Patient Safety Commissioner Bill comes before Holyrood
A Scottish Government Bill to create a Commissioner to champion the welfare of people receiving healthcare has been introduced to Holyrood.
The Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland Bill will cover all healthcare providers operating in Scotland, including the NHS and NHS-contracted and independent healthcare providers.
The Commissioner appointed under the bill will be an independent champion for everyone receiving healthcare, working alongside healthcare providers and organisations involved in patient safety and complaints. They will hold healthcare providers to account in their responsibility to listen to patients, and support them to make improvements. They must publish reports on healthcare safety issues and make recommendations as to how these issues can be addressed. They can also require a health care provider or an individual to respond to any recommendations.
Their remit will include bringing together patient feedback and safety data shared by NHS boards and Healthcare Improvement Scotland, to identify concerns and recommend actions.
When necessary the Commissioner will also lead formal investigations into potential systemic safety issues, with powers to require information be shared to make sure every investigation is fully informed. However it is not part of their role to resolve grievances arising from past incidents.
Cabinet Secretary for Health Humza Yousaf said the legislation “aims to make sure the voices of people using health services are heard and their concerns acted on with the creation of a champion, independent of the NHS or Government, who will look out for the safety of people getting healthcare in Scotland”.
He added: “It is vitally important that patients have a voice and a place to turn to if they have concerns about the safety of their care, and this bill will help to ensure that continues to be the case.”