Responding the CQC Report – Protect, respect, connect – decisions about living and dying well during COVID-19 – Dr Henrietta Hughes OBE, National Guardian for the NHS, said:
“Decisions about end of life care are by their very nature personal and sensitive. Their complexity is one reason why it is vital that everyone involved in those decisions feels they have the freedom to speak up, and that they will be supported, listened to, and action taken when they do.
“This report shows how important it is that there is a consistent approach across the patient pathway to speaking up arrangements. It highlights how speaking up needs to be integrated across settings, healthcare boundaries and professions to provide clarity and confidence for workers to challenge and speak up if they feel decisions are not being made appropriately.
“We welcome that CQC recognise speaking up is as vital in Adult Social Care as it is in the health sector.
“We are funded to support Freedom to Speak Up for all health organisations that provide services under the NHS Standard Contract and NHS primary care providers who are expected to follow NHS England’s guidance on Freedom to Speak Up.
“Our guidance follows universal principles which can be applied across all settings throughout the health and care system to foster a culture of speak up, listen up, follow up across the patient pathway.”
March 18, 2021