NHS chief rebuked over foundation hospital 'interference'

NHS chief executive David Nicholson has been rebuked over interference in the management of foundation hospitals.

The criticism from William Moyes, executive chairman of foundation hospital regulator Monitor, comes in a letter circulated among hospital chief executives and chairmen.

Mr Moyes says Mr Nicholson was wrong to have issued guidance to foundation hospitals because it does not fit with the "legislative framework".

Foundation hospitals are supposed to be largely autonomous from central government.

Autonomy over management is granted in return for improved performance on a number of criteria, but Mr Moyes fears centrists at the NHS are impinging on their independence.

In the letter, which according to the Guardian newspaper was circulated on January 31st, the Monitor chief says Mr Nicholson went too far in a letter of his own to all trusts.

He called for greater emphasis to be placed on the importance of infection prevention but did so "in terms which we felt could only be interpreted as issuing instructions", Mr Moyes wrote.

Monitor says prime minister Gordon Brown backed the foundation trust policy in his keynote NHS speech in early January, but is concerned this commitment is not being met at lower levels of government.

"It is essential that those who are key to delivering the government's programme of reforms work in a way that allows foundation trusts to act autonomously, but in cooperation with the rest of the NHS, and to use their new freedoms to deliver improvements in patient care in response to the needs of their local communities," Mr Moyes said.