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I hope this initiative will support a culture change. I agree that the NHS has been built around staff. This is not meant perjoratively as staff who work in the NHS are very committed and hard working. However the predominant ethos tends to be a tad paternalistic and/or patronising. I have the utmost respect for clincial skills & knowledge but my health is my health. More often than not, when I use any health services it seems that I become the property of the clinicians.

I hope there will be some detailed consideration of what 'satisfaction' and a good experience is for patients not least because excellent 'customer care' could easily mask unacceptable clinical care. As well as knowing what standards of service to reasonably expect, I'd want to know what the likely outcomes of any intervention are likely to be so that I would be better informed to judge whether I'm satisfied with the service provided.

A culture change for patients is also needed - to take more responsibility (when able to/with appropriate support if needed) but this can't happen until the required pivotal change in the NHS. I'd be interested to know if there are better outcomes for patients when we have more influence and control over the care we receive. And, if so, is this more pronounced in particular types of service? It strikes me that this collaborative-style approach may take a little longer in the short term but could reduce time (& hence costs) in the longer term because there is a greater chance of care meeting individual needs.