Sajid Javid tells NHS to send cancer patients to private hospitals to stop further treatment delays caused by pandemic
- Health Secretary reportedly told NHS at weekend to get private hospital beds
- Did so in bid to increase capacity amid a rising number of trusts experiencing staff shortages because of Covid casses
- Additional private beds will be paid for by NHS and include provision of some forms of cancer surgery
The NHS has been told to send cancer patients to private hospitals to prevent their treatment being delayed further by the pandemic.
The Health Secretary Sajid Javid reportedly told the NHS at the weekend that it needed to ‘urgently secure’ private hospital beds and equipment to increase capacity amid a rising number of trusts experiencing debilitating staff shortages due to Covid cases.
It is hoped that these plans will avoid future restrictions being imposed in England, The Daily Telegraph reported.
Additional private beds will be paid for by the NHS and include the provision of some forms of cancer surgery and other care not normally provided by the private sector under existing arrangements.
The Health Secretary Sajid Javid reportedly told the NHS at the weekend that it needed to ‘urgently secure’ private hospital beds and equipment to increase capacity amid a rising number of trusts experiencing debilitating staff shortages due to Covid cases
Some beds will also be made available in case Covid patients overwhelm NHS trusts leaving them unable to provide urgent care.
‘We are going to do everything we can to avoid more restrictions,’ a Whitehall source told the paper.
‘Our lines of defence through vaccines, testing and antivirals are crucial and holding up but we are also boosting NHS capacity as much as we can.
‘Sajid wants the NHS to make use of the independent sector if needed. The aim is to ensure as much capacity as possible is available to help the NHS get through the Omicron wave.’
The NHS’s use of private sector facilities has increased by 15 per cent on pre-pandemic levels in the last year and includes the outsourcing of almost 2,800,000 surgical procedures.
Some beds will also be made available in case Covid patients overwhelm NHS trusts leaving them unable to provide urgent care (stock image)
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