The NHS was created out of the ideal that good healthcare should be available to all, regardless of wealth. When it was launched by the then minister of health, Aneurin Bevan, on July 5 1948, it was based on three core principles:
- that it meet the needs of everyone
- that it be free at the point of delivery
- that it be based on clinical need, not ability to pay
These three principles have guided the development of the NHS over more than 60 years and remain at its core.
In March 2011, the Department of Health published the NHS Constitution. It sets out the guiding principles of the NHS and your rights as an NHS patient. These rights cover how you access health services, the quality of care you receive, the information, treatments and programmes available to you, confidentiality, and your right to complain if things go wrong. The Constitution will be renewed every 10 years, with the involvement of the public, patients and staff.
Seven key principles guide the NHS in all it does:
The NHS provides a comprehensive service, available to all irrespective of gender, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief
The NHS has a duty to every patient it serves and must respect their human rights. At the same time, it has a wider social duty to promote equality through the services it provides and to pay particular attention to groups or sections of society where improvements in health and life expectancy are not keeping pace with the rest of the population.
Access to NHS services is based on clinical need, not an individual’s ability to pay
NHS services are free of charge, except in limited circumstances sanctioned by parliament.
The NHS aspires to the highest standards of excellence and professionalism:
- in the provision of high quality care that is safe, effective and focused on patient experience
- in the planning and delivery of the clinical and other services it provides
- in the people it employs and the education, training and development they receive
- in the leadership and management of its organisations
- through its commitment to innovation
- in the promotion and conduct of research to improve the current and future health and care of the population
NHS services must reflect the needs and preferences of patients, their families and their carers
Patients, with their families and carers, where appropriate, will be involved in and consulted on all decisions about their care and treatment.
The NHS works across organisational boundaries and in partnership with other organisations in the interest of patients, local communities and the wider population
The NHS is an integrated system of organisations and services bound together by the principles and values now reflected in the Constitution. The NHS is committed to working jointly with local authorities and a wide range of other private, public and charity organisations at national and local level to provide and deliver improvements in health and wellbeing.
The NHS is committed to providing best value for taxpayers’ money and the most effective, fair and sustainable use of finite resources
Public funds for healthcare will be devoted solely to the benefit of the people the NHS serves.
The NHS is accountable to the public, communities and patients it serves
The NHS is a national service funded through national taxation. The government sets the framework for the NHS and is accountable to parliament for its operation. However, most decisions in the NHS, especially those about the treatment of individuals and the detailed organisation of services, are taken by the local NHS, and by patients with their healthcare professional.
The system of responsibility and accountability for taking decisions in the NHS should be transparent and clear to the public, patients and staff. The government will ensure that there is always a clear and up-to-date statement of NHS accountability for this purpose.
