Why we need this Group
An introduction from Dr Howard Stoate MP, Chair of the
Group
 |
"Patient
safety is a serious issue for all of us who use the NHS. The National
Patient Safety Agency estimates that each year up to 450,000 preventable
adverse patient safety incidents affect patients admitted to NHS hospitals. Concern about safety in the NHS is high up on the political and media agenda. A week does not go by without a new story about some aspect of patient safety. |
However, there are many people who are working to make the NHS safer. For parliamentarians our role is to ensure that there is a robust debate within Westminster on the issue and good awareness among politicians surrounding the work that is going on to maintain and strengthen patient safety.
I expect the debate to be challenging but my colleagues and I intend it to be positive and constructive. Having worked as a GP for many years, I know the pressures the medical profession are under. In an organisation the size of the NHS, it is hardly surprising that errors do happen. We need to understand why they happen and continue to take every effort to reduce them. In this respect I hope the Group will complement the work of organisations such as the NPSA in moving the issue away from blame to finding good and effective solutions for the NHS.