Safeguarding Patients and Trust Assurance and Safety

Mr. Willis
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what programmes his Department has initiated to deliver policies outlined in “Trust, Assurance, Safety and Safeguarding Patients” since 2007; and what further such programmes are planned for the period to 2012.

Ann Keen
The Government have established the Professional Standards Programme to take forward the recommendations contained in “Trust, Assurance, Safety and Safeguarding Patients”.

Between now and 2012 the Government plan to continue with this programme of reform. Elements of the programme that are planned to be implemented in this period include establishing the Office of the Healthcare Professions Adjudicator and designing and introducing systems of revalidation for regulated health care professionals, starting with doctors.