An NHS shake-up designed to give patients the right to choose the hospital for their treatment was ridiculed today after it emerged that information to allow an educated choice was not widely available.

From today, family doctors will be able to offer at least four local alternatives, including private hospitals, in a reform designed to drive improvements across the NHS through competition.

Critics have warned that introducing market forces into health care would cause popular centres to be overwhelmed while others closed.

Members of the medical profession are concerned that the move will put further pressure on GPs, who will he required to recommend treatment centres based on their personal knowledge and experience.

The urgent need for better information was highlighted in a Mori poll conducted on behalf of the Department of Health which showed that 80 per cent of people questioned knew little or nothing about the reforms.

Patricia Hewitt conceded that leaflets designed to give patients information on such indicators as star ratings, waiting times, rates of the MRSA superbug and cleanliness were not yet available in many Primary Care Trusts. A spokeswoman for the Department of Health told Times Online that most were now in the process of being distributed to GPs.

The much-heralded reform which Ms Hewitt, the Health Secretary, described as a "revolution" is aimed at shortening waiting times, improving the quality of care and transforming the NHS from a targets-driven to patient-led service.

By 2008 the choice agenda will be widened, with patients able to choose from any hospital in the country which meets NHS standards at NHS prices.

Ms Hewitt said: "It will get the less well performing hospitals actually to raise their game because they will see they will be falling behind in attracting patients compared to other hospitals."

Ms Hewitt accepted that although popular hospitals would inevitably attract more patients, they would also receive more money allowing the most successful units to expand.

Lord Warner denied that GPs would not be able to explain properly the choices available to patients because of pressures on their time and length of appointments.

He said that GPs would see on average about one person a day where there was the question of elective surgery - around five patients a week - meaning that there should time for doctors to discuss choice with them.

Alison Kitson, the director of nursing at the Royal College of Nursing, said that GPs had insufficient time to research the information required for patients. She warned that the reforms could actually erode patient choice.

"Fewer hospitals mean less choice for patients - and it is the most vulnerable members of society, such as the elderly, who will suffer the most if they cannot access hospital services on their doorstep, leaving them with no real choice at all," she said.

The Government’s 'patients tsar' , Harry Cayton , described the roll-out as a "really exciting moment" but again said that it was essential that good information and advice was freely available so patients were able to make informed choices.

Dr Hamish Meldrum, the chairman of the BMA’s GPs committee, said that information given to patients about hospitals must be kept accurate and up to date in order to avoid being misleading.

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) called for choice to be extended in other areas of the NHS other than for elective surgery.

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Steve Webb said the move would benefit the middle classes at the expense of other patients.

He said: "It is clear that wealthier people, and those with access to better information about the quality of services, will be able to get access to the best care.

"The goal must be to drive up standards across the NHS, and to turn around failing institutions, not just to allow the well informed to opt out. Turning the NHS into a giant market place creates winners and losers. The downside of shopping around is that some hospitals will go bust."

Although the Government has yet to provide information allowing comparison between various hospitals, the independent Dr Foster organisation published its most recent guide last month.

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