18.01.13
A&E departments ‘a victim of their own success’
The NHS Commissioning Board is to review the model of urgent and emergency services in England, and set out proposals for the best way of organising care.
It will have the complex task of balancing the evidence the need for specialisation and centralisation of some services with the political reality that the public often sees their local A&E department as a ‘front door’ to the NHS they can rely on, and are unwilling to countenance changes to it.
Chris Hopson, chief executive of the Foundation Trust Network said: “In many ways, A&E departments are victims of their own success. The public trusts them, and they provide access to medical care at any time, day and night. But complex issues about quality, safety and affordability sit behind what many see as the front door to their local hospital.
“As well as specialist emergency care there is an urgent need to tackle the issue of increasing demand for A&E services. The public often turns to A&E when another, non-emergency solution would offer safer, better care.”
NHS Confederation chief executive Mike Farrar added: “Local urgent and emergency care services are seeing demand rising, year-on-year. There is no getting away from the fact that the current structure of these services needs to change if we are to secure the best quality patient experience, improve clinical outcomes and, ultimately, save lives.
“There is still a vital need for local urgent care services, but the development of a world-class specialist emergency system capable of saving lives also requires having the right expertise, in the right place, at the right time. It is essential that patients, local communities, and their representatives – including local and national politicians – are properly engaged in the debate. No change is not an option.”
The team will work with CCGs to develop a national framework offer to help them ensure high-quality, consistent standards of care across the NHS. Emerging principles will be published for consultation in the spring.
The NHS Commissioning Board review will look into how seven day working can be introduced into emergency services, and set out different levels and definitions of emergency care.
Additionally it will consider how to balance care for serious complex emergencies and improve local access to services, as well as how to improve public understanding of the best place to go for care.
Medical director Sir Bruce Keogh, who will lead the review, said: “The NHS is there for all of us and should offer appropriate, effective and rapid care whenever and wherever it is needed.
“Treatments for many common conditions such as heart attacks and strokes have evolved considerably over the last decade and are now best treated in specialist centres. Yet we know people want their A&E nearby.
“This makes me think we need to review the increasingly complex and fragmented system of urgent and emergency care, so that sick, anxious and often frightened people can get what they need when they need it.”
Tell us what you think – have your say below, or email us directly at [email protected]