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The need for clear National Standards for health care was acknowledged in A First Class Service (1998) and the NHS Plan (2000). The Bristol Royal Infirmary Inquiry (the Kennedy Report), published in 2001, acknowledged the existence of a range of professional standards, but identified that, from a public or patient's-eye-view, there were no agreed standards on what to expect from the NHS.
Key documents about standards for NHS and private and voluntary healthcare.
In response to the Kennedy Report the then Secretary of State stated that 'there will be explicit national standards, developed in partnership with the professionals and patients, that apply across all parts of the country'
The Health Care Standards Unit (HCSU) was established in 2004 to support and develop the use of standards in the Department of Health and the National Health Service and specifically to maintain and develop the Secretary of State's Statement of Standards in a national and international context.
The Healthcare Commission promotes improvement in the quality of the NHS and independent healthcare. It has a wide range of responsibilities, all aimed at improving the quality of healthcare. It has a statutory duty to assess the performance of healthcare organisations, award annual performance ratings for the NHS and coordinate reviews of healthcare by others.
Healthcare associated infections - for instance, infections caught from other patients during a hospital stay - are a serious concern. Documents produced by the Communicable Diseases Branch, independent advisory committees and others, aimed primarily at health professionals.
