NHS managers are being made ‘scape-goats’ according to healthcare campaigners.
In a letter which is due to be published in The Times today leading healthcare figures call for an end to “unfair criticism” of NHS managers claiming that it is “damaging to the interests of patients.”
Figures who have signed up to the letter include the British Medical Association (BMA) council chair Mark Porter as well as the heads of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), The Royal College of GPs (RCGP) and former health secretaries Stephen Rowell and Alan Milburn.
The letter states: “NHS managers are as dedicated to the service as any other group of staff.
“It is especially worrying that ill informed allegations and the use of lazy stereotypes tend to peak at a time of increased public interest in the NHS”.
It calls on politicians of all parties to treat managers with the same level of respect reserved for members of the NHS and acknowledges the essential impact management has upon care for patients and the public.
It says: “As leaders in health and care we know that NHS managers make an essential contribution to the delivery of high quality services to the people of this country.”
