13th July 2010
White Paper concerns were at the heart of Medica debates at UKRC
Many of the concerns highlighted by the Government’s White Paper on healthcare in the UK had already been discussed – a month earlier on the Medica stand at UKRC.
“The Government’s views on putting patient safety first and many other issues such as the importance of providing a quality service, security of patient records and a refusal to accept sub-standard services – all these came up in our televised debates”, points out Chief Executive Simon Rasalingham.
“Of course, all our debates had a radiology dimension to them but they also dealt with these core issues”.
Edited highlights of the six debates are available to view on the Medica website.
“Even the title of the White Paper – Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS – chimes perfectly with the views expressed by our panellists and our view of how the NHS should be purchasing and delivering services”, adds Simon.
Some of the issues are:
WHITE PAPER PAGE 3
Shared decision-making will become the norm: no decision about me without me.
Medica debate: ‘Is Teleradiology a threat to patient confidentiality?’.
Discussing whether patients should allow radiologists to report on their medical images without access to their previous history, requests and reports, Neelam Dugar (Chair of the PACS Group) is adamant: “As a patient I would not like that happening to me”.
WHITE PAPER PAGE 8
We can foresee a better NHS that…refuses to tolerate unsafe and substandard care.
Medica debate: ‘Global teleradiology – is it time for regulation?’
“I think we need to distinguish between the quality of a radiologist that is British-trained and British-based and the radiologist you may be using from abroad”, points out Consultant Radiologist Peter Mayer: “When you have a radiologist where you are unaware of the training he has had are you able to trust somebody else’s judgement that this person is up to scratch?”
WHITE PAPER PAGE 21
There will be no excuse or hiding place for deteriorating standards…This will help to ensure that patient safety is placed above all else at the heart of the NHS…There cannot be a trade-off between safety and efficiency.
Medica debate: ‘Costs vs. quality – where should we draw the line?’
Discussing Medica’s requirement that all its consultant radiologists be UKRC trained and agreeable to being audited, Consultant Radiologist Rakesh Mehan says: “Medica’s standards are actually higher than NHS standards. My work is not audited except by my peers because there is not a structure in place to do it”.
“There are many more instances where the debates pick up on issues highlighted by the White Paper”, adds Simon Rasalingham.
“In one of the debates it emerged that the European Society of Radiology believes that if a patient’s image is to be sent outside national boundaries then the patient should be informed.
“That is absolutely in line with the White Paper’s view that the patient must be at the heart of everything. But currently images are sent abroad every day by the NHS and the patient is never told”.
Dr Erika Denton, the Department of Health’s National Clinical Lead for Diagnostic Imaging, visited the stand to watch one of the debates but was unable to take part as rules do not allow senior people to make public comments during the first three months of a new Government.
More than 1,400 people stopped at the stand to vote on a number of topics as part of the company’s Join The Debate initiative which was developed to reflect professional opinion and drive up standards.
For further information about this news article, contact John V. Wright, Blue Planet Communications, 07710 454214.
Notes for Editors
MEDICA
The Medica Group partners more than 70 NHS Trusts across the country and today operates the largest remote radiology reporting network in the UK.
Its consultant radiologists report on patient scans derived from X-Ray, MRI, CT, Ultrasound and other medical technologies.
Each consultant is equipped at home with a state-of-the-art PACS (Picture Archiving and Communications System) workstation. Connecting directly into the secure RIS (Radiology Information System) at the hospital where the patient was scanned, consultants provide both verbal and detailed written reports on the scans they have received. These essential reports enable doctors at the hospital to determine the best course of treatment for their patients.
For further information on our remote Reporting Service, please telephone
0845 0569 750 and ask for the Business Development Team, or email us: info@medicagroup.co.uk