for the NHS and which is accountable to Parliament for its operation. However, most decisions in the NHS, especially those about the treatment of individuals and the detailed organisation of services, are rightly taken by the local NHS and by patients with their clinicians. The system of responsibility and accountability for taking decisions in the NHS should be transparent and clear to the public, patients and staff. The Government will ensure that there is always a clear and up-to-date statement of NHS accountability for this purpose. NHS values Working together for patients. Patients come first in everything we do. We fully involve patients, staff, families, carers, communities, and professionals inside and outside the NHS. We put the needs of patients and communities before organisational boundaries. We speak up when things go wrong. Respect and dignity. We value every person – whether patient, their families or carers, or staff – as an individual, respect their aspirations and commitments in life, and seek to understand their priorities, needs, abilities and limits. We take what others have to say seriously. We are honest and open about our point of view and what we can and cannot do. Commitment to quality of care. We earn the trust placed in us by insisting on quality and striving to get the basics of quality of care – safety, effectiveness and patient experience – right every time. We encourage and welcome feedback from patients, families, carers, staff and the public. We use this to improve the care we provide and build on our successes. Compassion. We ensure that compassion is central to the care we provide and respond with humanity and kindness to each person’s pain, distress, anxiety or need. We search for the things we can do, however to give comfort and relieve suffering. We find time for patients, their families and carers, as well as those we work alongside. We do not wait to be asked, because we care. Improving lives. We strive to improve health and wellbeing and people’s experiences of the NHS. We cherish excellence and professionalism wherever we find it – in the everyday things that make people’s lives better as much as in clinical practice, service improvements and innovation. We recognise that all have a part to play in
making ourselves, patients and our communities healthier. Everyone counts. We maximise our resources for the benefit of the whole community, and make sure nobody is excluded, discriminated against or left behind. We accept that some people need more help, that difficult decisions have to be taken – and that when we waste resources we waste opportunities for others.
Patients and the public – your responsibilities Please recognise that you can make a significant contribution to your own, and your family’s, good health and wellbeing, and take personal responsibility for it. Please register with a GP practice – the main of access to NHS care as by NHS bodies. Please NHS staff and other patients with respect and recognise that violence, or the causing of nuisance or disturbance on NHS premises, could result in prosecution. You should recognise that abusive and violent behaviour could result in you being refused access to NHS services. Please provide accurate information your health, condition and status.
3b. Patients and the public – your responsibilities The NHS belongs to all of us. There are things that we can all do for ourselves and for one another to help it work effectively, and to ensure resources are used responsibly. Please keep or cancel within reasonable time. Receiving treatment within the maximum waiting times may be compromised unless you do. Please follow the course of treatment which you have agreed, and talk to your clinician if you find this difficult. Please participate in important public health programmes such as vaccination. Please ensure that those closest to you are aware of your wishes about organ donation. Please give feedback – both positive and negative – about your experiences and the treatment and care you have received, including any adverse reactions you may have had. You can often provide feedback anonymously and giving feedback will not affect adversely your care or how you are treated. If a family member or someone you are a carer for is a patient and unable to provide feedback, you are encouraged to give feedback about their
4a. Staff – your rights and NHS pledges to you It is the commitment, professionalism and dedication of staff working for the benefit of the people the NHS serves which really make the difference. care requires high-quality workplaces, with commissioners and providers aiming to be employers of choice. The rights are there to help ensure that staff: have a good working with flexible working consistent with the needs of patients and with the way that people live their lives; have a fair pay and contract framework; can be involved and in the workplace; have healthy and safe working conditions and an free from bullying or violence; are treated fairly, equally and free from can in certain take a complaint about their employer to an
with personal access to to have a process for staff to raise an internal grievance (pledge); and appropriate education and training for their jobs, and line management support to enable them to fulfil their potential (pledge); to provide support and opportunities for staff to maintain their health, wellbeing and safety (pledge); to engage in decisions that affect them and the services they provide, individually, through representative organisations and through local partnership working arrangements. All staff will be empowered to put forward ways to deliver better and safer services for patients and their families (pledge); to encourage and support all staff in raising concerns at the earliest reasonable about safety, or at work, to and, where necessary, the concerns raised and acting with the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (pledge). Important legal duties are summarised below. You have a duty to accept professional accountability and maintain the standards of professional practice as set by the