Reid reduces targets for NHS
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《英国医生杂志》
London
The health secretary, John Reid, launched a consultation paper this week proposing 24 broad "quality objectives" for the NHS to replace the hundreds of standards, targets, and guidance rules currently in existence.
But contrary to media predictions, he did not announce an end to the star rating system for hospitals.
Explaining the move, he said: "We are now nearly half way through our 10 year NHS plan, and in four years' time the vast majority of our present targets will be reached, delivering real improvements to NHS patients.
"In four years' time the natural and beneficial consequence of a reformed NHS... will be the need for fewer targets. By then, because we are giving power to patients we will need fewer targets from the centre."
The consultation document proposes a set of "core standards" which every patient should expect, supported by "developmental" standards which set out what the NHS should aspire to, as extra investment becomes available.
It sets out 24 core standards and 10 developmental standards covering seven key areas: safety, clinical cost effectiveness, governance, patient focus, accessible and responsive care, healthcare environment and amenities, and public health.
Mr Reid's announcement came after the publication of a report by the Commission for Health Improvement (CHI), which said that in the future hospitals may not get one overall star rating, because such a system failed to reflect the complexity of health services.
The commentary from the commission said: "Given the newness of this approach , the shortage and paucity of data and the inherent complexity of health services, the methods used to calculate the star ratings must continue to be developed over the next few years—and it may well be at that point that it is no longer a single rating."
The star rating system has had its champions and its critics ever since it was first used to rate NHS hospitals in 2001. Dame Deidre Hine, chairwoman of the commission, which took over responsibility for the scheme last year, said that the scheme was far from perfect.
Supporters of the system say it is easy to understand and that evidence has shown that the system creates pressure for improvement. Critics say that a single rating can never adequately capture how well a complex service such as a health trust really works.(Zosia Kmietowicz)
The health secretary, John Reid, launched a consultation paper this week proposing 24 broad "quality objectives" for the NHS to replace the hundreds of standards, targets, and guidance rules currently in existence.
But contrary to media predictions, he did not announce an end to the star rating system for hospitals.
Explaining the move, he said: "We are now nearly half way through our 10 year NHS plan, and in four years' time the vast majority of our present targets will be reached, delivering real improvements to NHS patients.
"In four years' time the natural and beneficial consequence of a reformed NHS... will be the need for fewer targets. By then, because we are giving power to patients we will need fewer targets from the centre."
The consultation document proposes a set of "core standards" which every patient should expect, supported by "developmental" standards which set out what the NHS should aspire to, as extra investment becomes available.
It sets out 24 core standards and 10 developmental standards covering seven key areas: safety, clinical cost effectiveness, governance, patient focus, accessible and responsive care, healthcare environment and amenities, and public health.
Mr Reid's announcement came after the publication of a report by the Commission for Health Improvement (CHI), which said that in the future hospitals may not get one overall star rating, because such a system failed to reflect the complexity of health services.
The commentary from the commission said: "Given the newness of this approach , the shortage and paucity of data and the inherent complexity of health services, the methods used to calculate the star ratings must continue to be developed over the next few years—and it may well be at that point that it is no longer a single rating."
The star rating system has had its champions and its critics ever since it was first used to rate NHS hospitals in 2001. Dame Deidre Hine, chairwoman of the commission, which took over responsibility for the scheme last year, said that the scheme was far from perfect.
Supporters of the system say it is easy to understand and that evidence has shown that the system creates pressure for improvement. Critics say that a single rating can never adequately capture how well a complex service such as a health trust really works.(Zosia Kmietowicz)