Mediation in a Health Service Setting

Abstract

This chapter explains how mediation works in a health care setting in Scotland by focusing on the National Health Service (NHS), the country's largest employer with almost 158,000 staff. Health services are delivered through fourteen regional NHS Boards, each of which runs the entire local NHS system in its geographical area and ensures that services are delivered effectively and efficiently. Owing to its organisational complexity, it would be surprising if disputes within and about the NHS did not occur. This chapter considers what people want from complaints about care and opportunities for the use of mediation in the NHS system. It presents two case studies that illustrate: first, the emotionally charged clinical situations that often occur and the importance of maintaining good relationships when care is ongoing as well as the value of non-financial outcomes; and second, an example of one of the many kinds of commercial dispute that can arise in an NHS setting.