17 Nov 2005
Dr Gill Morgan, Chief Executive of the NHS Confederation which represents more than 90 per cent of NHS organisations, said: "It is encouraging that the National Audit Office says 'notable progress' has been made in improving the quality of stroke care provided by the NHS.
"This finding shows that the extra investment in the NHS is being translated into real improvements in patient care. In particular, the report acknowledges that the new GPs' contract has 'improved stroke prevention'.
"Prevention is key because stroke has such a profound impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of NHS patients.
"The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) for family doctors was negotiated by the NHS Confederation and the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) of the BMA. NHS Employers, the workforce arm of the Confederation, is currently reviewing and improving that framework with GPC.
"Latest figures show that, under the QOF in the previous 15 months, more than 720,000 stroke patients had their blood pressure monitored and more than 615,000 stroke patients had their cholesterol levels monitored by GPs and their clinical teams."
The NHS Confederation recognises that, while the NAO report shows progress has been made in preventing strokes, it also highlights the need to spread 'pockets of good practice' in stroke services to the rest of the health service.
Dr Gill Morgan said: "The NAO report makes clear that stroke services in England are improving, which is good news for patients, but the challenge now is to maintain that improvement and ensure that the example of the best NHS services is followed by the rest."
Ends
The NHS Confederation represents more than 90% of the organisations that make up the NHS throughout the UK. Its members include the majority of NHS trusts, foundation trusts, primary care trusts and health authorities in England; trusts and local health boards in Wales; NHS boards and special boards in Scotland; and health and social service trusts and boards in Northern Ireland.
Contact Media Relations Manager Matt Akid on 020 7074 3306 or 07887 633344 or Media Officer Amy Darlington on 020 7074 3304 or 07767 770309 - out of hours please contact the on-call press officer on 07880 500726.
Last reviewed 9 Nov 2006