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Friday, 14 July 2006 10:15 | BNN: British Nursing News Online · www.bnn-online.co.uk
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Under powers announced yesterday by Patricia Hewitt, the Health Secretary patients and the public will be able to challenge their local NHS over the services it offers.
Primary care trusts, which organise services, will be required to respond to public petitions that can demonstrate significant support.
A suitable threshold could be 1 per cent of the public served by a trust, or 10 per cent of the patients using a particular service. The trust will not be obliged to agree with the petitioners, but will have to produce good reasons for disagreeing.
One of the first tests of the system could be from NHS traditionalists concerned over the Government’s plans to increase use of the private sector in the management of trusts.
Announcements yesterday also set out plans for commissioning community services amid concerns about a take-over by private companies of local NHS services. Miss Heweitt said private companies would not be allowed to commission NHS services for patients and then provide them as well.
"There will be clear rules on conflict of interest," she said in London.
Sir Ian Carruthers, the acting chief executive of the NHS said: "This is not about handing over the management role [to private companies]. PCT boards will be in charge. It is not the intention to franchise out PCT management”.
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