Government welcomes provisional advice from the NHS Future Forum
The independent NHS Future Forum, publishes interim advice on integrated care, patient information and public health in a modern NHS
The independent NHS Future Forum, a group of the country’s top health experts, has today published its interim advice on integrated care, patient information and public health in a modern NHS, after listening to thousands of NHS staff, patients and the public as well as voluntary sector organisations.
The advice follows a request from the Prime Minister earlier this year for the NHS Future Forum to continue its successful dialogue and consider certain key themes with staff, patients and the public.
The interim advice and recommendations published today are aimed at informing the 2012/13 NHS Operating Framework and the plans around a new public health system.
The advice stresses that information about health and social care services must be published in a transparent and usable form and patients must have better access to health care records. It also calls for a national partnership across the NHS and public health.
The final reports, which will also include recommendations on education and training, will be published towards the end of the year.
In his meeting with the NHS Future Forum yesterday, Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said:
“It is clear that the approach taken by the NHS Future Forum, both during the listening exercise and in its current phase, has provided us with invaluable feedback and insight from patients and NHS staff on what the NHS needs to do to improve outcomes and put patients at the heart of everything it does.
“The interim advice and recommendations are very useful and we will take them into consideration before we publish the 2012/13 NHS Operating Framework and further details about the new public health system.
“This shows the importance of engaging with patients and staff to ensure services are designed around patients. I look forward to the Forum’s final report later in the year.”
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Notes to editors
1. For more information, please contact the Department of Health Newsdesk on 020 7210 5221
2. The interim advice can be found on the Department of Health website.