ABSTRACT
Mediation is the art of reconciling, of making connections and links, and of bringing together what is separated. The mediator must make the links, clarify the issues and draw together what is separated, not least linking between the proper demands of the patient and the wider world of the National Health Service. A covenanter is someone who enters voluntarily into relationships with others based on trust and mutuality. Patients come to their doctor with many different needs at different times and places in their lives. They feel ill-equipped to make decisions, either because they lack the necessary information or because their illness hinders their capacity to make effective decisions. The new general practitioners will also be asked to comment on and take decisions about the wider provision of health services – as those actively involved in commissioning services within the context of a primary care group or a primary care trusts.
