Poor care risk " to 1 in 4 hospitals
Call for a good cause of NHS make trouble
Doctors and nurses found guilty of " willful neglect " of patients could face prison , the government is proposing .

                             

Be intentional neglect an offense under NHS changes unveiled next week after the Mid Staffordshire nursing and other scandals.

The offense is modeled on a prison sentence of up to five years in prison under the Mental Capacity Act .

Doctors' leaders said the threat of criminal sanctions could create a climate of fear in the NHS .

The government's proposals
are to be unveiled at next week.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the ill- health of workers and abused patients would be " the full force of the law" encounter in a package of measures .

Advanced law
A consultation extent to which the sentence should be applied to the extended law will be implemented over the next few months by the Department of Health.

Downing Street said the proposals would apply to the health of workers across the UK as it is . A change in the criminal law , which would not be affected by the decentralization of the health

The move was one of the central recommendations of a review of patient safety by Minister for knowledge that hundreds unacceptable treatment suffered Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust commissioned.

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People make mistakes - you can not change the human condition , but you can help people in systems with "

Dr Maureen Baker
Chairman of the Royal College of GPs
It was led by Professor Don Berwick, a former adviser to U.S. President Barack Obama, it was needed to avoid the worst cases of a " do not care " attitude, the " willful or wanton neglect or abuse " led said deliberately .

Mr Cameron said: "The NHS is full of brilliant doctors , nurses and other health workers who dedicate their lives to caring for our loved ones.

"But Mid Staffordshire Hospital showed that sometimes the quality of care is not good enough . 's Why we have a number of different steps to improve patient care and how we made bad practice locally.

" Never again will we allow, substandard care , neglect or cruelty , unnoticed ."

Shadow health secretary Andy Burnham said the proposal needed to be presented next to the package of measures in the public inquiry Sir Robert Francis report into failings at Stafford Hospital, including minimum staffing detail.

He warned against adopting a " pick and mix " approach to say against the government " . Package works "

He urged them to " be careful " to avoid insulting staff .


The BMA Dr Andrew Collier called the move " a headline-grabbing exercise "
The British Medical Association (BMA ) said the move could it harder for doctors and nurses , if they go against their colleagues in jail than to have a result.

Dr. Andrew Collier, co-chairman of the BMA's Junior Doctors Committee, said doctors to certain standards needed support and assistance not fulfilled .

" You do not need this new climate of fear . , You do not need to worry that they may be sent to prison are . Will learn from their mistakes and develop their practice what they need to do ," he told BBC Breakfast.

He called the move a " headline-grabbing exercise " and said that it was not on the other recommendations of Prof. Berwick, such as minimum staffing levels and changes in the culture.

' No Panacea "
Dr Maureen Baker, the new chairman of the Royal College of GPs , said the best way to ensure the problem is not caused was that professional security monitoring and support in place .

"Physicians , nurses - .. We are people people make mistakes you can not change the human condition , but you can help to keep you safe , caring and compassionate in systems around them to help them with the people," said them.

Peter Carter , general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing , said a change in the law on his own was " not a panacea " .

He added that legally enforced Staff would have a much greater impact on patient care , as they had in Australia and California.

But Julie Bailey, who founded a pressure group Cure the NHS expose shortcomings in Stafford Hospital after her mother's death there, welcomed the government's proposal , said: " Now it's time for the safety of patients is a priority. "

She said she wanted to hear other recommendations to staff and managers on criminal sanctions , which are converted to informants failed.

Last month, the World Medical Association, 102 national medical associations , condemned attempts by the government to control how doctors practice medicine, including criminalization of medical decision represents .

WMA President Dr. Mukesh Haikerwal said : " The WMA believes that physicians criminal acts that must not commit an integral part of patient care remain as penalties as all other members of society.

"Serious abuse of medical practice must be subject to sanctions , have usually through professional regulatory processes . Yet criminalizing medical decision is a disservice to patients and adverse effects on health care."