Health Policy

NHS England, DHSC rejects reports that patients’ 30-year right to choose where they are treated is under threat

22.02.19: NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) have rejected reports that the rights of patients to be able to choose where they are treated could be under threat as part of major new plans to reshuffle the NHS care system. ...

NHS staff to receive ‘fast-track’ mental health support as part of wellbeing plans

21.02.19: The government has pledged to provide better mental health and wellbeing support for NHS staff as part of its ‘workforce implementation plan,’ based on the recommendations of Health Education England’s (HEE) Staff and Learners&...

Healthwatch: Long-term plan is just the start

06.02.19: National director of Healthwatch England, Imelda Redmond CBE, looks ahead to the future of the health service as the long-term plan takes effect, and outlines what her organisation has done, and is doing, to engage local health workers and patie...

Procurement can be a catalyst for system working

06.02.19: Sara Bainbridge, head of policy and delivery at NHS Clinical Commissioners, discusses some of her organisation’s work on integration and the long-term plan, and shares some practical examples. The NHS Long-Term Plan has confirmed that...

Maximising opportunity with NHS Open Space

30.01.19: NHS Open Space is an innovative new bookable NHS scheme centred on flexibility and getting the most value out of the NHS’s estates. With the project due to open in Spring 2019, Christopher King, NHS Property Services' (NHSPS) senior strate...

New NHS Alliance: Wellness and the power of community assets

30.01.19: Dr Brian Fisher MBE, chair of the New NHS Alliance, looks back at the New NHS Partnership Summit and reflects on how its learnings can help plug gaps within the NHS Long-Term Plan. In November 2018, the New NHS Alliance held its third annua...

Long-term plan: moving on up

30.01.19: Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, reflects on the NHS Long-Term Plan, and outlines the vital role the voluntary and independent sectors will play in the future of the health service. The government’s long-term p...

Hancock unveils antibiotic resistance action plan to fight ‘urgent global’ threat

25.01.19: The NHS has unveiled a five-year national action plan pledging to reduce its use of antibiotics by 15% by 2024 after the health secretary declared drug-resistant superbugs are now as big a threat as climate change or war. Matt Hancock, laun...

Patient groups in appraisals of NHS drugs receiving undeclared funds from manufacturers, review finds

17.01.19: Two-thirds of patient groups involved in the appraisal of drugs and treatments for use in the NHS received money from the manufacturer or a competitor that they had not declared, according to new research. The team behind the review is call...

Blanket winter bans could happen again as DHSC accounts mask ‘underlying’ NHS deficit locally

19.12.18: Hospitals could face another winter of blanket operation cancellations and MPs have warned that “urgent action” is needed in the long-term plan as the finances of NHS providers are even worse than the reported statistics. A repo...

The NHS Assembly: A moment to reset

19.12.18: The development of the NHS long-term plan offers a reset moment: a chance to develop a credible, sector-owned blueprint designed to improve care for patients and the public, argues Leanora Volpe, policy officer at NHS Providers. At a time w...

Delayed NHS long-term plan confirmed for January

17.12.18: The BBC’s health editor Hugh Pym has received confirmation that the NHS long-term plan will now not be published until January. Now confirmed that NHS long term plan for England won’t be published till Jan. — Hugh Pym (...

NHS England announces roll-out of evening and weekend GP appointments

17.12.18: Evening and weekend GP appointments have been rolled out across the NHS, with NHS England announcing that all patients are now able to see a doctor at a time convenient for them. An estimated nine million extra appointments each year will n...

NHSE and NHSI appoint leaders for its seven integrated region teams

11.12.18: Seven integrated regional teams that will “play a major leadership role” in the new joint structure between NHS Improvement (NHSI) and NHS England (NHSE) have been named. The joint directors of the new regional teams have been c...

New joint leadership team unveiled by NHS England and NHS Improvement

11.12.18: NHS England (NHSE) and NHS Improvement (NHSI) have revealed the first appointments to the NHS Executive Group, a new joint senior leadership team announced as part of “closer working arrangements” between the two bodies. The new...