Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jonathan Lord and Simon Burns

Tuesday 7th December 2010 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Lord (Woking) (Con)]

9. What steps he is taking to improve the information provided to patients on their diagnosis and treatment.

[The Minister of State, Department of Health (Mr Simon Burns)]

As part of our White Paper reforms, a wide-ranging review of the information required to empower patients is in progress. Related current initiatives include the information standard scheme, information prescriptions and quality standards produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

[Jonathan Lord]

I am grateful to the Minister for his reply. Currently good comparative data on the individual performance of doctors and surgeons are not readily available. How does he envisage compiling that data in a way that does not create too much bureaucracy or use up too much of doctors’ valuable clinical time?

[Mr Burns]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right: if we are to put patients at the heart of an NHS in which it is their care and views that are important and drive the provision of health care, we must empower them by giving them information that is consistently accurate, unbiased and easily understandable. We are currently consulting on our information revolution papers, and we await a chance to study the responses. However, we are determined to empower patients by giving them far more information, so that they can exercise their right of choice to get what they deserve, which is the very best health care.