This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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What patients think
01/03/2007
A major new programme is to be developed to get more detail on NHS patients' experiences of the services they receive and how they can be improved, it was announced today.
Building on existing work, patients will be asked about their experiences of services ranging from, for example, whether they are involved in decision making about their care, have their preferences respected, and how they view the quality of hospital accommodation.
Health Minister Andy Kerr said:
"Providing the best quality treatment and care for our patients is the top priority for NHS Scotland and patients' views are vital to health professionals in improving the services they provide.
"There are already a number of useful surveys and other pieces of research carried out at local and national level, and these show that patients value the service they get from the NHS.
"NHS Boards act upon information about issues needing addressed, such as from the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman and the Scottish Health Council.
"I want to ensure that good practice is shared, and also that lessons from one part of the country are learned across the rest of Scotland.
"That is why we are developing this major programme in partnership with NHS Boards and other organisations, to tie together what we know already, to seek further information from patients and carers about their own experiences and inform changes that deliver real benefit in improving patient care.
"When we pull all this together, we will be in a position to lay down clear actions so that we can drive forward year on year improvements in all parts of the NHS."
The work will cover the following areas:
Firstly: asking patients and carers in Scotland about their experience of the health service through surveys, focus groups and other techniques.
Secondly: collecting, comparing and standardising information already being collected, such as information from consultations and complaints.
Finally: all of this information would be used, as part of NHS Boards existing programmes of work, supported by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland and the Scottish Health Council to drive forward year on year improvement in patient experience on the ground.
Scottish Public Services Ombudsman Professor Alice Brown said:
"Investigating complaints gives the SPSO a unique perspective on patient experience, and I am delighted that the Executive is committed to using our Reports as a resource for sharing as widely as possible the learning from our work in order to improve the delivery of NHS services."
Marytn Evans, Director of the Scottish Consumer Council said:
"Great services listen closely to their users and learn from the user experience. The Scottish Consumer Council welcomes the commitment by the Scottish Executive to making sure this is done more effectively throughout the NHS in Scotland. This initiative could be the basis for creating a world class patient-centred health service."
Brian Beacom, Chairman, Scottish Health Council said:
"By listening to patients and learning from their own experiences of what in their view works and what doesn't work, we can ensure that services consistently improve and meet their needs.
"The Scottish Health Council is committed to ensuring that patients have a real say in health services and we welcome the development of this programme which we believe will build on the good work already being done by NHS Boards across Scotland."
Under European procurement regulations, the Executive will be seeking bids to run the central advice centre for the patient experience programme.