Managers raising safety concerns ‘must not be jumped on’, says NHSE director

Regulation of managers must not lead to a disbarring process without also introducing ”developmental” and supportive measures, NHS England’s national patient safety director has said.

Speaking at HSJ’s Patient Safety Congress, Aidan Fowler was asked whether NHS board members and managers should be regulated, amid calls for this in the wake of the Lucy Letby scandal. 

He said: “I think there are pros and cons to regulation… What I would say is that you just have to be cautious that you do not lead to a disbarring process without the developmental side of regulation, and the support side of regulation. For staff, to support them to do a good job.

“We have seen that there is a gap in patient safety training for boards, which we need to work on, for them to understand and to encourage them to talk about it more.

“I think there is a developmental part of regulation, which is really important… in any discussion. I know because we are already having discussions around it. That is a key part to pay attention to.”

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ,18 September 2023