Section 20A Duty of NHS trusts to secure quality in health servicesF1

Each NHS trust must exercise its functions with a view to securing improvement in the quality of health services.

For the purposes of this section—

• “health services” means any services provided or secured in accordance with this Act;

• “quality” includes, but is not limited to, quality in terms of—

  1. (a)

     the effectiveness of health services,

  2. (b)

     the safety of health services, and

  3. (c)

     the experience of individuals to whom health services are provided.

Each NHS trust must publish an annual report on the steps it has taken to comply with the duty in subsection (1).

The report must include an assessment of the extent of any improvement in outcomes achieved by virtue of those steps.

The Welsh Ministers must issue guidance to NHS trusts in relation to the requirements imposed by subsections (1) and (3).

The guidance must, in particular, include guidance about—

Each NHS trust must have regard to guidance issued under subsection (5).