Patients Association responds to the Select Committee report on GMC and NMC

27 Jul 2011 02:09 PM

Katherine Murphy, Chief Executive of the Patients Association said,

“We welcome the report by the Health Select Committee on the need for greater forthrightness amongst NHS staff. Patients cannot be expected to know whether they are receiving poor or potentially dangerous care. It must be up to professionals to report any concerns they have about the care being provided to patients around them. However, we are concerned that the report does not go far enough.

The Health Select Committee states that the obligation to report issues with the behaviour of other professionals is already part of the professional codes. Yet still, some professionals turn a blind eye to bad practice. The NMC and GMC must make absolutely clear to their members that this head-in-the-sand approach to the practices of their colleagues will not be tolerated. Patient safety is paramount and where staff notice that it is being threatened, whether by malpractice or mistake, they should be duty bound to report it. Those who do not report their concerns, should be held to account. However, we recognise that staff must have the confidence to speak up in the knowledge that they will not be subject to reprisals. Both senior NHS management and the regulators have a role to play in this. They must ensure that they foster an environment of openness and transparency, enabling staff to report their concerns.”