12 May 2006
The new contract for senior hospital doctors has cost £90m more than expected and failed to deliver better services to patients, the King's Fund said this week.
In its assessment of the consultants' contract, A something for something deal?, the charity found little evidence that it had improved their productivity. It blamed a number of factors — the Department of Health did not produce guidance, the deal was implemented too quickly and existing workloads were underestimated.
It said the government miscalculated the cost of the deal in 2003, which has ended up costing at least £340m in its first two years.
Starting salaries had risen by 36% since 2001, putting great strain on trusts' finances. The fund said national guidance should be published, while trusts should link consultants' job plans to its strategic goals.
King's Fund chief executive Niall Dickson said: 'The government promised this contract would bring benefits to patients and so far that does not appear to have materialised.
'As the NHS finds itself under severe financial strain, there is an imperative to show that patients are getting value for money.'
Paul Miller, chair of the BMA consultants committee, dismissed the report: 'Blaming the consultant contract for the financial crisis facing the NHS is an easy option. The blame lies with an incoherent and inconsistent health policy, riddled with errors and misjudgements.'
A Department of Health spokeswoman said: 'There is still some way to go before we realise the full benefits of its implementation, but increasing pay rates is only one small part of the new contract.'
PFmay2006
