Health Management and Policy Alert

Exploring variations in the opportunity cost cost-effectiveness threshold by clinical area: results from a feasibility study in England

Office of Health Economics -
This research paper provides empirical evidence on the relationship between health outcomes and health expenditures in England. Results suggest that setting a cost-effectiveness criterion for NICE may not be capable of being synthesised using scientific methods alone, but involve political judgements.

• Research paper
• Office of Health Economics - news

Clinically-led review of NHS access standards: interim report from the NHS National Medical Director

NHS England - 

In 2018 Professor Stephen Powis, NHS National Medical Director, was asked to carry out a clinical review of standards across the NHS, with the aim of determining whether patients would be well served by updating and supplementing some of the older targets currently in use. In this interim report, Professor Powis sets out his recommendations for doing so.

• Report
• More detail

Age UK’s Personalised Integrated Care Programme: evaluation of impact on hospital activity

Nuffield Trust -
Age UK’s Personalised Integrated Care Programme (PICP) aims to improve the lives of older people through practical support, underpinned by a change in the way that the health and care system works together for these people locally. This report analyses the hospital use of 1,996 older people who had received a service from PICP in eight areas in England, compares their activity to that of a carefully selected control group. The research concludes that it has almost certainly not been able to reduce costs or emergency admissions. However, the results suggest that the scheme may be identifying unmet need in the population, which manifests in greater use of hospital care.

• Report
• Nuffield Trust - 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

Patient and community engagement indicator guidance

NHS England - 
This guidance aims to support clinical commissioning groups to identify and compile evidence on patient and community involvement for the CCG Improvement and Assessment Framework. 

• Guidance

The NHS long-term plan explained

The King's Fund -
On 7 January, the NHS long-term plan (formerly known as the ten-year plan) was published setting out key ambitions for the service over the next ten years. This explainer sets out the main commitments in the plan and provides a view of what they might mean, highlighting the opportunities and challenges for the health and care system as it moves to put the plan into practice.

• Read it now

High intensity users: reducing the burden on accident & emergency departments

Dr Foster - 

Dr Foster carried out a detailed analysis of accident and emergency (A&E) attendances nationally with the aim of uncovering common characteristics of high intensity users (HIUs) - people who attended ten or more times in a twelve-month period - and patterns in HIU attendances to provide valuable insight and a better understanding of the reasons they attend with such high frequency.

• Report
• More detail

Workforce briefing - winter 2018

Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health -
This briefing reveals that patient demand is strongly outstripping the supply of doctors as the usual seasonal increase combined with a rise in children’s emergency admissions is placing unprecedented demand on services. It highlights some of the key findings from the College's Workforce census 2017 and provides recommendations for the future of the paediatric and child health workforce.

• Briefing
• Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health - news

How is the NHS performing? December 2018 quarterly monitoring report

The King's Fund -
Eight out of ten NHS trust finance directors say that funding pressures have led to longer waiting times for people who need mental health treatment, finds our latest quarterly monitoring report. This report once more finds that patients are waiting too long for care and NHS trusts and CCGs remain under tremendous financial pressure. Midway through 2018/19 we are seeing waits for routine and emergency care that have not been seen for a decade, and half of NHS providers are forecasting a financial deficit.

• Report
• The King's Fund - press release

Winter 2018/19 in the NHS: the solutions

Society for Acute Medicine -
This report calls on the government and NHS leaders to “realise urgently” the potential of ambulatory emergency care. It warns that the NHS is “on borrowed time” as winter approaches but says better use of same-day emergency clinics could save at least 14,000 overnight hospital stays.

• Report
• Society for Acute Medicine - news