09 February 2001
In a study of health service indicators for 2000, the lobbyists' magazine, Health Which?, added that even if the information was useful, patients' right to choose a hospital or doctor was severely limited.
Patients could not discover how their GP practice compared with others, while the compilation of hospital waiting lists by 'lumping together' all procedures meant that patients could not tell which operations had short lists and which were longer.
'The performance indicators are not detailed enough to highlight differences in a meaningful way,' said Sue Freeman, the magazine's managing editor.
PFfeb2001
