Apr 24 2007
Health workers will not sit idly by and watch their health service being dismantled, 'marketised' and sold off to become a pale reflections of the US health system, where the balance sheet matters more than patients' needs.
Instead they will fight, and if necessary strike, to defend the vision of the NHS as a national, co-operative service rather than a competitive commercial market where “patients are seen as a source of revenue, or a quick buck”.
That was the clear message from the first day of UNISON health conference in Brighton as representatives of amost half a million health workers passed motion after motion condemning the government's direction of change, vowing to increase the campaign it, build coalitions and support members battling privatisation.
The current crises mean it is “painful for staff trying to deliver the service and change”, said service group chair Lilian Macer. while the government is “fundamentally altering” the basis of health care.
“It is impossible for any NHS organisaton to plan properly,” she noted, as the government's “competitive commercial market undermines basic NHS principles”.
Delegate after delegate came to the speaker's rostrum throughout the morningt and afternoon to back up and expand on that point, in debate after debate.
The union's Keep the NHS Working campaign is “something for the long haul”, fellow executive speaker Lorraine Rigby reminded conference and “the unity of the NHS coalition is essential”.
So far, “we have done well, but could do better and should do better,” noted Eric Roberts.
In particular, delegates highlighted opposition to “payment by results” which has shown the private sector to be more expensive and less efficient, paid higher fees for procedures than direct NHS units –and paid whether they carried out the procedures or not, while using NHS property.
Delegates highlighted particular privatisation threats to admin and clerical workers, especially medical secretaries, hospital decontamination services and the prescription pricing division.
The growth of the market, competition and private-sector involvement has also seen a growth in money spent on financial, marketing and consultancy charges – and delegates were particularly angry over private consultancies “milking the NHS” to review NHS services, and then being part of consortiums bidding to take those services over, while hiding behind “commercial confidentiality” and “intellectual property rights” on information.
The National Audit Office had criticised the Department of Health for spending £500m on consultants over the previous two years.
Conference decided to:
- campaign against the “payment by results” system
- step up the campaign against all forms of privatisation and “marketisation”, working with other unions, professional bodies and community campaigns;
- oppose the growth of ‘social enterprises' and the transfer of services to them'
- support branches resisting privatisation, including through industrial action within the union's rules;
- campaign against the internal market and for outsourced sectors to be brought back into the NHS
- continue to oppose the break-up of the NHS into foundation trusts while preparing to represent members in such trusts and develop forums to share information;
- develop an alternative vision of the NHS based on the founding principals;
- support a national demonstration on 13 October.
Beyond out-and-out privatisation, conference also warned against the break up of the NHS into foundations trusts, acting like individual companies and hiding behind “commercial confidentiality” to resist sharing information.
Returning to the theme of defending the NHS as a national service built on co-operation and patient need, Kevin Niles of the senior managers sector warned that government plans would mean “by 2010, the entire NHS provider arm would be foundation trusts, with just 25,000 nationally employed NHS staff overseeing the NHS as a brand -- just a brand”.