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The Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) has urged the Government to strengthen its planned regulation of NHS managers by ensuring its new professional standards cover individuals who work for private providers such as those who own multiple GP practices or community pharmacies.

The PDA welcomed Labour’s commitment to professionalise leadership within the NHS, making managers more accountable for their actions following concerns that some have attempted to silence whistleblowers. The health secretary Wes Streeting said NHS managers who do so will be stopped from working in senior health service roles under the plans.

PDA says the Government needs to go further

However, the PDA said the Government needed to go further, warning its proposal to give the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) statutory powers to only ban NHS managers who have committed serious misconduct risked leaving thousands of employees who work for private businesses that provide health services vulnerable to abuse.

“Unless the definition of NHS managers includes those responsible for all NHS services, it will not improve patient safety in all areas,” the PDA said.

“In (private) businesses, very senior managers can make decisions that impact patient safety in tens, or even hundreds, of locations and therefore have consequences for many thousands of patients.

“PDA members know that in all such environments, the manager’s influence can have a significant impact on how patients receive care.

“Such managers may control factors such as workload and resource allocation, deciding on systems and working practices, managing the organisation’s response to whistle-blowing and other concerns, setting and enforcing targets and much more.”

The Government said it will introduce professional standards for NHS managers following a public consultation which closed in February and received 4,924 responses.

The PDA, though, said “it defies any sensible logic to claim that a manager needs to be regulated while employed by the NHS, but if their employer changes they would no longer need to be regulated despite doing the same role”.

Labour said legislation introducing professional standards and regulation of NHS managers will be put before parliament next year.