Alan Johnson was among the ministers who attended the first of the NHS citizens' juries which took place in nine areas across the country on Tuesday.

The move came as the government steps up its efforts to boost public engagement with a series of discussions on the health service.

Johnson visited Birmingham with health minister Lord Darzi, who presented the interim findings of his government-commissioned NHS review to the cabinet on Tuesday.

More than 1,000 people - including patients, staff and members of the public - took part in the discussions.

After hearing evidence from experts, the jury members told ministers of their main concerns for the future of healthcare, what makes a high quality service, how they think hospital infections should be tackled and barriers to accessing services broken down.

Gordon Brown has said the sessions represent a "new type of politics", and Johnson hoped they would provoke "healthy debate".

And speaking from Birmingham, Johnson called for the structure of the health service to be put "to one side". 

"PCTs are there to stay," he said. "Let's concentrate on patient care, and how we can deliver the very best patient care.

"We no longer want an NHS looking up to Whitehall for tablets of stone coming down - we want an NHS led by clinicians."

Describing Tuesday's events as "unprecedented" due to the involvement of staff and patients, as well as members of the public, he said the NHS must "listen to its customers". 

He said the aim was to "get away from this view" that the health service is directed from Whitehall and the Department of Health.

"This is a look towards the next 10 years and actually delivering a health care system that is focused completely on patient care that moves away from the structural reorganisations that we have had in the past," Johnson added.