Listening to patients in the National Health Service: a selective review of literature on patients' views about outpatient services in British hospitals.

An increased emphasis on quality assurance in the National Health Service (NHS) became evident in the literature related to health following the Government's White Paper, "Working for Patients" (1989) and the Patients' Charter (1991). The latter included specific quality standards to which purchasers and providers of health care made a commitment. This review of published and un-published (grey) literature concentrates on patient views about outpatient services in British hospitals, with special emphasis on the role of nurses. Findings indicate central emphasis on easily measurable factors, such as waiting times in outpatient departments and comparative neglect of more qualitative aspects, which may be of greater importance to patients. Specific attention has been given to exploring the role of nurses working in the outpatient department, which appears to be under-researched, based on this selective literature review.