Social Care
Health and wellbeing boards may control £1bn under integration plan
Health and wellbeing boards could be given control of more than £1bn funding from the Department of Health budget under plans being considered by ministers and local government leaders.
Integrated care has cross-Whitehall backing
Government departments including the Treasury, the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Department of Health are “committed” to integrating health and social care, a top health official has insisted.
Relegate CCGs to advisory role, says Burnham
The shadow health secretary has said clinical commissioning groups should be relegated to an advisory role because councils were more in tune with their local populations than GPs.
Three waves of integration pioneers are predicted
There are likely to be another two waves of integration pilots, with a total of about 30 areas becoming integration “pioneers”, an NHS England official has revealed.
Nicholson: Transferring NHS funds to social care would mean 'radical changes' to hospitals
The government must accept “radical changes” to hospital services if it diverts more NHS funding to shore up the social care budget, the head of the NHS England has said.
Hospital transfer wait 'too long'
Older patients are having to wait for a month before they are transferred from hospitals to care homes, a charity has warned.
DH director general warns over diversion of social care funds
A senior Department of Health official has warned about NHS funds which are being transferred to local authorities being diverted to other services.
Queen's speech: Criminal sanctions for misleading NHS providers
The government will use its forthcoming Care Bill to make it a criminal offence for NHS providers to provide false and misleading information about their performance, it said today.
Labour care review lead not 'tied down' by NHS budget handover
Sir John Oldham, the chair of the Labour commission set up to examine ways of joining up health and social care, has pledged to keep an “open mind” on how the integration could be best achieved.
Exclusive: CQC reveals overhaul of inspection regime
The Care Quality Commission is about to launch a massive overhaul of its inspection regime which could see the best hospitals go five years without an inspection and the worst face intense scrutiny, HSJ can reveal.
Analysed: The way ahead for Wye Valley Trust
HSJ Local Briefing is our in-depth analysis of key issues facing some of the major NHS health economies. This week we examine the potential plans for Wye Valley Trust after it admitted it will not be able to achieve foundation trust status.
Exclusive: Caldicott to recommend new NHS duty to share data
The Caldicott review into information governance in health and social care is likely to recommend a new duty to share information between agencies where it is in a patient’s best interests.
Hunt to outline £75,000 social care cap
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt is to announce details of a plan to cap social care costs at £75,000.
CQC moves to assess trust leadership in response to Francis
The Care Quality Commission is to assess the leadership, culture and governance of acute services in the NHS and the corporate governance of private sector care providers, HSJ has learned.
Councils to lead key shift in care
The former council chief heading the sector’s efforts to improve living arrangements for people with learning disabilities has described the drive as a “seminal moment” in health and care services.
DH names new director general
The Department of Health has named Croydon London Borough Council chief executive Jon Rouse as its new director general of social care.
Providers to roll out integrated care across Kent
Integrated health and social care teams are expected to in place across Kent by April, as part of an ambitious county-wide plan to better coordinate services for patients with long-term conditions.
Cameron pledges to cap individuals' social care costs
PM pledges to cap care costs, as proposed by Dilnot commission
Older people 'betrayed over social care'
Older people have suffered “an abominable betrayal” over social care, a leading public health doctor has said.
More on Social Care
Podcast: The next five years for population healthcare
Dr Kevin Fenton on Public Health England and health improvement
Why CCGs must nurture local politics
Developing strong relationships with councillors must be a priority for CCGs
Patients see benefits of informatics in London
Four London CCGs have collaborated to tackle complex care issues
Competition is all around us – so why fight it?
Competition and integration can co-exist to provide a seamless health service
Ignore the integration naysayers
Guts, passion and perseverance are key to integrating health and social care commissioning, says David Smith
