All Commissioning articles – Page 224
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      CommentDavid Nicholson on NHS incentives and ideology
My job as NHS chief executive is to help transform the healthcare system from a rigid top-down monopoly to a service that is much more focused on the individual needs of patients.
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      NewsPCTs 'slow to make decisions on business cases'
Only a quarter of GP practice based commissioning leads think primary care trusts make fast enough decisions on business cases, according to the Department of Health.
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      NewsHow Labour saved the NHS from the brink
Nigel Crisp believes that when Labour inherited the NHS in 1997 it was ‘falling apart’. After four years away from the service the former chief executive reflects on the successes of the last 13 years - and the missed opportunities. By Alastair McLellan
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      NewsSpecialised commissioning advisory body to be created
A national advisory body is to be created for commissioning specialised services and treatments for extremely rare conditions.
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      NewsNorfolk records major drop in bed blocking
There were up to 75 per cent fewer patients waiting for discharge on any one day across Norfolk this winter, following the introduction of a “capacity plan” to reduce bed blocking across the county.
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      NewsWorld class commissioning scores to top charts
The Department of Health is expecting the best primary care trusts to receive the highest score available under world class commissioning this year for the first time.
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      NewsSocial care integration drive
Joint commissioning of social care by primary care trusts and local authorities is likely to be made mandatory.
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      NewsBill Moyes teams with Paul Corrigan in policy talks
Two heavyweights of Labour’s health policy have teamed up with a think tank close to the Conservatives to argue for a curtailing of the Department of Health’s power and remit.
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      NewsDH action needed to fill gaps in NHS data
Filling huge gaps in primary care data is vital if commissioning is to become more effective, public health experts have warned.
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      News‘Preferred provider’ policy unravels
Health secretary Andy Burnham’s “preferred provider” policy is unravelling in the face of Cabinet concerns and the danger of breaching European procurement law.
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      NewsKidney profiles published
Kidney Disease Primary Care Trust Profiles, developed by NHS Kidney Care and the East Midlands Public Health Observatory, have been published to help commissioners assess local kidney care need and current service levels.
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      News£21bn spent on health inequalities has had little impact
There is little to show for the £21bn in annual NHS spending allocated to reduce health in-equalities, the Audit Commission has concluded.
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      HSJ KnowledgeNICE completes the commissioning cycle
Embedding clinical guidance into the full commissioning cycle offers support at all levels, from planning to procurement to public involvement, says Jennifer Taylor
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      NewsDH accused of 'backroom deal' over preferred provider case
Primary care trusts in the East of England have been ordered by the Department of Health to suspend all procurements for community services.
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      CommentNoel Plumridge on the rules of payment by results
A rules-based system. That was the aspiration in 2004 when payment by results was introduced to England’s NHS.
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      NewsMarmot might be fair, but will it be feasible?
The Marmot report, probably the most important document on health inequalities for 30 years, was published last month. But can its recommendations become reality? Steve Ford reports
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      CommentJenny Owen on a new solution to health and social care funding
A solution to social care funding must be agreed to get the most benefit from joint working
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      NewsHertfordshire PCTs merge into one
Hertfordshire will have one primary care trust from next month, following approval from the health secretary to merge the county’s two PCTs.
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      NewsNHS market reforms are not linked with better care
The introduction of competition to the NHS cannot be shown to have improved the health service, and may have produced extra costs.
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      HSJ KnowledgeNICE guidance: support for commissioners
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence supports commissioners in both preparing for and implementing its guidance, explains Jennifer Taylor
 
      










