Elective surgery: differing outcomes between NHS and independent hospitals

Findings published in BMJ Quality & Safety from the University of Birmingham (UK) have highlighted differences in a limited amount of patient outcomes, including length of stay and re-admissions, between independent hospitals and public NHS hospitals.  Since 2009, patients have been able to exercise active choices in where elective treatments take place. Over time, the number of patients deciding to attend independent hospitals has increased, following a growth in NHS expenditure on private sector hospitals from 2006–2007 (3%) to 2015–2016 (7.5%).  To assess differences between public NHS and independent hospitals, the researchers utilized data from the national Hospital Episode Statistics for 18 non-urgent surgical procedures that occurred between 2006 to 2019. The treatments included wisdom...