The RCP has responded to government plans to enable patients requiring routine treatment outside of hospitals to choose between multiple services across the NHS and independent sector.
Responding to the plans, Dr Sarah Clarke, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said:
"We welcome any expansion in capacity in an overstretched NHS and that can speed up care for those most in need.
“However, it will be important that the staff providing these services are not diverted from other NHS services, that the services are part of system-wide quality management, and that the care records are connected."