Named doctor and nurse for every patient: Hospitals must show where buck stops, says Health Minister

The names of a doctor and a nurse will be displayed above every hospital bed to stop patients being 'passed from pillar to post'.

The move – announced today by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt – will allow patients and families to know where the buck stops.

The idea of identifying individual doctors and nurses has all but died out after once being commonplace in the NHS. 

Bringing it back was a key recommendation of the Francis inquiry into the deaths of hundreds of patients in the Mid Staffs scandal.

Writing in today's Daily Mail, Mr Hunt says: 'A name you know and a face you trust to guide you throughout your stay can transform your experience.

'Robert Francis, who led the inquiry into Mid Staffs, said this was an important change that would help make sure such events never happened again. This year, we will ask every hospital to make it happen.'

He said patients in hospitals that used the system 'didn't worry about being passed from pillar to post'.

Campaigners complain that patients are often bewildered by repeated staff changes, which can also hamper continuity of care.

The new system will not mean patients will see only one doctor or nurse throughout their stay – deemed impractical in a 24-hour Health Service that treats millions.

Under the plans, individual doctors and nurses will be identified for patients so they know where the buck stops with their treatment

Instead, the named clinicians will act as a 'champion' for their care.

They will also be the first point of contact for a patient or relative with any concerns – and the buck will usually stop with them.

'If things go wrong, obviously that will need investigation to see who was responsible,' said a Government source.

'So if a surgeon made a mistake, the named nurse wouldn't be held responsible. But they are the first port of call and accountable to patient and family for the overall hospital experience.'

Other measures being introduced to improve patient care include a system to blacklist failed managers from taking further NHS jobs.

The named clinician will be the first point of contact for a patient or relative with any concerns ¿ and the buck will usually stop with them

This would end the 'merry-go-round' of executives who move from post to post despite a poor track record.

The contracts of senior managers will in future include a clause linking their performance to the quality rating of their hospital.

Incompetent bosses could then be sacked without big pay-offs.

A new chief inspector will hand hospitals Ofsted-style ratings from outstanding to poor. Hospitals will additionally have to declare ward staffing levels.

'Every care setting is different and for this to work effectively this must be something which is carefully implemented, and supported by the right staffing levels.'

Peter Carter, of the Royal College of Nursing

The Government is introducing a new criminal offence for NHS staff who supply or publish false or misleading information – a change designed to prevent cover-ups.

More senior consultants are  to work at weekends and scanning departments will be kept open to try to improve care for patients treated on Saturdays and Sundays.

Professor Norman Williams, president of The Royal College of Surgeons, said: 'The return to having the name of the responsible doctor and responsible nurse above every bed is welcomed.

'It is only right and proper that every patient knows who is accountable for their care. The surgeon is the advocate for the patient and this relationship is built on trust.

'We must do all we can to continue to deserve this trust by ensuring any problems are raised and addressed early. The surgeon-patient relationship will be further strengthened by the publication of information on the outcomes of surgery.

'This has been shown not only to improve surgical standards but to enable patients to have more informed conversations with their surgeon.'

Sir Richard Thompson, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said: 'The Health Secretary is right to focus on creating a supportive and transparent culture in the NHS.

'One of the RCP's key recommendations to the Francis Inquiry was that every patient should have a named consultant responsible for their care.

'We welcome this call from the Health Secretary, and also we believe it will help to improve patients' experience of healthcare.'

Peter Carter, of the Royal College of Nursing, said the new policy recognised that nurses were at the centre of patient care.

However, he added: 'Every care setting is different and for this to work effectively this must be something which is carefully implemented, and supported by the right staffing levels.' 

Patients will no longer be passed from pillar to post

By JEREMY HUNT, Health Secretary

Secretary of State for Health Jeremy Hunt wrote in today's Daily Mail about his plans for the NHS

The Daily Mail has campaigned fearlessly in the last few years for greater accountability in our NHS. I'm determined this will happen in 2014.

In the wake of Mid Staffs, we have introduced a tough new barring scheme to stop failed managers from popping up in other parts of the NHS, and we are passing a new law to make wilful neglect of patients a crime.

But our plans for greater accountability are mainly about giving patients a guarantee of compassionate care.

The NHS is one of the biggest employers and largest organisations in the world, but I am convinced it can still provide a personal service.

Doctors and nurses enter healthcare out of a passion for helping people. For most, the personal interaction with patients and thrill of helping make people better is what brings real job satisfaction.

For patients too, a human touch can make all the difference. A name you know and a face you trust to guide you throughout your stay can transform your experience.

That's why we are committing to put the names of a responsible nurse and responsible doctor above every hospital bed.

Robert Francis, who led the inquiry into Mid Staffs, said this was an important change that would help make sure such events never happened again. The medical royal colleges agree this is the type of thing that the best hospitals do for their patients. This year, we will ask every hospital to make it happen.

A handful of our leading hospitals are already doing this. I've seen first hand at places like University College London Hospital and King's College Hospital what a difference this makes to patients.

They don't worry about being passed from pillar to post between different departments on different days of the week, because they have one face and one name who champions their needs as long as they're in hospital.

This is a key part of the wider change I'm trying to introduce in the NHS: insisting the buck stops with someone for every patient in every part of the NHS for every hour of the day.

We are working to make sure that patients in hospital at the weekend can get to see senior doctors just like they can during the week. NHS medical director Professor Sir Bruce Keogh has just announced that a greater number of senior doctors will work at weekends, and that X-ray, ultrasound, CT and MRI departments will be kept open.

This year we have taken even bigger strides to make sure the buck stops with someone for patients outside hospital. Last month we tore up Labour's 2004 GP contract, which so disastrously broke the personal link between GPs and patients.

Instead of being plagued by pointless targets, GPs will now use their time to provide proactive, personal care for elderly patients. Starting with the over 75s from this April, we are bringing back the named GPs that Labour abolished. This is a long overdue return to the family doctor.

Whether they are in or out of hospital and whatever day or time it is, patients need  to know who is responsible for looking  after them.

The vast majority of patients in this country see the best doctors and nurses, in the finest hospitals, as part of the fairest health system in the world. By introducing individual accountability and increasing the personal, human touch, we will make it better still in 2014.