Squandered money endemic in poorly-run service

EXAMPLES of bungled money management and lapses in financial controls abounded when the authors of the Brennan Report went looking for ways of illustrating the criticisms they made of the health services.

They found plentiful cases where health boards and agencies had recruited staff without the authorisation of the Department of Health, failed to bill health insurers for treatment of private patients or had incomplete accounts or were late submitting them for inspection.

They included some of the most telling examples in the report, concluding: “It is not in the interests of anyone (service user, taxpayer, health professional, service provider or Government) to see this continue. We believe the case for reform is compelling.”