Health Management and Policy Alert

Health matters: preventing cardiovascular disease

Public Health England (PHE) - 
This guidance aims to support health professionals to improving the detection and treatment of the high-risk conditions atrial fibrillation, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

• Guidance

CLeaR local tobacco control assessment

Public Health England (PHE) - 
This ‘deep dive’ self-assessment tools help local public health bodies take a more in-depth look at important areas of their tobacco control work.

• Guidance

Care and support of people growing older with a learning disability: quality standard consultation

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence - 

This draft quality standard covers identifying, assessing and regularly reviewing the care and support needs of people with a learning disability as they grow older. It covers all settings where care and support is provided and describes high-quality care in priority areas for improvement. The closing date for responses to the consultation on this draft quality standard is 5pm, Monday 11 March 2019.

• Draft quality standard
• Consultation responses

Local government spending

Public Accounts Committee - 

This report finds that local authority finances continue to deteriorate amid rising demand for vital services. The Public Accounts Committee is dismayed by the government’s view of what it constitutes as sustainability in the sector. It states that short-term cash injections are not good value and government must instead plan for the future.

• Report
• Press release

Cervical screening: implementation guide for primary HPV screening

Public Health England -
This guidance is to aid local providers of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in implementing high-risk human papillomavirus testing. It includes information on: roles and responsibilities; service reconfiguration; screening tests; quality assurance; training; protocols for screening; protocols for referral to colposcopy; and centralisation of screening laboratories.

• Guidance
• Public Health England - publications

Investigation into the management of health screening

National Audit Office -
This report finds that the proportion of eligible adults receiving health screening is inconsistent across different areas in England and that services are not operating to the ‘agreed standards’. The investigation focusesd on: delivery of health screening programmes; performance of health screening programmes; oversight of health screening programmes; and progress in implementing change in screening programmes.

• Report
• Related documents
• National Audit Office - press release

Government response to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee report on childhood obesity: Time for action, eighth report of session 2017–19

Department of Health and Social Care -
This command paper sets out the government’s response to the conclusions and recommendations in the Health and Social Care Select Committee’s report Childhood obesity: Time for action. The committee’s report covered the following areas: a whole systems approach; marketing and advertising; price promotions; early years and schools; takeaways; fiscal measures; labelling; and support for children living with obesity. The government’s response addresses each of these areas.

• Report
• Department of Health and Social Care - publications

Health matters: health and work

Public Health England -
This guidance provides actions that employers in general, local authorities, and the NHS workforce can take with regards to health and work.

• Guidance
• Public Health England - publications

NLGN leadership index

New Local Government Network (NLGN) - 
The NLGN leadership index is a quarterly survey of senior leaders from local authorities across the UK and it asks about their level of confidence in key service areas and about wider indicators of community wellbeing. This quarter's survey finds that there is a significant gap between what leaders feel that they should be spending on preventative services and what they actually spend, equating to an £8.7 billion shortfall in spending on prevention.

• Report
• Press release

Fit for the future: public health people progress report 2016 to 2018

Public Health England (PHE) - 
In May 2016, the Fit for the future review outlined five important themes for developing the public health workforce for 2021 and the plan for achieving this. This report outlines progress made to date against these recommendations.

• Report
• Further information