18.06.14
NHS whistle-blowing reports almost double to CQC
The number of whistle-blowers reporting concerns to the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC’s) helpline has almost doubled in the last year, the Commons Health Committee has been told.
David Behan CBE, the chief executive of the regulator, stated that more and more people were feeling comfortable in “coming forward” and reporting concerns about bad hospital care and problems in the NHS.
The number of concerns registered with the Commission's whistle-blower helpline has almost doubled in the past year (2014-15) with 15,073 problems raised. Last year this totalled 9,492 whistle-blowers were recorded, and 7,800 the year before.
Behan said: “Once they come to our helplines, once we have triaged them, they are not all whistle-blowers – I wouldn’t want to give you the impression that there are 9,000 whistle-blower cases last year, but there are 9,000 calls to the dedicated helpline that we have got that people can respond to.
“They’ll come in either by telephone call, email or letter – but the important thing about that number is we then track those and we have been criticised historically for not tracking them.”
He added that the system has been tightened up, and he stated that the CQC is determined to create a “culture of openness”. The helpline also takes cases from the Patients Association, Carers Association and Mind as part of its tell us about your care campaign. As of next month, it will also take them from Action on Medical Accidents.
During yesterday’s Health Committee hearing, Sir Mike Richards, the CQC's chief inspector of hospitals said “every single” whistleblowing case would be investigated, and that the CQC takes the reports seriously every time.
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