In this report, we focus on what needs to be done to strengthen commissioning in the NHS, through an analysis of the problems with current commissioning arrangements. We begin by examining what is meant by ‘commissioning’ in the English NHS.
Under the Race Relations Amendment Act (2000), all public bodies, including NHS organisations, are legally obliged to produce a 'race equality scheme' explaining how they plan to eliminate racial discrimination and promote equal opportunities. This paper examines PCTs' race equality schemes to find out what PCTs are doing to address ...
The government’s proposed reforms to the health and social care system include clear aspirations for the voluntary and community sector as a provider of health services, a source of support for commissioning and a partner in tackling health inequalities. However, the reforms also present a number of challenges and risks. ...
Maternity services – in common with the rest of the NHS – need to focus on new ways of working to maintain and increase levels of safety and quality of care within the resources available. There are particular pressures on maternity services because of the rise in birth rates and ...
Since their formation in 2012, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have already faced formidable challenges, tasked with managing substantial commissioning budgets amid increasing financial pressure. In a further development from 1 April 2015, CCGs will now also be given the option to take up more devolved powers to co-commission primary care ...
The coalition government has made clear its commitment to the integration of health and social care in its proposals for reform. In the context of the intense financial and demographic challenges facing both health and social care, this paper offers a fresh assessment of the prospects for integrating health and ...
The aim of this paper is to describe the different forms of integrated care and to summarise evidence on their impact. The paper is based on a major review published by The King’s Fund and has been prepared in the light of the increased interest in integrated care arising out ...
This is a piece of independent research conducted by the authors at the King's Fund based on a Pfizer initiative. and Extending patient choice is central to the government's reform of the NHS. Patients will be offered a choice of hospitals for planned operations from December 2005 and will soon be offered choice in other areas of health care. This paper presents the key findings from ten focus groups held to ...
Although practice-based commissioning (PBC) receives widespread support among the main political parties and NHS stakeholder groups, implementation of this policy has been slow. The NHS now boasts 'universal coverage' of PBC but in practice this means it has created an environment in which PBC could flourish rather than one in ...
The King's Fund and the Nuffield Trust are working together to assess the implementation and impact of clinical commissioning groups. Between 2012 and 2015, we are following the evolution of clinical commissioning in six case-study sites and will publish the findings annually. This first report is based on fieldwork conducted ...