Julian Le Grand, London School of Economics and Political Science
David Nicholson, the retiring Chief Executive of NHS England, has warned against what he called “carpet bombing” the NHS with competition. For him, and others, less focus on competition is a good thing…
Getting the green light for NHS treatment - but who pays?
Flickr/Martin Kliehm
Since the 1940s our welfare state has been built around the assumption that it’s possible to distinguish between people who are “sick” and people who are merely “frail” or “disabled”. While we consider…
Everyone seems to prefer a big punch up.
Flickr/Peacay
It’s a traditional part of the theatre of health policy for trade unionists to give secretaries of state for health a hard time. The latest example of this was the vote of no confidence in Jeremy Hunt…
Competition and integration in the NHS are chalk and cheese.
Flickr/Foomandoonian
Foundation essay: This article on the relationship between health and social care in the UK by Bob Hudson, Professor of Applied Social Science at Durham University, is part of a series marking the launch…
A game of two halves: publishing performance can improve services but could also affect who surgeons choose to take on.
PA/Gareth Fuller
Gwyn Bevan, London School of Economics and Political Science
Data on hospital performance often shows a wide variation and this poses the question of whether it should be available to the public or kept confidential. The government wants more transparency and announced…
Bum deal: people in poorer inner city areas tend to get worse services, such as less access to GPs.
PA/Gareth Fuller
A new study shows an association between less access to GPs and high rates of attendance in nearby accident and emergency (A&E) units. It’s an interesting piece of work but risks inflaming an already…
Emergencies only but are people turning to A&E because they find it difficult to see a GP?
Flickr/lydia_shiningbrightly
New research linking less access to GPs and higher demand in Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments could ignite the row over the A&E crisis. The number of people visiting A&E in England…
Hear ye, hear ye: keep your hands off our hospital.
PA/Lewis Whyld
The public often suspects that the financial crisis is the real cause of hospital closures, even when other reasons are given. The NHS has found it virtually impossible to proceed with closing, or even…
Four hours in A&E? Haven’t you got homes to go to?
Rui Vieira/PA
Politicians and policy makers are blaming failures in out-of-hours GP care for the rising demand on accident and emergency (A&E) units. The number of attendances at A&E departments in England rose…
Tamiflu was stockpiled amid flu outbreaks and scares.
Rui Vieira/PA
Are you worried about how decisions involving public money are made? You should be. Last week, the National Audit Office disclosed that the Department of Health spent £424 million on the anti-flu drug…
The real problem in care for the elderly is not so much about protection from costs as eligibility for council help.
PA/John Stillwell
Despite a big overhaul in the way care for the elderly will be funded, there are still fears that it isn’t enough and we’re surely “heading towards disaster”. The government is keen to emphasise the importance…
GPs and hospitals aren’t incentivised to properly manage demand, which has contributed to the crisis in Accident & Emergency.
PA/Stephen Kelly
Our increasing use of hospital services is out of control and unsustainable and is contributing to the current crisis in accident and emergency (A&E). But the problem isn’t new and 30 years of NHS…
Angelina Jolie’s double mastectomy has sparked a series of reports about preventative surgery.
PA/Alastair Grant
Following Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie’s revelation last week that she’d undergone a double mastectomy to prevent breast cancer, it has emerged that a 53-year-old man had his prostate removed after…
It’s never easy when someone we’re close to is dying but there are things we can learn from the professionals who deal with this every day.
PA/David Cheskin
It’s not always easy to talk to someone who is dying. Conversations about future plans and wishes may appear insensitive and fuelled with great pain and distress when it’s somebody we love. For some, not…
David Cameron meets nurses during an NHS tour but the government doesn’t want to introduce mandatory staffing levels.
PA
Senior nurses warned this week that the number of patients looked after by nurses has become dangerously high in some hospitals. Quoting research from the University of Southampton, the Safe Staffing Alliance…
The convictions of Asian sex-grooming gangs have thrown social work into the spotlight.
PA/Peter Byrne
The conviction of seven men for rape, child prostitution and trafficking in Oxford on Tuesday brings to an end another horrific case of child sexual exploitation. Social services were again in the firing…
Deputy Director, Intellectual Forum at Jesus College in the University of Cambridge, and Researcher for the Department of Social and Political Sciences, Bocconi University, University of Cambridge