Health Service Journal
September 2006
View all stories from this issue.
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A proactive approach to the care home population
Admissions management: Leeds West primary care trust -
A&E under threat in shake-up
Plans for a major shake-up of hospital services in Surrey and Sussex are likely to include closing several accident and emergency departments. -
Admin error blamed for children's services' poor rating
A poorly performing trust identified in a Healthcare Commission review of children's services last week blamed an administrative error for its low score. -
Analyses show under-use of ITC capacity
Independent treatment centres have carried out fewer than three-quarters of the procedures they have been paid for, according to new figures from the Conservatives. -
Andrew Castle on the 18-week target
'We will not achieve the 18-week target by carving out resources for specific clinical specialties, as we've done for cancer, because 18 weeks applies to all conditions. We need something radically different.' -
Appointments chief apologises to candidate accused of ignoring public
A primary care trust chair who resigned over his treatment during the selection process has received an apology from the NHS Appointments Commission. -
Blair at Labour conference: 'Rebuilding not privatising'
The NHS is being rebuilt not privatised, Tony Blair told his last Labour party conference as prime minister. -
Burnham: come to table with councils
The future regulation of healthcare needs a closer relationship between the NHS and local government and a system that is 'less institutionally driven', health minister Andy Burnham told a fringe meeting on Monday. -
Burnham: three quarters of trusts coast on patient safety
Three quarters of trusts are 'coasting' on healthcare-acquired infections and will require marked improvements in performance or risk an improvement notice from the Healthcare Commission, health minister Andy Burnham told a Health Hotel fringe meeting. -
Call for more staff to meet intervention needs
Union Amicus has questioned how health visitors can take extra responsibilities to identify babies and young children at risk of future anti-social behaviour when they are facing job cuts and recruitment freezes. -
Cancer patients' concern about choice
Patients offered choice of treatment without medical explanation of the options can feel shocked and abandoned by their doctors, according to a Cancer Research UK study. -
Cancer plan needs revision, says King's Fund
The national strategy for cancer services should be revised to take account of technology developments and the ageing population, according to the King's Fund. -
Care heads for the high street as Blair courts retail kings
Tony Blair seems to have given his blessing to the expansion of companies like Boots into the healthcare market. As ideological rows about the involvement of the private sector hot up, Jennifer Trueland asks what the high street could offer the NHS. -
Celebs lined up for nursing role
Three television celebrities are working alongside nurses at Barnsley Hospital foundation trust as part of a new TV series that highlights the role of NHS nurses. -
Charities fear 'nuisance' penalties will discriminate
Mental health charities have expressed serious concerns about proposals to introduce new penalties for 'nuisance and disturbance behaviour' on NHS premises. -
Chief joins exodus from Scottish health board
The chief executive of a troubled Scottish health board has quit, it was announced last week. -
Chief quits as £23m deficit is forecast for trust
The chief executive of the debt-ridden Hinchingbrooke Health Care trust in Huntingdon has resigned, saying his abrupt departure is 'in the best interests of the trust'. -
Clinicians launch community ENT to fend off independent giants
A group of 150 GPs, practice nurses and managers have set up a social enterprise venture in an attempt to protect NHS services from being 'picked off' by the independent sector. -
Competition hots up for 2006 HSJ Awards
Primary care trusts in Croydon and Blackpool dominate the shortlist in this year's HSJ Awards, with seven nominations between them. -
Consultation on funding boundaries sparks fears over cost impact for PCTs
Government proposals for the funding of long-term care for people outside hospital will exacerbate the financial crisis facing primary care trusts, according to the NHS Confederation. -
Court orders drug rethink
A primary care trust has been ordered to review its decision not fund treatment with a cancer drug. -
Criticised chief secures new NHS post
A trust chief executive whose management style was heavily criticised in a report has found a post as a consultant at the largest teaching hospital in Europe. -
Cutting unplanned emergency admissions
To improve and provide personalised care for patients with long-term, complex conditions and to provide appropriate patient treatment pathways for them, Dudley Beacon and Castle primary care trust recruited three assertive case managers and one nurse consultant. -
David Praill on end-of-life care
On the surface there's much for hospices to be optimistic about: an end-of-life strategy due from the government, increasing talk about the importance of the voluntary sector, a growing awareness of current limitations in commissioning and a widespread recognition that excellent end-of-life care is for all. -
Decision to shut walk-in mental health crisis centre referred to Hewitt
A proposal to close a south London walk-in emergency clinic for people with mental health problems has been referred to the health secretary by local councils. -
Deprived areas score best at smoking cessation
Primary care trusts show wide variations in the implementation of their smoking-cessation services, and many have not consulted with patients and the public, says the Healthcare Commission. -
DHL secures NHS Logistics deal
The government has given the go-ahead to the controversial outsourcing of supply chain services to German parcel company DHL and US logistics firm Novation. -
DoH moots roll-out of central funds to local organisations
NHS chief exec planning radical shift in how central budgets are held -
DoH to tighten cost planning
Trusts are to be given tight new guidelines on capital investment to ensure that running costs of new buildings and equipment can be covered, and that new income can be generated from treating patients. -
Doubts raised about the practicalities of independent 'board' running service
The NHS has reacted with sceptically to plans floated by chancellor Gordon Brown and health minister Andy Burnham to devolve more power to the service and away from ministers. -
Dozens of PCT posts still unfilled
With just three weeks to go before the new primary care trusts officially take over, 53 are without a chair and no non-executive directors have been appointed. -
Drive to increase Asian vitamin intake
Asian children should be given vitamin D from birth to two years to halt the re-emergence of a deficiency in the UK, according to doctors. -
Encouraging exercise in people with diabetes
A pilot scheme developed by Guy's and St Thomas' foundation trust and evaluated by London South Bank University could help patients lose weight and manage their condition better. -
Exclusive: Audit Commission calls for 'radical action' to plug Manchester health gap
'Concerted radical action' is required to plug the growing health inequalities gap across Greater Manchester, a damning report has warned. -
Flint says 'one size fits all strategy' will never win public health war
National public health campaigns could contribute to a further widening of health inequalities, a public health minister has warned. -
Foundation trusts out-performing NHS trusts, says Monitor
Foundation trusts are out-performing NHS trusts on a number of key indicators and have a greater than expected surplus for the first quarter of 2006-7, according to Monitor. -
Four in five spearhead PCTs fall behind on inequalities
Four in five of the government's 'spearhead areas' are not on track to meet the government's 2010 health inequalities target, the Department of Health has admitted. -
Gill Morgan on why NHS values live on
The NHS was founded on a belief that the provision of health and health services is a moral and social duty of a civilised society rather than a commodity to be bought and sold. -
Golden wonder: making the most of the money
With the rate of investment expected to slow down from 2008, it is vital to use resources to extract maximum value from the NHS. Adrian O'Dowd investigates -
Government launches childhood obesity plan
Education secretary Alan Johnson has announced a package of new measures to tackle childhood obesity in schools. -
GP contract leads to sharp increase in A&E attendance
Hospital accident and emergency departments are facing increased demand as a result of the changes to the GP contract introduced two years ago, according to a study. -
Health Hotel: Beverly Malone on reform debate
The Health Hotel, a grouping of 36 organisations, seeks to put health at the centre of the political agenda by stimulating debate and fresh ideas at the three main party conferences taking place in the coming weeks -
Health Hotel: what about the workers?
As the UK's largest employer, the NHS should be doing much more to look after the health and welfare of its employees. Jeremy Davies reports -
Health secretary agrees to further consultation on critical care site
A row over the location of a new critical care hospital in south London has gone back to square one after NHS London persuaded the health secretary to re-open consultation. -
Healthcare Commission to phase in developmental standards over three years
Developmental standards for trusts are to be phased in over three years to allow time for organisations to adapt to the new requirements, following criticism of the Healthcare Commission's original proposals. -
Hospitals told to focus on food and cleaning
Health minister Andy Burnham has told hospitals to focus on food and cleaning if they want to win good reviews from patients. -
How to create real sustainable change in your community
To mark the launch of this year's Sustainable Communities Awards, Penny Harding explains how her project to create social inclusion in a deprived rural area won one of the categories -
HSJ50 2006: The people who shape the NHS
Welcome to the HSJ50, a new initiative from HSJ that highlights the people who, right now, have the biggest influence on the policy and practice of the NHS. The list set out on these pages provides a unique insight into the individuals and ideas that are shaping not just today’s health service but how it will look in years to come. -
Lewis wants national advocacy service
Patients need a national advocacy service to extend the benefits of choice to poor or excluded people, a minister has claimed. -
Lib Dem conference delegates queue up to lambast Labour 'interference'
Government ministers' eagerness to interfere in the NHS has left staff overstretched and misdirected money from care to management consultants, according to Liberal Democrats. -
Lib Dems divided on accountability
King's Fund former chief executive Baroness Julia Neuberger has been given 12 months to chair a review of Liberal Democrat health policy. -
Lofty ambitions: choice includes interventions and clinicians
Real choice is about much more than location - it can cover interventions and clinicians, too, as Jennifer Taylor explains -
Man at the top welcomes clearer role
The role of the NHS chief executive job is now better defined than it was in the past, said Mr Nicholson. The job was not about 'exhortation', he said, but about 'aligning the new system with organisations and people'. -
Managers too preoccupied with technical detail
Managers are too preoccupied with technical detail rather than the benefits that reform delivers to patients, said Mr Nicholson, and urged trust managers to 'move the discussion on'. -
Mass A&E downgrade predicted
Up to 15 hospitals in one English region alone may need to downgrade to ensure that all accident and emergency units can operate safely, a new study claims. -
McKinsey 'PCT support' bid sparks conflict-of-interest row
Management consultants McKinsey are bidding for a place on the government's controversial list of approved primary care trust commissioning support suppliers. -
Mental health: fitting in non-NHS providers
The role of private providers and the voluntary sector in mental healthcare delivery is going through a process of evolution as some services become less viable while demand for others increases. But, as the NHS purse strings draw tighter, how can a good 'fit' be achieved? Emma Dent reports -
Milburn calls for PCT elections and patient entitlements in law
Former health secretary Alan Milburn broke a three-year conference silence on health by calling for the election of primary care trust boards and the setting down in law of patient entitlements to healthcare. -
More addicts getting help
More drug users are getting treatment but the standard of it is still highly variable, a Healthcare Commission report has concluded. -
MP bids to halt A&E closure
A judicial review could hinder a provisional decision to close an accident and emergency department as part of reconfiguration plans. -
MPs demand rethink on IT as reforms 'sleepwalking to disaster'
Two members of the Commons' public accounts committee have called for the national IT programme to be dismantled and local IT decisions handed back to trusts and GPs. -
NAOM plans value for money study on Dr Foster deal
The National Audit Office is planning a value for money study of the controversial joint venture between the Health and Social Care Information Centre and Dr Foster. -
New NHS chief expects 'most or all' SHA areas to use independent sector
Strategic health authorities will be expected to take 'full advantage' of the Department of Health drive to introduce the private sector in commissioning primary care, according to new NHS chief executive David Nicholson. -
New NICE guidance on obesity
The latest work programme for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will include analysis on how to tackle growing obesity levels. -
New service to combat lack of NHS dentists
A new dental access hotline has attracted 200 calls in its first week -
New skills for new era of nursing
Nurses will be expected to work more flexibly and gain increased 'entrepreneurial skills' under an NHS plan to modernise their careers. -
News analysis: Are paid-up ITC millions being consigned to the scrapheap?
HSJ's ground-breaking analysis of performance by first-wave independent treatment centres indicates that more than 40 per cent of their capacity has gone unused, but the DoH is quick to dispute the figures. Alison Moore sifts through the evidence -
News analysis: At risk - the safety agency that failed to set the world on fire
With the future of the National Patient Safety Agency in the balance, Joanna Lyall looks at its track record and examines the criticism it has attracted from many quarters -
News analysis: Obesity - private clubs help PCTs achieve the figures they want
Referring overweight patients from GPs to the independent sector is a controversial approach but for many, joining a commercial group proves more effective in losing weight than drug treatment. Tash Shifrin reports on how 'slimming on referral' is working -
News analysis: Survey returns verdict on government action and priorities
With the party conference season in full swing, HSJ surveyed some of the organisations taking part in the Health Hotel series of fringe events. We asked for their verdict on government action and priorities, as well as how some of the major figures from across the political spectrum are doing. -
NHS Logistics vote to strike over transfer to DHL
Hospitals could be left without catering and medical supplies if a strike by 1,400 staff at supply agency NHS Logistics goes ahead. -
NHSIII launches 'high-impact' changes for GP practices
Every GP surgery in England will this week receive a copy of a new document setting out nine 'high-impact' changes that their practice should introduce to improve care and efficiency. -
NICE to weed out inferior treatments
The role of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is to be extended to identify ineffective treatments and to advise on reducing costs to the NHS. -
No easy answers on difficile: the problem of acquired infections
Dysfunctional governance and concentration on target-hitting rather than patient safety contributed to two infection outbreaks at Stoke Mandeville, says a damning Healthcare Commission report. Alexis Nolan reports on the problem that's bigger than MRSA -
Paul Cann on funding long-term care
Anyone who works closely with users of social care services cannot fail to be aware of the failings of the current funding system for long-term care. With an ageing population and crumbling care infrastructure, something needs to be done. -
PCTs ahead on practice-based commissioning
Primary care trusts are ahead of schedule for universal coverage of practice-based commissioning, with 173 PCTs classified as introducing PBC at the end of July. -
PCTs told to appoint professional executive committees
Primary care trusts have been told to set up new professional executive committees, although it is consulting on a new 'form and function' being introduced next April. -
Public split on treatment costs
One in three people believes the NHS should provide 'all drugs and treatments, no matter what the cost', while four out of 10 believe the NHS should provide the 'most effective treatment, no matter what the cost', according to the Institute for Public Policy Research. -
RCM calls for talks on midwife-led units
The Royal College of Midwives has demanded an urgent meeting with the health secretary over the future of midwife-led units. -
Refer to sender
With a clamour of suspicion from GPs over referral scrutiny systems, Daloni Carlisle examines a voluntary scheme which has met with widespread approval -
Rejected PCT leaders told to apply for less senior jobs
Primary care trust chief executives not selected for jobs running their successor organisations are being denied redundancy and told to apply for less senior positions, according to union Managers in Partnership. -
Report calls for 'test action' to plug Manchester health gap
'Concerted radical action' is required to plug the growing health inequalities gap across Greater Manchester, a damning report has warned. -
Report calls for 'test action' to plug Manchester health gap
'Concerted radical action' is required to plug the growing health inequalities gap across Greater Manchester, a damning report has warned. -
Richards claims improved cancer drug uptake
National uptake of cancer drugs approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has increased, with fewer regional variations in prescribing, according to a review. -
Royal Cornwall faces strike threat over job cuts to tackle £31m debt
Royal Cornwall hospitals trust is facing public protests and threats of strike action as it takes steps to deal with a projected £31m deficit. -
Safe as houses: quality of service
For debt-ridden trusts it may be hard to believe, but tough deficits need not be detrimental to the quality and safety of care. Alison Moore reports -
SHAs: NHS Logistics strike has little impact
Acute and primary care trusts coped well with the first one-day strike by NHS Logistics staff last week, according to strategic health authorities. -
Smoking bans in mental health settings
Implementing smoke-free policy in healthcare settings is generally popular but not always so in mental healthcare. -
Stephen Thornton on fewer hospital errors
Safer hospitals mean better-protected patients, an engaged workforce and better clinical measurement. Safety improvements cannot be achieved without sustained local and clinical engagement. -
Sussex hospitals face loss of acute services
Up to five hospitals could be left without any acute surgery or medical facilities under proposals being considered by the NHS in West Sussex. -
Sustainable Communities Awards expanded
HSJ's Sustainable Communities Awards, which recognise public sector achievement in the field, has grown. With 11 categories for 2007 - three more than last year - primary care trusts, local authorities, and other local partners will have a chance to be honoured for their role in delivery of sustainable communities. -
Tesco director named NHS human resources supremo
The personnel director of supermarket giant Tesco has been appointed as the new human resources director for the NHS. -
Union attacks selection process for top PCT posts as 'scandalous'
Strategic health authorities have been urged to give unsuccessful primary care trust chief executives 'transparent and appropriate' feedback on the reasons they have failed to secure a top job in the newly reconfigured organisations. -
Unison to rally against markets
The 'headlong rush' to introduce markets into the NHS must be stopped, delegates were due to hear tomorrow. -
Unsuccessful candidates for PCT chairs attack 'flawed' selection criteria and appointment process
The national programme to appoint new chairs to all primary care trusts has been criticised as biased, uninformed and hurtful by a number of rejected candidates.
