Doctors to be forced to declare all earnings from private work to make sure there are no conflicts of interest
Review raised concerns top doctors were prioritising paying patients over those being treated on the NHS
NHS doctors will be forced to declare how much cash they make from private work for the first time under new plans to ensure there is no conflict of interest, it emerged last night.
Hospitals will be made to publish a register of consultants’ outside earnings from April, to ensure they’re not short-changing the NHS.
About half of the 46,000 NHS consultants in England are believed to do private work, which tops up their average NHS earnings of £112,000 per year.
An NHS review expressed concerns that senior doctors may be prioritising private work and paying patients, and delegating NHS patients to junior staff bloating waiting lists.
Sir Malcolm Grant, chairman of NHS England, who led the review, told The Times: “We are looking into something that is quite a touchy subject.
“It’s an effort to surface some long-running concerns.”
He added that private work had been ";under the radar" for too long.
This decision comes amid contract negotiations between the government and junior doctors.
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The move comes as part of an NHS England effort to improve transparency.
However, Neil Tolley, chairman of the London Consultants’ Association said: "If you’re a doctor doing private work, that will already be with the knowledge of your hospital.
"You are already showing transparency.”
He also warned that doctors would fight the plans, adding: “It will be very unpopular.
"What you earn in your own time is your own business and nothing to do with the NHS.
"We are very suspicious that this information will be used for political purposes.
"I don’t feel there’s any conflict of interest."
Under the plans, all clinical staff must declare how much they earn from private work.
This also includes payments from drug companies and outside jobs.
Staff who opt out of the register may have their contracts changed or be refused bonuses.
Sir Malcolm said: “We are . . . quite dismayed that some 30 per cent of practitioners did not consent to having their name disclosed.
"It just looks wrong.”
As well as transparency, the chairman is hoping to understand the financial demands and influences on the Health Service, explaining: "[I am] trying to make sure the NHS pound is used exclusively for NHS purposes and not for the illicit advantage of individuals"