NHS surgeons with high death rates named

Britain’s medical director said that naming surgeons with high death rates will help in recovering public trust.

07:28 01 July 2013

Today, June 28, 2013, NHS published data on performance of surgeons– the first step to recover public trust. According to records, there are some doctors who handle vascular surgeries that have death rates that are 14 times higher compared to national average.

This news have worried some surgeons who feared that their reputation will unfairly tarnished. However, Prof Sir Bruce Keogh, national medical director of NHS England, said that the initiative had been successful at improving results when it was tried among heart surgeons. He added that the aim is to improve results and to help more people survive operations.

Speaking at Radio Four’s Today program, Sir Bruce said: "Public trust in a number of their great, cherished institutions has been under threat. Secrecy is not the way forward - transparency is. The vast majority of surgeons in our country offer results which are up to and in many cases better than the best international standards."

After the publication of death rates, several hospitals said that the mortality rates of their surgeons are acceptable when age and complexity of patient’s health are taken into consideration.