked if it was good enough for the hospital to get paid in full. If the patient says no, roughly 10% of 'standard payment rates' are set to be diverted to a local 'improvement fund.' Pilot programmes of the scheme are set to be implemented within the next year at hospitals with a record of poor performance, the Times reports. But senior health bosses are extremely concerned by the plans. Matthew Taylor, the chief of the NHS confederation, told the newspaper: 'None of our members have raised this idea with us as a way of improving care and, to our knowledge, no other healthcare system internationally adopts this model currently. He added: 'Patient experience is determined by far more than their individual interaction with the clinician and so, unless this is very carefully designed and evaluated, there is a risk that providers could be penalised for more systemic issues.' Health secretary Wes Streeting said that the public's frustration with the NHS was rooted in its failure to listen to patients, along with a series of scandals that have rocked the service to its core. He said: 'We will reward great patient care, so patient experience and clinical excellence are met with extra cash.' 'These reforms are key to keeping people healthy and out of hospital, and to making the NHS sustainable', he added. It comes as the new head of the NHS, Sir Jim Mackey, claimed that the health service sees patients as an 'inconvenience' and has 'build mechanisms to keep them away.' In his first interview since taking the role, Mackey chastised the NHS for being too often 'deaf' to criticism and having put in place far too many 'fossilised' ways of working that need to be updated for the 21st century. Maternity wards are expected to be among the first parts of UK hospitals to be placed under the microscope, after Streeting launched a full review into services across the country, saying that women had been 'ignored, gaslit [and] lied to' by the NHS. The latest proposals come following Streeting's plans to give health bosses bonuses of 10% of their salary if they cut waiting times, while those who fail to solve the problem are set to be refused pay rises.
