Clause 14 - Abolition of community health councils in england
Health and Social Care Bill
12:00 pm
Dr Peter Brand (Isle of Wight, Liberal Democrat)
I should like to make some brief comments. Much has been said about the independence of CHCs, and the fear that whatever replaces them might not be so independent. It is right to worry about that, but I have another concern. CHCs are, on the whole, knowledgeable. They have a wealth of knowledge and experience of the NHS, and they understand it. That has been part of the maturing function that was described by the right hon. Member for North-West Hampshire (Sir G. Young).
I remember that, when CHCs were first set up, no doctor would talk to a CHC member. They were considered to be wild, outrageous people, interfering with the proper functioning of the profession. That has changed enormously. There is now co-operation, but not in the sense of collusion. There is an understanding on both sides that the public are represented through bodies such as CHCs, but those bodies have an obligation to understand the technical pressures and the constraints on medical provision.
The medical profession and the CHCs have evolved, in places where their relationship works, a responsible method of monitoring patient opinion and influencing the people who are charged professionally with delivering the service. In my CHC, we have reached the stage where local general practices have invited CHCs to set up an inspection regime for them. That is right. Inspection is one of the roles that the Minister could have given to CHCs.
I was sorry to hear the hon. Member for Colne Valley describe her experiences, but I was somewhat alarmed that one of her criticisms of CHCs was that they do not always represent popular campaigns. It is CHCs' role to find out what the public believe about a proposal to change the NHS, but it is also their role to evaluate that feedback and make reasonable comment. If the NHS were run purely by campaign—as politicians, we have too often been guilty of that—nothing would ever have changed. We would still be taking out tonsils on the kitchen table, and accident and emergency departments would be present in every village. That is what people would like, but it is not medically responsible.