NHS ‘should do more’ to provide children’s care

The development of hospital services for children on the NHS has been “patchy”, it has been claimed, with greater effort needed for the delivery of consistently high-quality care.

Recently published research from the Healthcare Commission reveals that 71 per cent of trusts treating children are rated as good or excellent, while nearly all trusts reviewed by the commission have made some improvements on providing child-friendly environments.

However, in relation to emergency care, day-case care, outpatients services, inpatients, and emergency and planned surgery services provided to children, 75 per cent of trusts were rated as fair or weak by the report.

Sir Ian Kennedy, chairman of the Healthcare Commission, said: “There remain a number of areas of variable and poor performance across the country that need to be addressed urgently.

“Until these issues are tackled, the care made available to children is going to leave too many children at risk.”

He added that the commission would request that all trusts make certain to themselves and the general public that their children’s services are of an adequate standard.

The Healthcare Commission is an independent body charged with promoting improvements in public health services through becoming a source of reliable information that is used to assist in these efforts.