RCN responds to Government plan for the Public Sector
Published: 16 March 2009
Commenting on the Prime Minister’s Working Together – Public Services On Your Side and the creation of the Nursing Commission – The Future of Nursing and Midwifery, Dr. Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:
“During ten years of significant investment in the health service, nurses have been central to the delivery of wide-ranging improvements in the NHS. This is the group of health professionals that spends more time with patients than any other and therefore know what’s needed to deliver high quality patient care.
Lord Darzi’s Review has laid a blueprint for radically improving patient care and this Commission will outline many of the next steps that the NHS needs to take.
“It is right that Government are acknowledging that patients and all public service users will get the best possible care when decisions are in the hands of frontline staff. The commitment to tapping into the innovation and creativity of health professionals instead of relying on Whitehall for the next big ideas for the public sector is very welcome indeed. By genuinely trusting and enabling different parts of the public sector to share ideas with each other, the best ideas will come through. We look forward to working with the Government to shape the plan for a 21st century health service.”
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Notes to Editors
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK and is the largest professional union of nursing staff in the world. The RCN promotes the interest of nurses and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape healthcare policy by working closely with the UK Government and other national and international institutions, trade unions, professional bodies and voluntary organisations. For further information, interviews or illustrations please contact the RCN Media Office on 0207 647 3633, press.office@rcn.org.uk or visit http://www.rcn.org.uk/newsevents/media