Published: 03/03/2005, Volume III, No. 5945 Page 8
The forthcoming public health delivery plan will give strategic health authorities a key role in monitoring primary care trusts' performance.
Health secretary John Reid told the Commons health select committee last week that SHAs would also have to ensure that the government's 88 'spearhead' PCTs were making the fastest progress on targets such as smoking because they were getting 'more money, faster, and in areas with greater problems'.
The delivery paper, due to be published imminently, follows the government's publication of the public health white paper Choosing Health last November. Publishing the white paper, Mr Reid stressed that he did not want to see 'a plethora of new targets'.
Deputy chief medical officer in charge of public health delivery Dr Fiona Adshead told the select committee that the Department of Health 'was working closely with SHAs to ensure the right performance management and assessment' was put in place.
She said that a national public health support team was being established to focus on performance in key areas such as smoking, sexual health and obesity.
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