Should NHS managers risk court over clinical errors?
The Health Service Journal has reported on the views of Professor Toft, professor of patient safety at Coventry University and incident investigator, that NHS managers should be legally responsible for some clinical negligence cases.
According to Professor Toft, who has advised the World Health Organisation and the National Patient Safety Agency, where healthcare professionals have told managers about a problem with their care environment, the manager should be liable for incidents related to the problem.
The proposals follow recent criticism of NHS management skills by MPs. And although clinicians are often under intense working pressure, surely fostering a culture of blame is not the answer?
Improving access to clinical data is a critical first step that Trusts need to take, if they are to improve NHS management and ultimately clinical outcomes. Give clinicians access to good quality data and you give them the ability to lead, and to improve service delivery and healthcare outcomes.
A single repository for all clinical data allows healthcare managers and clinicians to access to the information they need to monitor patient progress. This helps to ensure timely access to care as an immediate priority, supporting person-centred care in line with the Darzi recommendations.
