POTENTIAL conflicts of interest among new NHS care commissioning groups (CCGs) in the region are “significant and far-reaching”, union leaders have warned.

According to a study by the British Medical Journal (BMJ), several North-East CCG board members have financial interests in private health care companies which provide NHS services.

CCGs take over responsibility for commissioning NHS services from next month.

The BMJ findings include:

• A member of South Tees CCG who is also a director of a healthcare social enterprise providing healthcare services in the North-East.

• A NHS Durham Dales, Easington and Sedgefield CCG board member who has worked for biopharmaceutical and healthcare companies including Astra Zeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, MSD, Schering Plough, Boehringer Ingleheim, Sanofi-Aventis, Sanofi-Pasteur, Otsuka Pfizer and Jannsen Cilag.

Further potential conflicts of interests were identified by the BMJ at Newcastle, Northumberland and North Tyneside CCGs.

Commenting on the BMJ’s findings, Glenn Turp, Royal College of Nursing Northern Region’s director, said: “This BMJ survey reveals the true extent to which potential conflicts of interest have been allowed to develop in our NHS and it is extremely significant and far-reaching.

“I believe it is unacceptable and unreasonable for those who are purchasing services for patients to have connections with private healthcare companies who are providing those services.”

He added: “It is important that the public realises the scale of this issue.”

The Durham Dales, Easington and Sedgefield CCG board member referred to in the report is chief clinical officer Dr Stewart Findlay.

Dr Findlay told The Northern Echo this week he believed there were sufficient safeguards in the new system to prevent conflict of interest problems arising.

A spokeswoman for NHS Hartlepool and Stockton-on-Tees and NHS South Tees said doctors and nurses involved in the CCGs were very aware of their responsibilities regarding potential conflicts of interests.

“We have good safeguards in place to ensure clear and transparent decision making in how we are spending public money on local NHS services,” she added.