Progressive wants a pilot trial in "clinical democracy" in health

The Progressive Party would like the next coalition government to pilot some of its ideas in public health service delivery, party leader Jim Anderton said today.

"If Progressive is represented at the Cabinet table after Saturday, we'd like to see a pilot district health board or two empowered to deliver a new kind of hospital service where health professionals are much more directly involved in DHB decision-making.

"We'd like to ask any District Health Board prepared to put up its hand in a trial of greater clinical democracy whereby health professionals would be given more say than they currently have in identifying public health problems, setting out solutions, and then being given the power to implement a plan of action to deliver," Jim Anderton said.

At present, DHBs do have clinical boards, but the Progressive Party's proposed pilot programme envisages empowering these clinical boards with a far more proactive role in making and implementing policy than at present.

"Progressive wants to trial empowering clinical boards of doctors, nurses and other health professionals with lines of communication to DHB chief executives and its pilot programme would scale back the role of non-medical management structures.

"We also want to encourage DHBs to ensure that health professionals in leadership positions and health professionals on clinical boards are there because they have a democratic mandate from their fellow health professionals." he said.

ENDS

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