Memorandum by the Independent Healthcare
Association (PS13)
CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
INTRODUCTION
About the independent sector
About the IHA
IHA members
PROGRESSING PARTNERSHIP
The value of partnership
Partnerships in mental health
Partnerships in community care
Concordat Partnerships
Towards best value
QUALITY AND
WORKFORCE ISSUES
Quality and safety
Workforce partnerships
CONCLUSION
1. EXECUTIVE
SUMMARY
1. The Independent Healthcare Association
(IHA) welcomes the Health Select Committee's inquiry into the
Concordat, the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Public Private
Partnerships (PPPs). The IHA also welcomes and supports government
indications that the independent sector has a greater role to
play in the NHS.
2. The independent health and social care
sector is today a vital part of the nation's health and social
care services. The independent health and social care sector today
provides 443,000 beds and employs over 750,000 people. Overall,
the IHA estimates that the capital invested in the UK's independent
health and social care sector is in excess of £15 billion.
3. Partnerships between the NHS, local authorities
and the independent sector already benefit hundreds of thousands
of people each year.
— Between 1 January and 31 August 2001,
more than 65,000 NHS patients have been treated in independent
hospitals, at no personal cost to themselves.
— By the end of 2001 the IHA estimates
that independent acute hospitals will have treated 100,000 NHS
patients under the Concordat signed in autumn 2000.
— Independent providers offer around
a quarter of the country's combined acute mental health treatment
plus 55 per cent of NHS medium secure provision.
— Independent nursing and residential
care homes provide more than 430,000 beds, offering a wide range
of high quality services to local authority and NHS purchasers.
4. The levels of partnership in acute care,
under the terms of the Concordat, represent a three-to-four fold
increase over previous levels of partnership working and stand
as a tribute to the government's far-sightedness.
5. An analysis of the Concordat's impact
in one health authority was published recently in the Health
Service Journal. Written by a team from East Surrey Health
Authority the research shows how the authority used seven independent
hospitals over 11 weeks to remove 1,000 patients from NHS waiting
lists. Importantly, the study concluded that:
"Prices were comparable to, and sometimes
cheaper than the NHS. The average cost was £1,120 per treatment.
Patient satisfaction seemed high".[12]
6. Given the achievements, it is now realistic
to expect each independent hospital to treat 1,000 NHS patients
a year—or four every weekday. With more than 200 hospitals
in the sector, the overall total for 2002 could exceed 200,000
people.
7. In order to progress partnerships the
IHA is also actively campaigning for adequate funding, particularly
for independent nursing and residential care homes. Many local
authorities expect on average residential care and nursing homes
to provide care for approximately £1.42 and £2.05 per
hour respectively. Given this situation, the IHA and its members
continue to try and persuade local authorities of the importance
of best value care home services and to encourage their commitment
with more appropriate and sustainable funding levels.
8. To use independent mental health services
and acute hospitals for example but not appropriately fund care
homes is unsustainable. Using one without the other will achieve
very little. For NHS public private partnerships to work, all
the nation's health and social care resources have to work together
in a sustainable and unified manner.
9. The IHA and its members are committed
to the highest possible standards of care for all patients. For
example, after more than 10 years of campaigning for better government
regulation, the IHA welcomes the new National Care Standards Commission
(NCSC) setting minimum care standards for independent hospitals.
10. The independent sector also has the
ability and willingness to work in partnership with the NHS to
train the staff needed for the nation's health and social care
services. For example, in the year ending 31 March 2001, the independent
sector provided 1,380 clinical placements for student nurses,
post-basic registered nurses and allied health professionals.
11. Probably the greatest myth about the
independent sector is that it somehow "steals" nurses
away from the NHS. Over recent years, less than 4 per cent of
nurses who left the NHS moved to work in the independent sector.
The vast majority—more than 96 per cent—simply left
nursing altogether.
12. To ensure that the NHS Plan succeeds,
it is vital that the Concordat is built upon and that more is
achieved in 2002. When used to its full potential, the independent
health and social care sector is a significant resource which
is ready and willing to help the government achieve its policy
objectives and ease the pressures on the NHS.
2. INTRODUCTION
13. The Independent Healthcare Association
(IHA) welcomes the Health Select Committee's inquiry into the
Concordat, the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Public Private
Partnership (PPPs). The IHA hopes this inquiry will highlight
the successes of the recent health Concordat, For the Benefit
of Patients, and promote further public private partnerships
in health and social care.
About the independent sector
14. Every day the independent sector delivers
treatment and care to hundreds of thousands of people through
its hospitals, mental health services and nursing, residential,
domiciliary and extra care sheltered housing services. Importantly,
they often do this in partnership with the NHS and social services.
15. Overall, the independent health and
social care sector provides 443,000 beds and employs 750,000 people.
The sector delivers:
— 85 per cent of residential community
care;
— more than half of all medium secure
NHS mental health care;
— 20 per cent of all acute elective
surgery;
— 80 per cent of the nation's acquired
brain injury rehabilitation;
— more than 55 per cent of local authority
funded domiciliary care;
— over one million surgical procedures
a year; and
— more than four million out-patient
appointments a year.
For some types of service, such as medium secure
mental healthcare, the independent sector delivers a majority
of the NHS provision.
16. Today, there is a growing recognition
that the independent sector can make an important contribution
to the NHS because it is fully consistent with the egalitarian
principles upon which the service was founded. The widespread
popularity of public private partnerships in healthcare can be
seen in the recent MORI opinion survey Attitudes Towards Public/Private
Partnerships.[13]
The research pointed out that:
"Two-thirds of the public find the concept
of the NHS paying private hospitals to provide health services
for NHS patients acceptable".[14]
17. In reality, the independent sector is
deeply inclusive. It encompasses a wide range of providers including
a vast array of not-for-profit services run by charities, mutuals
and friendly societies, as well as commercial organisations.
18. More than 3.5 million trade unionists—over
50 per cent of the TUC's 6.8 million members—now enjoy the
benefits of private health cash and medical insurance schemes.[15]
Many independent sector not-for-profit organisations have formal
agreements with trade unions or have trade unionists in membership.
Some offer private medical, permanent health or critical illness
cover. Others offer private health cash plans that pay for services
including dentistry, ophthalmics, physiotherapy, chiropody, podiatry,
maternity services, allergy testing, hospital in-patient stays,
nursing home stays, hospital day case admissions, convalescence,
home help, mental health and psychiatric treatment, and even the
use of an ambulance.
More than 50 per cent of the TUC's 6.8 million
members—now enjoy the benefits of private health cash and
medical insurance schemes.
19. Today, independent sector organisations
such as the Benenden Hospital, Bristol Contributory Welfare Association,
Civil Service Healthcare Society, Communications Workers Friendly
Society, Hospital Savings Association, Medicash, Simplyhealth,
Wakefield Health Scheme, Westfield Contributory Health Scheme
collectively have millions of workers in membership—many
of whom are trade union members.
20. In the other European democracies, there
is a clear recognition that partnership working is good for public
sector services. In Belgium, two thirds of hospital beds are in
the independent sector. In Germany and Spain half the beds are
in the independent sector. In Austria, France, Greece and Italy,
one third of all hospital beds are in the independent sector.
And in Portugal and Switzerland independent hospitals provide
more than a quarter of all beds.
21. Today, it would require the equivalent
of three or four pence on the basic rate of income tax to simply
replace current private spending on independent healthcare services.
To fully replace the independent sector's entire contribution
would cost much more.
22. Overall, the IHA estimates that the
capital invested in the UK's independent health and social care
sector is in excess of £15 billion making it a vital part
of the nation's health and social care resource.
23. The IHA uses the term "independent
healthcare" to encompass all non-public healthcare provision.
None of the other terms have sufficient or acceptable scope. The
term "private" is inadequate to the task: NHS hospitals
provide considerable private healthcare through pay beds, and
some independent providers do not consider themselves to be "private
sector".
About the IHA
24. The Independent Healthcare Association
(IHA) is the leading association for the United Kingdom's independent
health and social care providers. Members include not-for-profit
services run by charities, mutuals and friendly societies, as
well as "for-profit" organisations—large and small.
These include:
— independent nursing, residential,
domiciliary and intermediate care providers;
— mental health hospitals;
— substance misuse units;
— pathology laboratories;
— and a host of other health and social
care companies.
25. The IHA was formed in 1949 with the
birth of the Association of independent Hospitals and Kindred
Organisations and has existed in its current form since 1987.
It is a registered charity (296103), incorporated under the Companies
Act (2082270), being a company limited by guarantee.
26. The IHA promotes the highest standards
in the independent sector and strives to influence policy debate
across health and social care. It maintains consultation with
government and other bodies on the provision of medical, nursing
and social care. It also analyses and disseminates information
to members, promotes knowledge of the independent sector to the
general public and encourages the right of individuals to choose
independent sector treatment and care.
IHA members
27. IHA members operate more than 80,000
beds and have a combined turnover of more than £4 billion
a year. There are three main groups of IHA membership: mental
health, community care and acute medical/surgical hospitals.
— IHA members offer 3,000 beds in mental
health and substance misuse units.
— IHA members provide more than 70,000
nursing and residential care home beds—out of a national
total of 430,000.
— IHA members include over 200 acute
medical/surgical hospitals with more than 10,000 beds.
— The IHA's acute group includes all
the main independent hospital operators and about 90 per cent
of all independent acute hospital provision.
— IHA members provide a full range
of elective hospital services from simple to complex procedures.
3. PROGRESSING
PARTNERSHIP
By the end of 2001, the IHA expects that independent
acute hospitals will have treated 100,000 NHS patients under the
Concordat signed in autumn 2000.
The value of partnership
28. The IHA welcomes government indications
that the independent sector has a greater role to play in the
nation's health and social care services and supports public private
partnerships.
29. There is no single solution to the health
and social care challenges facing the nation. Rising expectations,
new technology, skills shortages and an ageing population all
conspire to create unique sets of pressures and problems. Finding
answers requires teamwork between all of Britain's health and
social care services—NHS, local authority and independent.
30. The independent sector already provides
treatment and care for hundreds of thousands of people each year
through partnerships with the NHS and social services. For example,
by the end of 2001 we estimate that independent acute hospitals
will have treated 100,000 NHS patients under the Concordat signed
in autumn 2000.
31. However, to ensure that the NHS Plan
succeeds, it is important that the Concordat is now built upon
and that all independent treatment and care services are appropriately
used in order to bring maximum benefits to people across the UK.
32. To use independent mental health services
and acute hospitals, for example, but not appropriately fund independent
care homes (see page nine) is unsustainable. Using one without
the other will achieve very little. For NHS public private partnerships
to work, all the nation's health and social care resources have
to work together in a sustainable and unified manner.
Partnership in mental health
33. There is already one area of public
private partnership that stands out as a testimony to what can
be achieved. For years, NHS medium-secure mental healthcare was
inadequate. The services on offer were usually overstretched and
significantly under-resourced. They were dispiriting for those
requiring treatment, and for the professional delivering it.
34. In this context the NHS sought partnerships
with the independent sector. Today, the Mental health Act Commission
points out that independent providers deliver more than 55 per
cent of the NHS's medium secure provision.
— Independent providers of acute mental
health and substance misuse services offer more than 70 facilities
in the UK, providing more than 3,000 beds.
— They offer around a quarter of the
country's combined acute mental health treatment plus, as already
mentioned, 55 per cent of NHS medium secure provision.
— They now provide 31 specialist units
for treating eating disorders.
— The sector provides more than 80
per cent of the country's acquired brain injury rehabilitation.
35. Independent mental health services are
provided in a diverse range of not-for-profit and commercial settings
and their contribution is significant and growing. The sector
also makes an important contribution to, for example, maternal
mental illness treatment and care for the elderly mentally ill.
36. Independent mental health services are
examples of partnership working that has brought immense benefits
to NHS patients and is a beacon for the future.
Partnership in community care
37. Partnership between NHS, local authorities
and the independent sector are already an integral part of the
nation's wider health and social care system for older people.
38. Independent nursing and residential
care homes already provide more than 430,000 beds, complementing
the 356,000 beds provided by the NHS and local authorities. Mainly
used by older people who require longer-term care, the sector
provides more than 150 million nights of care a year. Independent
nursing and residential care homes are an important part of virtually
every community in the land, employing more than 660,000 people.
39. The IHA is determined to build on the
success of this partnership. That is why the IHA and its members
continue to persuade local authorities of the importance of best
value care home services, and to encourage their commitment to
more appropriate and sustainable funding levels.
40. Local authorities currently expect independent
residential and nursing homes to provide care for, on average,
around £1.42 and £2.05 per hour respectively. Whereas
local authority residential care homes are paid 48 per cent more
for comparable provision.
41. In recent years local authority fee
increases have failed to keep up with even basic inflationary
pressures, with the result that hundreds of care homes have closed.
In the last three years, more than 50,000 places have been lost.
42. The effects of this will have an impact
across the nation's health and social care services. For example,
Department of health statistics show that between October-December
2000 there were 5,801 patients in England over the age of 75 who
were ready for discharge but were nonetheless still occupying
an NHS acute hospital bed.[16]
Reducing further the number of nursing and residential care home
beds can only make the situation worse.
43. Partnership in community care have achieved
much and benefited literally millions of older people. But they
can only be progressed in the context of adequate and sustainable
funding.
Concordat partnerships
44. Nowhere are the strengthening ties between
the NHS and the independent sector clearer than in recent Concordat
signed between the government and the IHA, For the Benefit
of Patients. As the Secretary of State for Health, Rt Hon
Alan Milburn MP, makes clear:
"If there are, for example, in private sector
hospitals, operating theatres that are standing idle or hospital
beds that aren't being used, it seems sensible to take advantage
of them for NHS patients".[17]
45. A model of partnership working, the
Concordat puts patients above ideological and organisational barriers.
"There should be no organisational or ideological
barriers to the delivery of high quality healthcare free at the
point of delivery".[18]
46. It also promotes local co-operation
in the planning and managing of services.
"As well as helping to manage winter pressures
there should be a move towards a more collaborative and proactive
approach to long term planning."[19]
Elective care
47. Since signing the Concordat at the end
of October 2000, more than 80,000 NHS patients have been treated
in independent acute medical/surgical hospitals—at no personal
financial cost to themselves.
48. Between 1 January and 31 August of this
year alone, more than 65,000 NHS patients have been treated in
independent hospitals. And it is now hoped that they will see
more than 90,000 NHS patients over the course of 2001. Overall,
these figures represent a three to four fold increase over previous
levels of partnership working and stand as a tribute to the government's
farsightedness.
49. It is particularly heartening to note
that the Concordat benefited as many NHS patients in July and
August of this year as at the height of last winter in December
and January. This is strong evidence underpinning the Concordat's
intention to signal:
"a commitment towards planning the use of
private and voluntary health care providers, not only at times
of pressure but also on a more proactive longer term basis . .
."[20]
50. Specialist equipment in the independent
sector could be made more widely available through partnerships
with the NHS. Independent hospitals can offer services including:
MRI, CAT scan, spiral CT, DSA suite, cardiac catheterisation labs,
echocardiography, ultrasound, nuclear medicine facilities with
Gamma cameras, nuclear medicine scanners, digital X-ray, video
endoscopy, rotabliation, radio frequency ablation, linear accelerators,
computerised vestibular system for audiology, and tele-radiology
link.
51. The IHA recently completed an exercise
to map the capacity of in-house pathology services in the independent
sector. The NHS Plan highlights the importance of pathology services
underpinning the partnership between the NHS and the independent
sector. The mapping exercise indicated that 27 per cent of in-house
independent sector laboratories were undertaking NHS waiting list
initiatives.
52. Given the achievements, it is now realistic
to expect each independent hospital to treat 1,000 NHS patients
a year—or four every weekday. With more than 200 hospitals
in the sector, the overall total for 2002 could exceed 200,000
people.
53. This is still a small number when compared
to the volume of NHS treatments conducted in each year. As such,
it is important to recognise that the independent sector is large
enough to make a real difference to the lives of many people but
in no way threatens the dominance of the NHS.
Critical care
54. For too many years, independent sector
critical care—intensive and high dependency—beds were
under-utilised by the NHS.
55. Today, the situation has improved and
independent sector step down and elective critical care beds are
more readily used by NHS hospitals on a planned basis. But there
is still more to be done to make sure that all these resources
are being used to benefit as many patients as possible.
56. Guidance on Comprehensive Critical
Care in Independent Sector Acute Hospitals has been prepared
by IHA to support the ongoing provision of critical care services
within the independent health care sector.[21]
The document supports the excellent standards of service offered
in a variety of locations and provides a common framework linkage
to secure linkage with local NHS trust networks. By stipulating
the expectations of critical care services in the independent
sector, the guidance will promote a firm basis for further development
of critical care services in conjunction with the NHS, as supported
by the Concordat.
Intermediate care
57. Another area covered by the Concordat
is intermediate care. To date, there are some good examples of
joint working up and down the country but it will take time for
this policy to develop.
58. While the overall picture still remains
patchy, the IHA has worked closely with colleagues in the DoH
and both sides recognise the need to disseminate good practice.
As such, the IHA is currently working with officials to find more
innovative ways forward.
59. Clearly the process will be greatly
aided when the ring-fenced new monies enter the system in 2002,
2003 and 2004. The IHA remains optimistic about the potential
for partnership working in intermediate care, as a way of providing
high quality, community based services appropriate to people's
needs.
Towards best value
60. the time people wait for treatment and
care, especially when it is not urgent, is still unacceptably
long. But today partnerships are working by reducing waiting times,
and they offer hope for many people in the future.
61. An analysis of the Concordat's impact
was published recently in the Health Service Journal.[22]
The research, written by a team from East Surrey Health Authority,
shows how the authority used seven independent hospitals over
11 weeks to remove 1,000 patients from NHS waiting lists. As part
of the arrangement each hospital was required to:
— demonstrate that clinical governance
and audit programmes were in operation;
— provide details of inspection reports;
— ensure adequate staffing levels at
all times;
— employ only consultants for surgery;
— provide exclusion lists of conditions
and procedures they lacked the expertise or facilities to manage;
— adhere to National Institute for
Clinical Excellence guidance;
— and agree in advance packages of
care, including physiotherapy and occupational therapy.
62. Importantly, the study concluded that:
"Prices were comparable to, and sometimes
cheaper than the NHS. The average cost was £1,120 per treatment
. . . Patient satisfaction seemed high."[23]
4. QUALITY AND
WORKFORCE ISSUES
63. the IHA and its members are committed
to the highest possible standards of care for all patients. The
IHA is always seeking to:
— seeks better regulation;
— and respond effectively to patients'
concerns.
64. The IHA is also committed to seeking
better partnerships in areas such as education and training, so
bolstering the commitment of health professional to the whole
health and social care system.
Quality and safety
65. As the committee will know from evidence
submitted by the IHA to an earlier inquiry, quality and safety
for all patients receiving treatment in independent sector acute
hospitals is paramount.
— After more than ten years of campaigning
for better government regulation, the IHA welcomes the National
Care Standards Commission (NCSC) setting minimum care standards
for independent hospitals.
— The IHA also welcomes the Commission
for Health Improvement's role in covering NHS patients who are
treated in independent hospitals under the Concordat. The IHA
endorses the Care Standard Act's conclusion that the two bodies
should work together.
— Audited clinical outcomes exist in
the independent sector and the sector is currently looking at
how to make them publicly available.
— IHA member hospitals, including mental
health facilities, are currently collecting data as part of the
process laid out in the Private Practice Forum's Principles
for a private medicine clinical quality framework.[24]
66. The IHA recognises the HQS, HAP and
ISO 9000 series accreditation models and all IHA member hospitals
are already accredited or are working towards it. IHA member hospitals'
accreditation systems are equally as stringent as in the NHS—the
only difference being that they are specifically geared for independent
sector hospitals.
— Doctors working in the independent
sector are keen to have their independent sector work accounted
for as part of the GMC's revalidation process.
— The care of children and adolescents
in the acute independent sector has been reviewed by a cross-sector
working party. Their report, Guidance on the care of children
receiving care in independent sector acute hospitals, recommends
that all children under three are admitted to dedicated paediatric
facilities.[25]
Only "well children", following a risk assessment, are
admitted to acute independent hospitals with the appropriate services
and staffing.
— The IHA with the British Association
of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons has produced draft standards for
cosmetic surgery services. A proposal for the accreditation of
surgeons to practice aesthetic plastic (cosmetic) surgery will
be submitted to the Royal College of Surgeons by the IHA.
— A cross-sector working party, together
with recruitment agencies supplying resident medical officers
(RMOs), has met over 18 months to review a set of standards with
which RMOs can comply, together with appropriate qualifications
for both acute and mental health hospitals. This work has been
done to also address the implications of the working time directive.
— Every member hospital operates a
complaints procedure which meets agreed practice in the sector,
in accordance with Independent Health Care National Minimum
Standards currently out for consultation.[26]
To date, patients receiving care from independent hospitals under
the Concordat seem to be confident of the sector's high standards
and its continual efforts to improve quality.
Workforce partnerships
In the year ending 31 March 2001, the independent
sector provided 1,380 clinical placement for student nurses, post-basic
nurses and allied health professionals.
67. As well as working in partnership to
deliver treatment and care, the NHS and independent sector can
work together to bolster healthcare professionals' commitment
to the health and social care system as a whole. As the Secretary
of State for Health, Rt Hon Alan Milburn MP, made clear recently:
"If we're moving into an era of closer co-operation
between the private sector and the NHS, then workforce issues
become much more of a joint responsibility."[27]
68. Today, the independent sector is one
of the country's largest employers with a workforce of more than
750,000 people—nearly three per cent of the country's total
workforce. As a major employer with a good track record of recruiting,
training and retaining staff, the independent sector can be a
useful partner to the NHS.
— The independent sector has pioneered
flexible working practices for many years, including supporting
registered nurses returning to the profession after a break. Staff
retention levels are high in the independent sector, and the sector
can therefore offer the NHS proven human resource strategies.
— Many thousands of student nurses
now spend up to several months in independent hospitals and nursing
homes, where they learn about a wide range of specialities. In
the year ending 31 March 2001, the independent sector provided
1,380 clinical placements.[28]
This demonstrates that independent sector facilities have the
ability and willingness to work in partnership with the NHS to
train the staff we need. With the sector taking a lead on care
for the elderly, it offers a particular wealth of expertise in
the healthcare of older people.
— The IHA is also seeking independent
sector representation on the 24 workforce development confederations
to strengthen education and training links.
— The independent sector offers a great
deal of post-graduate training for thousands of registered nurses
and allied health professionals. Training covers theatres, neuro-surgery,
critical care, cardiac, renal, infection control, risk management,
care of the elderly and continence management.
— Although the independent sector undertakes
its own management programmes, the sector is keen to work with
the NHS's leadership programmes being established through the
Modernisation Agency.
— The IHA is actively working to promote
high standards in the recruitment and employment of nurses from
abroad into the independent sector. In this context the IHA has
recently published Supervised Practice Programme for Overseas
Registered Nurses: Independent Sector Recommendations.[29]
— The independent sector also helps
to train post-graduate doctors. In the area of mental health,
the sector offers courses in adult psychiatry, brain injury rehabilitation,
and child and adolescent care. Independent acute hospitals also
run accredited post-graduate study courses for doctors that encourage
peer review and provide general practitioners with important up-dates.
— the sector's nursing and residential
care homes enable tens of thousands of care assistants to achieve
National Vocational Qualifications, increasing the level of skilled,
qualified staff available to the nation as a whole.
69. Probably the greatest myth about the
independent sector is that it somehow "steals" nurses
away from the NHS. Over recent years, less than four per cent
of nurses who left the NHS moved to work in the independent sector.
The vast majority—more than 96 per cent—simply left
nursing altogether.
5. CONCLUSION—ACCESS,
EQUITY, PARTNERSHIP
70. There is no single solution to the challenges
facing the NHS and local authorities. Finding answers requires
teamwork between all of Britain's health and social care services—NHS,
local authority and independent sector.
71. The success of the Concordat is a tribute
to the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Health. They
believe what really matters is not who operates the service, but
whether that service offers best value treatment and care for
NHS patients. As the Prime Minister put it recently:
"The private sector can in many cases be
more responsive than the public sector to the immediate needs
of demanding consumers. . . . Where it makes sense to use private
or voluntary sectors better deliver public services, we will.
That is nothing new."[30]
72. By the end of 2001 we estimate that
100,000 NHS patients will have received treatment and care in
the independent sector under the terms of the Concordat—widening
people's access to the NHS. Public opinion supports this partnership
approach, as shown by the recent MORI opinion survey Attitudes
Towards Public/Private Partnerships.[31]
73. As well as delivering services in partnership,
the independent sector, NHS and local authorities have a shared
interest in working together to recruit, train and retain staff.
As a major employer the independent health and social care sector
has an impressive track record and will be a valuable partner
to the NHS—sharing resources, skills and ideas.
74. To ensure that the NHS Plan succeeds,
it is vital that the Concordat is built upon and that more is
achieved in 2002. To continue to mobilise independent mental health
services and acute hospitals is a priority—as is the appropriate
funding of care homes. For NHS public private partnerships to
work, all the nation's health and social care resources have to
work together in a sustainable and unified manner. The success
of the nation's health and social care services depends on partnerships
between all service providers.
75. That is why no politician should doubt
that when used to its full potential, the independent health and
social care sector is a significant resource which is ready and
willing to help the government achieve its policy objectives and
ease the pressures on the NHS.
76. The Independent Healthcare Association
welcomes this inquiry and looks forward to the Health Select Committee's
support for this important government policy initiative.
12 Karen Bryson et al., "Public pain, private
gain", Health Service Journal, 6 September 2001. Back
13
MORI Social Research, September 2000. Back
14
Ibid. Back
15
Daniel Kruger, "Why half the members of trade unions have
private health care", Daily Telegraph, 11 September 2001. Back
16
Susan Doohan, Costs of Care 2001-The Facts, Independent Healthcare
Association, 2001. Back
17
Rt Hon Alan Milburn MP quoted in "Milburn signs deal to
treat NHS patients in private units", Hospital Doctor, 2
November 2000. Back
18
For the Benefit of Patients: A Concordat with the Private and
Voluntary health and Care Provider Sector, Department of Health,
Independent Healthcare Association 2000. Back
19
Ibid. Back
20
For the Benefit of Patients: A Concordat with the private and
Voluntary Health and Care Provider Sector, Department of Health,
Independent Healthcare Association 2000, op.cit. Back
21
Guidance on Comprehensive Critical Care in Independent Sector
Acute Hospitals, Independent healthcare Association, forthcoming. Back
22
Karen Bryson et al, Public pain, private gain, Health
Service Journal, 6 September 2001. Back
23
Ibid. Back
24
Principles for a private medicine clinical quality framework,
Private Practice Forum, Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, April
1999. Back
25
Guidance on the care of children receiving care in independent
sector acute hospitals, Independent Healthcare Association, 2001. Back
26
Independent Health Care National Minimum Standards, Department
of Health, 200. Back
27
Rt Hon Alan Milburn MP, quoted in "Rising Cabinet star who
dared to go private on hospitals', Daily Telegraph, 4 November
2000. Back
28
Draft report to the Department of Health on the provision of
clinical placements in independent sector acute, mental health
hospitals and units. Independent Healthcare Association, 2001. Back
29
Supervised Practice Programme for Overseas Registered Nurses:
Independent Sector Recommendations, Independent healthcare Association,
forthcoming. Back
30
Prime Minister Rt Hon Tony Blair MP, quoted in "Reform or
else, Blair tells public services". The Guardian, 17 July
2001. Back
31
MORI Social Research, September 2000. Back
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