Opinion statement on the minimal acceptable standards of healthcare in cerebral palsy

Purpose : Recent studies have shown a marked variation in the standards of healthcare for young people with disabilities in different regions of the U K and even within the same health district. Equity in the provision of heal thcare is a fundamental principle of the NHS. However. this can only be mea sured against an agreed minimal standard of healthcare that serves as a ben chmark for healthcare purchasers and providers, The aim of the present docu ment is to develop a set of minimum standards of healthcare for children an d adults with cerebral palsy (CP). Methods: The document was developed in two stages by a multi-professional a nd multi-disciplinary group of practitioners in the field of CP. Initially. members of the panel jointly formulated a statement of what they believed should be the minimal acceptable standards of healthcare in CP drawing on t heir own experience and the published scientific evidence. In the second st age the views of some of the relevant professional bodies and voluntary org anizations on the draft statement were sought. The responses of these organ izations were incorporated into the final document if agreed by the panel. Results and conclusions: Twenty-two recommendations were made. These were c onsidered the minimum standards of care in a district general hospital. The emphasis was on the organisation and delivery of healthcare for children w ith CP, The statement is intended to stimulate debate especially in relatio n to the equity of service provision throughout the country and may be used to inform purchasers of healthcare. Similarly, it may also be useful to pr oviders of healthcare as an audit tool.