Introduction of Radical Changes to the NHS in England

05 Dec 2013

Comment from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow

We have been closely following the proposed and now (since 1 April) implemented changes to the NHS in England.

As part of the UK Academy of Royal Colleges we contributed to the major concerns raised in regard to the setting up of clinical commissioning groups and competitive tendering to include the Private Sector. This represents a major change in the way in which the NHS is delivered in England.

It is the view of this Royal College that collaboration and cooperation rather than competition is a far more desirable way to run the NHS and this has been a major thrust of the Scottish Health Service since the discontinuation of Private finance Initiatives.

The Francis Report has laid out the major priorities for the NHS going forward and improving the infrastructure and resources within the service seems the best way to monitor quality of care and service provision.

There is a real danger with the current proposals in England that the tendering of clinical NHS services will increase the challenge of equity in quality of care and further destabilise a service already under intense financial pressure due to private finance initiatives and the current financial climate.

With more than one third of our Fellows and Members working in England, and therefore directly affected, we will be following these changes closely. We encourage any of our Fellows and Members to contact us and share their experiences.

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