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Dixon-Woods M. 2024. https://tinyurl.com/wuucc4hu (accessed 20 December 2024)

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Tackling some of the NHS patient safety problems in 2025

13 January 2025
Volume 34 · Issue 1

There is a lot in the government's patient safety in-tray for 2025. The year 2024 was significant in terms of the number of consultations launched on key patient safety issues, including reviews of the NHS Constitution (Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), 2024a) and Never Events (NHS England, 2024a). The Duty of Candour review was launched the year before (DHSC, 2023) and it is among the government responses beginning to come through (DHSC, 2024b).

The terms of reference for the Dash review, published in October (DHSC, 2024c), will look at NHS patient safety organisations and could fundamentally alter the NHS patient safety landscape, hopefully making it simpler and more efficient.

The fact that these consultations have been launched demonstrates a government willingness to engage, be open and reflective on some key NHS patient safety issues and concerns. Whether these are then dealt with by root and branch reform, fine-tuning or moderate recasting remains to be seen. Taken together, these consultations represent an important roadmap for future NHS patient safety change that we should hopefully see in the coming year.

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