The Department of Health has published its framework for quality accounts and launched a public consultation on the proposals.

Quality accounts are reports to the public on the quality of an NHS organisation’s services, with a focus on safety, effectiveness, and the experience of patients. They will be published annually alongside financial accounts.

All providers of NHS acute health care in England will need to publish a quality account for the year 2009-10 by June 2010. Primary care and community services, including individual general and dental practices, are exempt for the first year but will have to produce a quality account for 2010-11 by June 2011.

Launching the consultation in a speech to the the health think tank the King’s Fund, the health secretary, Andy Burnham, said, “I want …