Public money must not be diverted from patient care into the pockets of private sector shareholders, delegates at the BMA’s annual Consultants Conference heard.
Dr Jonathan Fielden, chairman of the consultants committee, warned that during a recession the NHS could ill afford to waste money on management consultants and independent sector treatment sectors (ISTCs).
He criticised the estimated £350 million spent on management consultants in the English NHS last year.
“It is the ethos, the faith that is at the heart of the health service that drives doctors,” he said. “One that management consultants, brought up in the tarnished world of finance fail to understand. Ditch the external management consultants. When we see them flogging our ideas, there is palpable frustration that we are not utilising the great talents across the NHS.
“For the first time in working memory, we may see real cuts in health spending. This will provoke some stark choices: what is kept, what is cut, what can the NHS afford? Let’s ensure that it’s doctors making those difficult decisions in partnership with our patients and healthcare colleagues, not faceless bureaucrats, accountants, and those out to fleece the taxpayer.”
He described the £927 million paid to ISTCs for work that was not carried out “a dangerous waste”. And Dr Fielden called for the current £1.7 billion surplus in the NHS to be reinvested in patient care.
Read the full speech.
Tags: Privatisation
