Brent Patients Have Delivered Damning Verdict On Government's Health Record - Teather

12.01.23pm BST (GMT +0100) Mon 19th May 2008

Local Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East Sarah Teather has criticised the Government's health record after local patients voted Brent's hospital trust the sixth worst in London, and the eighth worst in the UK.

The Healthcare Commission surveyed 76,000 patients across 165 hospital trusts, giving each trust an overall score based on patients' responses to the question: "Overall, how would you rate the care you received?". The survey took into account issues such as cleanliness, quality of food, information on treatment and the use of mixed-sex facilities.

The Liberal Democrats are calling for a 'Patient's Contract' which would guarantee every citizen access to a high standard of core healthcare entitlements within maximum waiting times. Under the contract patients would have the right to receive private treatment, paid for by the NHS, if the waiting time was not met.

Local Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East Sarah Teather said:

"Patients in Brent have delivered a damning verdict on the Labour Government's health record. It is a bitter disappointment that, after ten years of Labour, local people consider our health trust to be one of the worst in the whole of the UK.

"Doctors, nurses and other health staff in Brent work exceptionally hard to serve our community. But the government is strangling our local health service with red tape, absurd targets and never ending diktats from Whitehall. Scrapping unnecessary targets would give our local hospitals the time and flexibility to put patients first.

"We need a 'Patient's Contract' to guarantee every single person access to the standard of healthcare they deserve. Being admitted to hospital can be a worrying and stressful time for patients and their families, and people need to know that they will be properly cared for.

"To leave Brent residents languishing at the bottom of the pile is a gross betrayal by this Labour Government."

The rankings of all 165 hospital trusts can be found here:

http://www.gm.tv/media/adobe/8/r/NHS_Trust_Scores_on_Care.pdf