This independent report was commissioned by NHS England as part of a package of support provided to primary and acute care system (PACS) vanguard sites by The King’s Fund. The PACS model is an attempt to bring about closer working between GPs, hospitals, community health professionals, social care and others.
These essays highlight a number of themes, including the value of taking a place-based approach to population health, the need for specific action on health inequalities, the importance of working closely with communities and the potential to use new places as a test bed for integrated care. The report concludes ...
Cities are playing a growing role in population health improvement and have enormous potential to be health-generating places. However, they also face considerable challenges and need to be governed in a way that gives all citizens the opportunity to enjoy good health. Drawing on international case studies, this report explores ...
In early 2009 The King’s Fund conducted a survey of primary care trusts (PCTs) in England, examining the use of external support for commissioning, and eliciting views on the world class commissioning programme. The survey revealed that PCTs are increasingly turning to external organisations, and the private sector in particular, ...
Since internal markets were created in the NHS, commissioners have purchased health care on behalf of patients and the public from a variety of competing providers. Commissioning was intended to drive improvements in the quality, accessibility and cost-effectiveness of services, but has so far largely failed to achieve these objectives. ...
Independent sector treatment centres (ISTCs) provide services to NHS patients but are owned and run by organisations outside the NHS. This briefing paper explains why ISTCs were introduced, and how they are funded, staffed and regulated. It assesses their impact so far, including the quality of their services and whether ...