Adam Cairns

Chief Executive

2 August 2013

Tom Jackson

Clerk

Public Accounts Committee

Committee Service

National Assembly for Wales

Cardiff Bay

CF99 1NA

Dear Tom

Public Accounts Committee – The Consultant Contract in Wales

With regards to the further information you have requested on my submission to the Public Accounts Committee, I have discussed the issue with our Private Patients Office and it is clear that patients who have been seen privately and assessed as being appropriate for surgery may be directly listed for NHS treatment without requiring further NHS outpatient consultation. This is the interpretation, difficult though it is to understand, that our staff have taken from the regulations.

There may be examples where the initial private consultation has not completed diagnostic workup, which may be more appropriate for non-surgical specialties such as Medicine, where the patient would be referred for further NHS outpatient consultation to complete that diagnostic workup and plan treatment.

Once again, although this appears to be a means by which patients can avoid their NHS outpatient waiting list, this is the interpretation that we believe is correct from the current regulations. I am more than happy to discuss further, it would be perhaps useful to get interpretation from other Health Boards as to their view and interpretation of and scale of this problem, although numbers are difficult to judge.  I hope that this information is helpful, please let me know if you require anything further.

Yours sincerely

Adam Cairns

Chief Executive