Experience counts

A useful survey of the state of play on measuring patient experience in primary care is provided by King's College London's Policy+ newsletter. Research published in Quality and Safety in Healthcare looks at the reasons why patients from ethnic minorities and some other patient groups "consistently report lower scores on patient surveys." While a substantial element of the difference for BME patients "reflected concentration of ethnic minority patients in low-performing practices," this was not the case for younger patients and those with poor self-reported health. Telling patients when mistakes have been made is likely to be a contractual obligation, if government proposals are adopted. DH has issued a consultation paper on implementing a duty of candour for NHS providers, as part of its efforts to enhance accountability. Patient safety group Action Against Medical Accidents has expressed concern that this duty should be statutory rather than contractual, according to HSJ.