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Nattrass concern over patient welfare

Monday, 2nd August 2010

MEP Mike Nattrass has hit out at European laws which British doctors claim have impacted on patient safety in NHS hospitals.

The West Midlands UKIP MEP says he is deeply concerned by a new survey conducted by the Royal College of Surgeons of England which found more than three quarters of consultant surgeons believed the quality of care in hospitals had suffered following the introduction of the European Working Time Directive.

In the survey, published yesterday (August 1), 80 percent of consultant surgeons and 66 per cent of surgical trainees said patient care had deteriorated under the directive.

Two thirds of trainees reported a decline in training time in the operating theatre and more than a quarter of senior surgeons said they are no longer able to be involved in all of the key stages of a patients’ care.

Mr Nattrass says the poll’s findings underline the failure of the European Working Time Directive.

In June, Mr Nattrass praised a CBI report which attacked ‘damaging’ EU legislation.

Now, the new survey of 980 surgeons and surgical trainees, shows the Working Time Directive, which was brought in to improve patient safety, has ‘failed spectacularly’.

John Black, President of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: “To say the European Working Time Regulations has failed spectacularly would be a massive understatement.

“Despite previous denial by the Department of Health that there was a problem, surgeons at all levels are telling us that not only is patient safety worse than it was before the directive, but their work and home lives are poorer for it.”

The Royal College of Surgeons added the NHS is still ‘totally overstretched’ due to arbitrary hours regulation.

Commenting on the survey, Mr Nattrass said: “In June I warned the EU Working Time Directive was a threat to British jobs and the British economy. Now, the Working Time Directive has led to the deterioration in patient care in our NHS hospitals.

“Businesses are going to the wall thanks to unwanted and unnecessary EU interference.

“Hospital patients are now less safe than they were a year ago as a result of this interference.

“EU legislation is forcing people out of business and now it is affecting patient care. This is a totally unacceptable situation which is getting worse.

“It is time to leave the EU and make our own decisions over matters such as working hours,” he added.