Gordon Brown outlines vision for more health and social care at home
Prime minister Gordon Brown has pledged to provide more NHS and social care to people in their own homes with new guarantees for cancer patients and elderly people.
DH dismisses own advisory panel's claims on procurement and competition as 'anecdote'
The Department of Health has dismissed as “anecdote” a report from its own cooperation and competition panel that warned a “significant number” of NHS commissioners were at risk of legal challenge because they were not following procurement rules.
Home care ‘could save NHS more than £1bn a year’
The health service could save more than £1bn each year by increasing the number of patients it treats at home rather than in hospital, according to a report seen by HSJ.
SHA steps in to GP branch row
NHS London has been criticised for delaying the opening of a branch surgery in Kingston, despite the cooperation and competition panel having already recommended its go-ahead.
Provider arms given timetable to vertically integrate
Most primary care trust provider arms will be expected to integrate with acute or mental health trusts by the end of March 2011, HSJ has learned.
PCT benefits from ambitious knowledge and skills framework redesign
A Yorkshire primary care trust has successfully transformed the knowledge and skills framework into a tool to aid workforce planning and boost productivity.
MPs told to ‘free’ PCTs of acute commissioning
Primary care trusts should be “released” from commissioning acute care and left to concentrate on improving primary and community services, MPs have been told.
Cancer care plans could cut costs
Primary care trusts could make significant cost savings by adopting a more personalised approach to the follow-up care of cancer patients, national clinical director for cancer Professor Sir Mike Richards has said.
PCTs face redesign backlashes as cost cuts loom
Primary care trusts face a tough year attempting to convince the public that service redesigns are in the best interests of patients and cost-saving measures are inevitable.
Andy Burnham gets personal with tailored care drive
Last month’s five year NHS strategy gave fresh political impetus for the NHS to provide more personalised care. Vital to making this happen will be a combination of consistent quality and collaboration with the patient, finds Moya Sarner
‘Avoid merger distractions’
The NHS must focus on patients when considering mergers with social care, the Department of Health’s new quality and productivity clinical lead has warned.
Tariff puts brake on acute admissions
Acute trusts will be paid only 30 per cent of the NHS tariff price for emergency activity above their 2008-09 levels, this week’s operating framework confirms.
Job cuts could see up to 5,700 staff go from PCT and SHA management
Up to 5,700 administrators and commissioners could be made redundant by primary care trusts and strategic health authorities next year, the Department of Health has indicated.
Two SHAs secure swine flu jab deals
NHS North East and NHS London have reached regional deals with GPs to vaccinate children between six months and five years against swine flu. It comes after negotiators failed to reach a national deal.
Kidney care improvement hampered by insufficient home dialysis, warn charities
The NHS continues to provide insufficient home dialysis facilities, despite overall improvements in kidney care, charities have warned.
NHS operating framework to offer mixed blessings for hospitals
Hospitals will only be paid 30 per cent of the tariff price for emergency procedures they perform over their 2008-09 volume levels, the Department of Health has confirmed.
Andy Burnham offers to guarantee nurses' jobs in return for less pay
Frontline NHS staff could be given a guarantee that they will be able to keep their job if they are prepared to be paid less, health secretary Andy Burnham announced today.
Andy Burnham confirms health and social care marriage
Health secretary Andy Burnham has told MPs that the NHS and local government should stop applying rigid rules about which services they each pay for, in direct response to HSJ’s revelation that the NHS is expected to take greater responsibility for social care.
NHS operating framework hits hard
The NHS operating framework for 2010-11 is expected to include “hard hitting” measures to cut the cost and number of hospital procedures and tackle inefficiencies in community health services.
Personal health budgets under fire
The NHS Confederation has criticised unsubstantiated “fervour” for personal health budgets.
More on Community Services
Thomas Hughes-Hallett on a better place to die
Despite significant improvements in recent years, care of the dying is too often a lower priority than saving lives.
How to rationalise NHS estates
Estates managers must develop a strategy to align with Transforming Community Services. Rachel Sudders looks at the issues they will face
Sophia Christie on a crumbling model of healthcare
Much health policy is about achieving a balance. A common tension is that between the popularity of “local” and the necessity of “strategic”.
John Deffenbaugh asks what next for foundation trusts
How would a Tory government bring up Labour’s young provider model?
The national standard for intermediate care
A successful pilot audit of standards in intermediate services is expected to be rolled out on a national scale, writes Lynne Greenwood
Liz Kendall on urgent care efficiency
More hospital admissions could be avoided if people needing emergency and urgent care were managed differently rather than just being taken to A&E
