Unlocking potential

Ministers believe their reforms will lead to better care Primary care trusts, clinical senates and commissioning groups. The list goes on.

And yet, for most people, these terms will mean very little.

The government's NHS reform programme in England has been an epic saga. But it has almost entirely focused on structural changes and policy U-turns rather than the patient experience.

In truth, that is because the immediate effect on patients is hardly noticeable.

But in the long term the reforms could - if the government is right - herald a whole new era of health care.

The government has pushed ahead with the changes in the belief that they will help meet the twin challenge of rising demands and tightening budgets.

The simple response to such a scenario - and the one that ministers are keen to avoid - is rising waiting lists and ever-greater rationing of services.

But the alternative vision is one where through better decision-making the potential of the NHS to provide more effective and revolutionary care is unlocked.

So how could the patient experience change in the next five or 10 years if that does happen?