BMJ 1995;311:1383-1384 (25 November)

Editorials

Reforming England's blood transfusion service

Why the changes and why the delay?

The blood transfusion service in England is changing. In precipitating change the British government has unleashed an ill informed and acrimonious debate in the media and elsewhere. Although the change itself may be necessary, the process has been poorly handled, and delays in the implementation of decisions now risk damaging an essential service.

With the dissolution of the 14 regional health authorities in England and their replacement in April this year with eight regional offices of the NHS Executive, the regional blood transfusion centres could not have been left unchanged. The government's strategy was to establish a new special health authority, the National Blood Authority, to take their place. The National Blood Authority, set up in 1993 undertook a national review of the provision, costs, and structure of services.

Such a review was long overdue. There was, and still is, wide variation in . . . [Full text of this article]


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This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Oakley, A. (1996). Blood donation--altruism or profit?. BMJ 312: 1114-1114 [Full text]  
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