21.02.13
Audit Scotland questions health boards’ patient records
Waiting list information in Scotland is “limited”, Audit Scotland has found in its new report.
An increase in the proportion of patients marked as “socially unavailable” to attend appointments could increase concerns that health board are manipulating figures to meet Government targets.
The official waiting time from first appointment to treatment is now a maximum of 18 weeks. In 2008 the proportion of patients who were recorded as socially unavailable was 11%, which rose to over 30% in 2011. Towards the end of 2011, when the manipulation at NHS Lothian emerged, the proportion reduced again.
The report states health boards have “inadequate controls and audit trails” concerning the reasons recorded for patients not attending appointments.
Audit Scotland found a small number of instances where unavailability codes were used inappropriately. Due to the poor information, it was not possible to determine whether these were due to human error, inconsistent interpretation of guidance, or deliberate manipulation.
Caroline Gardner, Auditor General for Scotland, said: “NHS boards and the Scottish government must improve the monitoring of boards’ use of waiting list codes if they are to retain public trust and assure patients they are being treated fairly.”
Dr Brian Keighley, the BMA’s chairman in Scotland, said the systems monitoring waiting times are “inadequate and have been open to manipulation”.
“This is not in the best interests of the patient, and largely the result of the drive for political point scoring in our NHS,” he added.
Health minister Alex Neil said most of the recommendations in the report were already being implemented and added: “Let us not forget the most important thing – that waiting times are amongst their lowest ever levels in Scotland and they continue to improve.”
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