More choice for patients does not mean better healthcare

UNISON is critical of plans to extend patient choice, pointing out that more does not mean better.

Instead of obsessing over choice, the government should be raising standards across the NHS, says Mike Jackson, the union's senior national officer for health.

That was the key to giving patients from all backgrounds access to high quality healthcare, he stressed, adding that if patients were really given a choice, it would be to go to a good local hospital.

His comments come as health secretary Patricia Hewitt unveils a raft of new measures aimed at 'empowering' patients to shape healthcare services around their own needs.

From July, people needing non-emergency orthopaedic treatment such as knee and hip replacements will have the choice of going to any hospital in England. And a new website, NHS Choices, will go live this summer with details of hospital performance and treatments.

However, Mr Jackson said: "Survey after survey shows that what the public wants is fully equipped and local hospitals, with well-qualified staff who will deal with their health problems quickly and efficiently.

"No one should have to wait in pain for an operation, but travelling from one end of the country to the next to have it does not make sense. People need friends and family around them when they are in hospital as part of the healing process."

League tables will also pile pressure on some hospitals while leaving others with empty beds, he added.