NHS England launches consultation on changes to specialised services specifications
NHS England has today launched a three-month public consultation on changes made to a number of its specialised services specifications. The specifications set out what is expected of providers in terms of the standards required, and define access to a service.
Full details of the consultation, and how you can contribute your views, can be found at our Specialised services, consultation page.
2 comments
PCCS specifications
We would be generally supportive of the overall direction of travel outlined in the specification and change in terminology from HDU and PICU to Paediatric Critical Care Levels 1- 3. While there is overall support for a definition that shows a continuum of care, management and clinical colleagues have expressed concern that the lower levels of critical care will be overlooked and funding, effort and data collection etc will be concentrated at the advanced end. Clinicians in DGHs will need assurance that this will not happen.
Specific commentsare noted as follows:
Document E07/S/a Level 3, page 5 section 3.2 Service description/ care pathway the following additional bull point should be added ‘transfer from level 2 units outwith the hospital’
Clarification is sought re the Level 2 document supplementary note following section 3.3 – specifically whether Scottish patients who reside in Scotland but are registered with an English GP are included in this arrangement, as the scenario is similar to that referenced for Wales.
The PCCS specifications are confusing. I am not clear why level 1 general paediatric care should be labelled Level 1 Paediatric critical care. This is confusing to people reading the document and should be called general paediatric care.
Also the levels of care in the PCCMDS for level 1 far outweigh general paediatric care and are level 1 HDU care! This would be confusing if this was applied to level 1 PCC (Ie on a general ward.
More clear terminology should be applied!!