NHS future discussed

NHS staff and members of the public met with health secretary Alan Johnson and health figures yesterday to discuss the future of the country’s health service.

Ahead of the meeting, Mr Johnson said that it was important for any organisation that was the size of the NHS to continually have an open dialogue with those it serves.

“Any big organisation should continually be talking to its customers, if you like, patients, but also involving staff,” Mr Johnson told BBC1’s Breakfast programme.

Issues that Mr Johnson was looking to discuss – which will form part of the health minister Lord Darzi’s review of the service, Our NHS, Our Future – included utilising technology advances to improve care as well as the development of new sciences in medicine.

Lord Darzi’s review will use the opinions of patients, staff and members of the general public in outlining the next stage for the NHS, according to the NHS Confederation website.

Improving patient care and delivering more accessible and convenient care are two of the main areas to be tackled in the review.