Hewitt: Greater role for private sector

Patricia Hewitt has set out plans to increase the number of operations purchased from the private health sector.

Making her first big announcement since taking over as health secretary, Hewitt is pledging that some £3bn will be spent in the private sector over the next five years.

The cash is expected to purchase some 1.7 million operations.

However, the plans are set to anger some on Labour's left who are critical of the increasing sums being spent outside the health service.

Hewitt is pledging to "listen and learn" as the reform process continues, but her latest announcement indicates the government will push ahead with plans to create a 'patient-centred' health service.

"We need to bring in the independent sector in order to get more operations done for patients, faster, and using new and better ways of treatment," the health secretary told the BBC.

"If we want the best health service we have to take part in that innovation."

Treatment services

The cash will pay for a second wave of independent treatment centres, and more private operations for those who face delays getting their operation within the NHS.

As a result, the number of operations carried out by the private sector but paid for by the NHS will increase from five per cent to between 10 and 15 per cent.

"I intend to continue to modernise and reform the way services are provided to patients and there are a number of important challenges ahead," said Hewitt.

"We need to focus on achieving our pledge to reduce the maximum waiting time to 18 weeks, we need to transform the system to give patients more choice and more control over their treatment, and we need to press on with tackling MRSA."

The Liberal Democrats said the private sector should be used to provide additional capacity rather than replace NHS capacity.

"If the government is to use the private sector it must deliver good quality care and value for money," added health spokesman Paul Burstow.

"The evidence to date has been that the government has been too willing to sign contracts that allow cherry picking of the tastiest work and guaranteed payments regardless of the amount of work."

Waiting lists

The latest announcement came as new figures showed a fall in NHS waiting lists in England.

There were just 41 patients waiting over nine months for their treatment at the end of March. And of that 41, only 24 were waiting over a year.

The number of patients waiting over six months stood at 40,800 - a decrease of 19,600 from February and some 39,300 lower than March 2004.

Publishing his latest report, NHS chief executive Sir Nigel Crisp said there was "sustained progress" in improving the health service.

The report says that more than 99 per cent of people with suspected cancer are seen by a specialist within two weeks of referral, and over 97 per cent of women with breast cancer receive treatment within one month of diagnosis.

It also said British men have had the world's sharpest fall in deaths from lung cancer, and in the past decade British women have had the world's biggest decrease in deaths from breast cancer.

And a target to ensure no-one is waiting more than three months for their first cataract operation was met four years ahead of schedule.

Care quality

Sir Nigel said said that while there was an expansion of NHS services, the quality of care had also increased.

"We're at the halfway point in the NHS Plan. Since the Plan was published in 2000, the main focus has been on increasing capacity," he said.

"We are now able to concentrate on making sure that the services we deliver are of a high level of quality and ensuring that we constantly strive to improve them, ensuring that patients throughout the NHS receive the same high level of care.

"For example, GPs are now being rewarded for the quality of their work, not just the size of their patient list. 

"Practices are being rewarded for delivering high-quality care and prevention of the big killers such as cancer and heart disease, and also diabetes, stroke, lung disease, asthma and mental illness.

"More procedures are also being undertaken in primary care settings, bringing services closer to the patient."

The NHS chief said that "progress has been very good".

"We know there is more to do but these achievements give me confidence that we can improve services even further," he added.