GDC reform kicked into long grass says BDA
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- Published: Tuesday, 27 June 2017 07:52
- Written by News Editor
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The BDA has expressed disappointment following the government’s failure to deliver pledged reforms on patient protection in the 2017-19 legislative programme, raising real questions about government’s commitment to reform. However new legislation, which could give official powers to the Health Service Safety Investigation Branch, was unveiled in the Queens Speech.
Primary legislation on healthcare regulation, which could have commanded broad cross party support, was pledged in the 2017 Conservative Party election manifesto. The BDA says its absence from the Queen’s Speech raises real questions about government’s commitment to reform The GDC has routinely languished at the bottom of the league table for performance of health watchdogs. Recent surveys have shown that 87% of dentists lack confidence in the regulator’s ability to reform itself.
BDA Chair Mick Armstrong said: “Ministers have again failed to make time to fix a broken system overseeing a million health professionals serving tens of millions of patients. After making unambiguous commitments to deliver new legislation, the government has chosen to kick needed reform into the long grass. Healthcare regulation remains grotesquely inefficient and ineffective, and when complaints arise patients and practitioners can be left in limbo for years. We urgently require a system that can command professional and public confidence. Britain’s health watchdogs have presided over failure, secrecy, and ballooning budgets. Ministers will need to explain why they have failed to act on patient protection, when needed reforms could have commanded cross-party support.”
Queen’s Speech delivers new patient safety legislation
The Draft Patient Safety Bill would establish the Health Service Safety Investigation Branch in statute, helping to “improve how the NHS investigates and learns from mistakes.” The bill would provide HSSIB with powers to conduct independent and impartial investigations into patient safety risks in the NHS in England. It would also legislate against the disclosure of information held in connection with an investigation led by HSSIB, enabling participants to be as candid as possible.
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