Today the Centre for Health and the Public Interest publishes its evidence to the Inquiry into the actions of the convicted Breast Surgeon Ian Paterson.

This report sets out a series of recommendations to reform the private hospital sector in England following the Ian Paterson scandal, which left over 500 hundred women who underwent unnecessary breast surgery in two private hospitals maimed and injured.

This report uses findings from the Care Quality Commission’s new inspection regime for private hospitals to show that there continue to be risks to patient safety associated with the distinctive nature of private hospitals in England, compared with the NHS. In addition, the lack of systematic collection and reporting of patient safety data raises questions about the adequacy of the CQC’s new approach to regulating private hospitals.

This report brings together what is known about patient safety in private hospitals. It offers new insights into the number of patient safety incidents in private hospitals, analyses the potential risks inherent in the way that these services operate, and makes recommendations to improve transparency in the private sector.