MP CALLS FOR BETTER MONITORING OF OUT OF HOURS NHS CARE

2.02.58pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 19th May 2009

Solihull's MP, Lorely Burt used Health Questions in Parliament to raise concerns for patients relying on out-of-hours NHS service for primary care in Solihull.

Mrs Burt questioned Health Minister, Ben Bradshaw after a German doctor providing out-of-hours cover accidentally gave a lethal overdose to a patient whilst working for the NHS in Cambridgeshire.

The doctor was convicted in Germany of causing death by negligence. He received a nine-month suspended sentence and £4,500 fine.

Mrs Burt asked the Minister for a statement about the standard of out-of-hours primary care in Solihull and across the country.

"Following the death of Mr. David Gray at the hands of Dr. Daniel Ubani, is it not the case that the Minister cannot give me an assurance for my constituents in Solihull, or indeed for constituents anywhere else, because there is no mechanism for assuring the quality and consistency of the out-of-hours service? Do not patients need some guarantee on what basic level of assistance they are likely to receive?" asked Mrs Burt.

Mr Bradshaw insisted that steps were in place to monitor the provider of Take Care Now, the service provider commissioned by the NHS, and a decision about their future use would be made pending the outcome of a Care Quality Commission investigation.

Mrs Burt said:

"I am very concerned that there are not sufficient mechanisms in place to monitor the efficiency of out-of-hours services.

"It's no good shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted, which appears to have happened in this case.

"It simply should not be possible for an overseas doctor to come to the UK tired from previous duties to go straight onto out-of-hours cover. There needs to be far more stringent regulation in place to ensure that nothing like this ever happens in Solihull."