Health secretary to review private healthcare plan local MP calls ‘murky and opaque’
The health secretary has been called in to settle a row over a “murky and opaque” plan to privatise a key element of cancer treatment currently handled by one of England’s most highly respected hospitals.
The proposal to let the company InHealth take charge of the Thames Valley regional PET-CT scanning service, which is run by Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford, has been set aside until the Department of Health completes a review of the procurement process.
Last month, doctors warned that the move would damage patients’ health and, this week, an extraordinary row erupted when it emerged that NHS England, which handled the procurement process, had threatened to sue the trust for libel if it publicly voiced similar concerns.
The outcry over the privatisation plan led to a partial climbdown from NHS England, which agreed that the two scanners should stay in Churchill hospital and be operated by NHS staff, though InHealth was still to be given the contract to provide the service.
OUH asked the chairman of the Oxfordshire joint health overview and scrutiny committee (HOSC) to review the matter in a public meeting, which was attended by doctors, patients and others. Afterwards, it said HOSC had decided to refer the matter to the health secretary, Matt Hancock.
“I would … like to take this opportunity to thank the many patients who have contacted us, HOSC and NHS England to say how much they value the current PET-CT service at the Churchill,” said the OUH trust’s chief executive, Dr Bruno Holthof. “We are grateful for their support and also that of our local MPs and our governors who have spoken out on this issue.”
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The move was given a cautious welcome by Layla Moran, the Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon. “Everything about this process has been murky and opaque, and that’s why I’m glad, after so much pressure, that the government is finally taking notice.
“I, alongside other Oxfordshire MPs, have stood strongly against this shambles of a process since some light was shed on it. Local residents, patients and doctors absolutely deserve to be in the know on such an important issue.
“With the secretary of state now getting a chance to step in, I fear it is too little too late, but I will be keeping up the pressure and writing to him as a matter of urgency.”
NHS England said: “Oxford Universities foundation trust and InHealth agreed to work together to deliver Pet-CT services across Thames Valley, which for NHS patients would mean services continuing to be provided from the Churchill Hospital in Oxford but also new local services for people in Swindon and Milton Keynes, providing more convenient scans as part of the NHS long term plan to improve care and save more lives.”
Article originally appeared on The Guardian
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