DOCTORS gave a guarded welcome today to a Welsh government attempt to hold the NHS to account through public meetings.

Health Secretary Jeremy Miles’s decision to hold the series of public meetings with NHS organisations on how they are improving care and access was described as a “positive step” by the British Medical Association (BMA) Cymru Wales.

The meetings will be open to view online so that members of the public can gain an insight into discussions between the health secretary and health boards about how the NHS is run in Wales.

They will focus on how the NHS bodies are meeting waiting-time targets, their financial position and outlook and the quality and safety of their care.

Dr Iona Collins of the BMA Welsh council said: “We welcome the health secretary’s new accountability meetings as a positive step toward the transparency we call for in our Health in Our Hands manifesto.

“Allowing the public voice into the conversation is crucial for rebuilding confidence. The NHS is a service for patients, not vice versa.”

Mr Miles said: “I’ve organised these meetings as I want to improve accountability and transparency in the NHS.

“I want people to have confidence in the standards of healthcare and the performance of health organisations where they live.

“I want to open the doors to the NHS and increase confidence in the system.”

However, the BMA said there needed to be greater transparency and demanded that referral-to-treatment time be measured equally in Wales and England.

The doctors’ union said the meetings would focus on finance, waiting times and the safety crisis, but to tackle these issues effectively, the crisis in general practice also had to be addressed.

“Reducing hospital reliance includes the requirement of boosting the general medical services budget to 11 per cent,” Dr Collins said.

The BMA also called for legislation on minimal medical staffing and an end to “corridor care.”

Dr Collins said: “These priorities are the foundations of a safe, effective and sustainable NHS and we hope the Welsh government will use this new openness to work in partnership and deliver these foundational changes for patients in Wales.”

The first meeting will be held tomorrow with Cwm Taf University Health Board.