Our response to Being Open Framework for Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland
We welcome the launch of the Being Open Framework for Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland and support the framework’s aims around creating a more transparent and fair health service.
In our response, we highlighted the ‘blame culture’ that places disproportionate responsibility for systemic failures or genuine errors on healthcare practitioners. We are pleased that the framework looks to address this culture, and recognises the complex environments in which NHS staff, including anaesthetists, work.
In our response we suggested that the framework explore how it could align with other policies on openness and candour, including Martha’s rule and look forward to progress in this area.
The framework explains that leaders in the health service should take ownership for promoting positive and open cultures around disclosure. We therefore repeat our calls that NHS managers should be fully professionally regulated in Northern Ireland, in line with other professions.
Ultimately, this framework represents a positive step that will enhance patient safety and make the health service a fairer and more open place. However, we are clear that improving patient safety would be best achieved by addressing the shortages of anaesthetists in Northern Ireland.
We therefore call on the Department of Health and the Executive to increase training places and address workforce shortages as a priority.