Healthwatch England’s response to NHS England reform
The move is to make savings and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients.
Responding, Healthwatch England Chief Executive Louise Ansari said:
“We know people want better access to and experience of care for everyone, in particular those facing health inequalities, including disabled people, carers, and those on low incomes.
“During the forthcoming period of change for NHS England, it’s important that everything possible is done to ensure that patients’ care is not disrupted and that the progress the NHS has been making in some areas is not reversed.
“Going forward, any changes in structures need to have improvements in patient access to and experience of care at their heart.”
What is NHS England?
NHS England leads the National Health Service (NHS) in England and has a wide range of statutory functions, responsibilities and regulatory powers. NHS England was established in 2013 with the aim of establishing greater independence and autonomy for the NHS.
What do the changes mean for the NHS?
The NHS is not going anywhere.
Healthwatch England has explained that the announcement relates to the structure of the NHS; the change means that the ‘functions [of NHS England] will be taken into the Department of Health and Social Care, with the merger lasting about two years’.
The Prime Minister and Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, have said that the motivation behind the change is to bring decisions about the NHS back into government control and empower NHS staff to deliver better care for patients.
What does this mean for Healthwatch Northumberland?
Healthwatch Northumberland is the independent champion for health and social care users in the county. We work independently of the NHS and social care services. Our role is to understand local people’s experiences of services and make recommendations to service providers.
The dissolution of NHS England does not change our mission or the role we play in ensuring that services put people at the heart of the care they receive. We will continue to champion local people to ensure their voices are heard.
If the result of closing down this quango and redirecting the savings into improved patient care will be a positive start. Layers of bureaucracy need to be addressed too, along with money being wasted on painting rainbow colours beside pedestrian crossings, etc. Holding funds to spend on frivolities deprives the NHS of money that could be better spent elsewhere.