Health Management and Policy Alert

Review of adult social care complaints 2018/19

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman -
According to this report, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found problems in nearly two out of every three adult social care complaints it has investigated in the past year. It revealed it is investigating a greater proportion of complaints than previous years – and finding fault on average in 66 per cent of cases. In some casework areas – including those about fees and charging for care – the Ombudsman has upheld nearly three-quarters of investigations (73 per cent).

• Report
• Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman - news

Homing in on free personal care

Independent Age -
This report outlines the various reasons why free personal care can help provide the systemic change that social care is in need of. The report shows the scale of how many older people have had to sell their homes to pay for care as well as how the current deferred payments system is not working.

• Report
• Independent Age - publications

Who cares?: the financialisation of adult social care

Institute for Public Policy Research -
According to this analysis, social care's reliance on private bed provision is growing. The report finds that the private sector now provides 84 per cent of beds for people needing residential social care, up from an estimated 82 per cent in 2015. It also finds that larger providers – particularly those funded by private equity firms – are becoming more dominant. It concludes that a growing reliance on private provision could mean lower quality care.

• Briefing
• Institute for Public Policy Research - press release

Tackling fraud, bribery and corruption: economic crime strategy, 2018-2021

NHS England -
This document provides the strategic direction regarding tackling fraud, bribery, corruption and economic crime. It estimates that economic crime costs the NHS more than £1bn a year.

• Guidance
• NHS England - publications

The effectiveness and influence of the select committee system

House of Commons Liaison Committee -
This report celebrates the 40th anniversary of the formation of Select Committees, and examines their effectiveness. It concludes that Select Committees play a crucial role in holding the Government to account, but challenges lay ahead in ensuring they maintain their vital scrutiny role, while expanding their reach to include a wider range of voices in their work.

• Report
• House of Commons Liaison Committee - news

Financing health promoting services: an information guide

EuroHealthNet -
This document is the first stage of an online information tool on financing health promoting services. This document will serve as a basis for the online tool highlighting how to overcome existing gaps in investment in health promoting services by providing concrete, ‘out-of-the-box’ examples of how investment can be mobilised. The online tool is expected to be available before the end of 2019.

• Report
• EuroHealthNet - publications

Policy briefing: social care funding and mental health

Centre for Mental Health -
This briefing explores what a fair and sustainable funding settlement for social care needs to look like in order to deliver parity of esteem for mental health and sufficient funding to support people of working age as well as those in later life. It reviews the current funding and provision of mental health social work for people of working age in England. It finds that mental health social work has a vital role in helping people to live independently and to secure their rights and dignity.

• Briefing
• Centre for Mental Health - publications

Health care's climate footprint: how the health sector contributes to the global climate crisis and opportunities for action

Health Care Without Harm -
According to this report, if the global health care sector were a country it would be the fifth-largest greenhouse gas emitter on the planet. The report finds health care’s footprint is equivalent to 4.4 per cent of global net emissions and that fossil fuel combustion makes up well over half of health care’s global climate footprint. The report makes the case for a transformation of the health care sector that aligns it with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting climate change to 1.5 degrees celsius.

• Report
• Health Care Without Harm - press release

Holy alliances: church-secular partnerships for social good

Demos - 

This report (based on a survey of 120 church leaders, ten expert interviews and twelve case study interviews) shows that due to austerity, more churches are partnering with non-faith voluntary organisations to tackle local issues such as poverty, mental health and loneliness. Research shows that partnership working has led to a number of benefits including unlocking resources and funding, boosting impact, administrative support and assistance in targeting the right group.

• Report
• More detail

The Treasury’s responsibility for the results of public spending

Institute for Government - 

This report finds that public spending is often wasteful, with the government failing to set out clear spending intentions and taking decisions without clear information. It calls for a change in the role of the Treasury – in how it takes on responsibilities for the results of spending, and understands better the effects outside Whitehall. The Treasury needs to do more than simply set budgets – it needs to apply itself, consistently, to how money can be spent to achieve as much impact as possible.

• Report
• More detail