Jump to content
  • articles
    9,839
  • comments
    83
  • views
    12,460,276

Contributors to this article

About this News

Articles in the news

 

‘I want to hide under the covers’: Female NHS staff suffering stress and exhaustion amid coronavirus crisis

Women working in the NHS are suffering from serious stress and exhaustion in the wake of the coronavirus crisis, a troubling new report has found.

Some 75% of NHS workers are women and the nursing sector is predominantly made up of women – with 9 out of 10 nurses in the UK being female.

The report, conducted by the NHS Confederation’s Health and Care Women Leaders Network, warns the NHS is at risk of losing female staff due to them experiencing mental burnout during the global pandemic.

Researchers, who polled more than 1,300 women working across health and care in England, found almost three quarters reported their job had a more damaging impact than usual on their emotional wellbeing due to the COVID-19 emergency.

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 25 August 2020

Read more

Patients endangered by ‘hazardous’ use of PPE

The “hazardous” use of personal protective equipment (PPE) required because of COVID-19 is contributing to the spread of secondary infections in intensive care units and other hospital settings, a leading expert has told HSJ.

Infection Prevention Society vice president Professor Jennie Wilson, said: “[PPE] has been used to protect the staff, but the way it has been used has increased the risk of transmission between patients. The widespread use of PPE particularly in critical care environments has exacerbated the problem (of patient to patient transmission). Unless we tackle the approach to PPE we will continue to see this major risk of transmission of infections between patients.”

Professor Wilson warned this was espeically worrying as the risk includes spreading antibiotic resistant infections among ICU patients. There is increasing concern these are developing more often in covid patients due to widespread use of broad spectrum antibiotics in the early days of the pandemic, she added.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 3 July 2020

Read more
 

Medical expert witnesses ‘should not scapegoat doctors’

Medical experts in cases involving doctors should have a mandatory duty to consider systems issues such as inadequate staffing levels to avoid them being scapegoated for wider failures, the Medical Protection Society (MPS) has said.

The MPS, which supports the the professional interests of more than 300,000 healthcare professionals around the world, says medical expert reports focus on scrutinising the actions of the individual doctor even when failings are a result of the setting in which they work.

Its report on the issue, shared with the Guardian before publication, points out that for doctors “adverse opinion can lead to loss of career or liberty”.

It references the case of Dr Hadiza Bawa-Garba who was convicted of gross negligence manslaughter in 2015 and handed a 24-month suspended sentence for her part in the death of six-year-old Jack Adcock from sepsis. She was later struck off by the General Medical Council before the court of appeal overturned the GMC’s decision.

Dr Rob Hendry, the MPS medical director, said: “In giving an opinion on whether or not the care provided by a doctor has fallen short of a reasonable standard, it would seem fair to the doctor that the medical expert considers all relevant circumstances. Any individual performance concerns must of course be addressed, but doctors should not be scapegoats for the failings of the settings in which they work. Sadly, we see this all too often in cases against doctors …

“Many expert reports focus solely on the actions of the individual without considering the wider context. In reality, patient harm arising from medical error is rarely attributable to the actions of a single individual. Inadequate staffing levels, lack of resources, or faulty IT systems are just some issues which can contribute to adverse incidents. Doctors confront these issues every day and have little influence over them.”

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 18 July 2022

Read more
 

Grim figures reveal the scale of healthcare decline worldwide

Startling numbers from around the world give grim statistical support for the argument that healthcare quality has not only stalled, but is in worrying retreat. 

Nearly 15 million deaths have been attributed to Covid-19 worldwide. All countries have seen waiting times increase and deaths from cardiac conditions and cancer rise. Mental health problems have been exacerbated, while the frailty of some elderly care services has left families unsupported. The global workforce crisis has been exposed, health inequalities amplified, and life expectancy arrested. Government debt has soared, and livelihoods have been lost. 

In a new report, health systems leaders from across the world – including the UK, Australia, India, Singapore, Canada, the USA and Europe – raise the alarm.

There has been a decline in the focus on quality by the leadership of health systems all over the world with an opportunity cost in terms of patient outcomes, safety issues and people’s experience of healthcare.

How do we shift from firefighting to a focus on quality of care?

Dr Mark Britnell, chair of the Beamtree Global Impact Committee report, makes a simple argument: the only way to reverse the retreat from quality is to march steadfastly towards it. 

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: The Telegraph, 26 July 2022

Read more
 

Whistleblowers’ lawyers “fear retaliation” over NDA

 

Lawyers acting for whistleblowers have told MPs and peers that they can feel intimidated to raise concerns over non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) because of the threat of retaliation.

Whistleblowers themselves have also accused employers’ law firms of using underhand tactics in employment tribunal cases, and the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Whistleblowing said it would move on to look in more detail at the role of lawyers.

The findings came in the group’s first report – focusing on ‘the voice of the whistleblower’ – which found that, although the UK “remains a leading authority on whistleblowing legislation”, the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) needed “a radical overhaul”.

Read the full article here.

Read more

Banning drinking water for staff on wards ‘misguided’, warns union

Nursing and maternity staff have reported that they are unable to have water with them whilst working, meaning some are unable to drink water for 12 hours due to work pressures.

The Royal College of Midwives in updated guidance are calling for "common sense" from NHS trusts and boards on staff access to water and other drinks, particularly as staff are having to wear more PPE than before the pandemic began. 

Dr Mary Ross-Davie, director for professional midwifery at the RCM, said: “Some trusts and boards have banned water bottles in clinical areas, which means that our members are often going 12 hours with no break and no water. We are appealing to those services to apply common sense, to recognise that this application of infection control is misguided and to look after the health and wellbeing of their staff.”

Read full story (paywalled).

Source: Nursing Times, 11 August 2021

Read more

Unsafe maternity care has cost the NHS £8.2bn in 15 years

Negligent maternity care in the NHS has cost taxpayers an “eye-watering” £8.2bn over the past 15 years, The Independent reveals.

Ministers face calls to urgently increase spending to ensure maternity units are safe for women and babies by providing adequate staffing levels, training and equipment.

New data, obtained by The Independent from NHS Resolution, which handles clinical negligence costs for the service, reveals that total payments made following settled cases and legal costs rose from £271m in 2006-07 to an estimated £920m in 2020-21.

The number of maternity claims being made by families has almost doubled in the past decade, rising from 391 in 2009-10 to 765 in 2019-20.

Recent maternity scandals at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust, East Kent Hospitals University Trust and at hospitals in Nottingham have all had common themes around poor culture, a lack of honesty and not enough staff or equipment.

The Department of Health and Social Care is exploring how it can make changes to the UK clinical negligence system to reduce the costs to the taxpayer. Health minister Nadine Dorries told MPs on the Commons health committee in February that the reforms would look “across the NHS… not just maternity, at how issues of no-blame, no-fault compensation and clinical negligence are treated”.

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 20 September 2021

Read more

‘Sheer desperation’ felt by A&E staff admitted by trust

An investigation into whistleblowing claims which described patients “hanging off trolleys” and “vomiting down corridors” in a crowded emergency department has upheld most of the concerns.

It comes after a staff member at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Foundation Trust wrote to the chief executive and trust’s commissioners after working a weekend shift within the emergency department at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby.

In their original email, sent in January 2020, the anonymous whistleblower said they were writing out of “sheer desperation for the safety of patients”.

They added: “I have never in my whole career seen patients hanging off trolleys, vomiting down corridors, having [electrocardiograms] down corridors, patients desperate for the toilet, desperate for a drink. Basic human care is not being given safely or adequately…"

“Your hospital is full, your A&E department is over-flowing, you are expecting staff to manage treble the amount of patients in majors and resus than they would do normally, without breaks, this is not safe. They cannot provide that care – which is evident.”

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 7 November 2021

Read more
 

World Pharmacists Day

Today millions of pharmacists worldwide will celebrate World Pharmacists Day, this year themed “safe and effective medicines for all.”

The annual day is used to highlight the value of the pharmacy profession to stakeholders and to celebrate pharmacy globally. It was originally adopted in 2009 at the World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

The theme for 2019 aims to promote pharmacists’ crucial role in safeguarding patient safety through improving medicines use and reducing medication errors.

“Pharmacists use their broad knowledge and unique expertise to ensure that people get the best from their medicines. We ensure access to medicines and their appropriate use, improve adherence, coordinate care transitions and so much more. Today, more than ever, pharmacists are charged with the responsibility to ensure that when a patient uses a medicine, it will not cause harm”, says International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) President Dominique Jordan.

Watch Dominique Jordan's video

Source: FIP, 25 September 2019

Read more
 

Stroke consultant shortage 'hurtling towards crisis'

Almost half of hospitals have a shortage of specialist stroke consultants, new figures suggest. One charity fears "thousands of lives" will be put at risk unless action is taken, with others facing the threat of a lifelong disability.

In 2016, Alison Brown had what is believed to have been at least one minor stroke, but non-specialist doctors at different hospitals repeatedly told her she did not have a serious health condition. One even described it as an ear infection. 

Ten months later, aged 34, she had a bilateral artery dissection - a common cause of stroke in young people, where a tear in a blood vessel causes a clot that impedes blood supply to the brain. She was admitted to hospital - but again struggled for a diagnosis. A junior doctor found an issue with blood flow to the brain but she says their comments were dismissed and she was told it was a migraine. It was only when she collapsed again, days later, and admitted herself to a hospital with a dedicated stroke ward that a specialist team was able to give her the care she needed.

Alison's case highlights the importance of being seen by stroke specialists. However, according to new figures from King's College London's 2018-19 Snapp (Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme) report, 48% of hospitals in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have had at least one stroke consultant vacancy for the past 12 months or more. This has risen from 40% in 2016 and 26% in 2014.

The Stroke Association charity - which analysed the data - says the UK is "hurtling its way to a major stroke crisis" unless the issue is addressed.

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 17 January 2020

Read more
 

Impaired consciousness: new guidelines aim to ensure people aren’t “lost in system”

Doctors who look after patients in a vegetative or minimally conscious state must ensure they initiate regular conversations with relatives about what is in the best interests of the person so that they do not get “lost in the system,” says new guidance.

The Royal College of Physicians has published new and revised guidelines on prolonged disorders of consciousness (PDOC) to take into account changes in the law and developments in assessment and management.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: BMJ, 6 March 2020

Read more
 

Consultants blow whistle on 10,000 ‘hidden’ follow-up cases amid trust merger

An acute trust is reviewing thousands of gastroenterology cases for possible patient harm, after details emerged of an ‘extremely concerning’ list of patients who have not had follow-up appointments for up to six years since being treated.

HSJ understands major concerns have been raised internally at Liverpool University Hospital Foundation Trust, over 9,500 patients who received treatment at Aintree University Hospital as far back as 2015, but have not had a follow-up appointment.

Whistleblowers have also contacted the Care Quality Commission, which has confirmed it is looking into the issues.

Well-placed sources said around 7,000 of the cases have “target dates” for an outpatient follow-up that are in the past. Around 20 of these cases were supposed to be seen in 2015 or 2016, with around 400 dating back to 2017, and around 900 to 2018, the sources said.

The remaining 2,500 cases either have no target date or have not yet had a follow-up appointment booked.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 8 April 2021

Read more

Doctors declare ‘lack of confidence’ in trust board

The medical body at Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust has written to the trust’s chair saying that it is unable to provide safe care and expressing a lack of confidence in the board.

The letter, which has been seen by HSJ, is signed by 140 of doctors at the mental health provider. It claims the trust’s “clinical services are unable to provide good basic care and are unsafe”.

Significant criticism is reserved for the trust’s senior management, with the letter stating “there is a general dysfunction with perpetual changes of key staff in executive posts and ever increasing layers of management” and that “major decisions are frequently made by a handful of people at an executive level without clinical consultation”.

The letter continues: “Doctors are by and large used as clinical workhorses. Many carrying huge workloads and holding unacceptable clinical risks”.

The letter, first revealed by BBC Look East, asks for an urgent meeting with the chair and states that the medical body “lacks confidence in the executive board to resolve the plight of NSFT”.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 10 August 2022

Read more
 

Don’t charge migrants for maternity care, say midwives

Midwives have called on the government to end the policy of charging some migrants for maternity care, saying it undermines trust and creates a climate of fear among vulnerable pregnant women.

A report by Maternity Action, backed by the Royal College of Midwives, says some women were seeking maternity care late in pregnancy, missing tests and treatments, or completely avoiding antenatal care for fear of charges and Home Office sanctions.

“Midwives should not act as gatekeepers to maternity services,” said Gill Walton, chief executive and general secretary of the Royal College of Midwives.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: BMJ, 9 September 2019

Read more
 

People in England ‘face three-year waits for dentist appointments’

People are being told to wait until 2024 for dentist appointments while others are being removed from their practice lists for not making appointments sooner, according to a damning report into the state of dentistry.

Dental surgeries have reported that they have thousands of people on their waiting lists, while patients are unable to access care after ringing round numerous dental surgeries, a watchdog has warned.

Delays have resulted in the worsening of painful symptoms and in one instance even led to a patient needing hospital treatment after overdosing on painkillers, it said.

But Healthwatch England said that some people are being offered swift private care as an alternative at the same dental practice, with some patients reporting that they felt pressured to pay for their treatment.

Some practices appeared to be prioritising private care, it added.

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 24 May 2021

Read more

‘Unfounded’ NHS criticism and investigation caused unnecessary deaths at London heart surgery unit

Heart surgery patients in London have died “unnecessarily” and faced increased risk of death as botched NHS investigations into dozens of deaths reduced a hospital’s ability to treat people, a coroner has warned.

“Unnecessary” patient deaths have occurred as a result of heart surgery at St George’s University Hospital Trust being restricted and emergencies diverted to other “over stretched” hospitals, following investigations by national NHS bodies.

The warning that deaths have occurred and may occur in the future, comes following the conclusion of a series of inquest hearings in March, during which it was found the NHS’ wrongly blamed a team of cardiac surgeons for the deaths of dozens of patients.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox, in a report published on Wednesday, has now said the “inadequate” NHS led investigations, which criticised the care of 67 patients, led to people being put increased risk of death.

The NHS’ investigations into the deaths of 67 patients ruled there were “shortcomings” in care. It led to complex operations being diverted elsewhere and doctors being referred to the General Medical Council. Two doctors have sinced been exonerated following GMC hearings.

According to the coroner’s findings, capacity within cardiac surgery at the unit is down by 60% and staff are becoming “deskilled.”

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 11 May 2022

Read more

USA: House Bill establishes Federal Agency dedicated to patient safety

Nanette Barragán, US representative for California’s 44th Congressional District, has announced the introduction of new legislation intended to establish a National Patient Safety Board (NPSB) as a non-punitive, collaborative, independent agency to address safety in healthcare. This landmark legislation is a critical step to improve safety for patients and healthcare providers by coordinating existing efforts within a single independent agency solely focused on addressing safety in health care through data-driven solutions.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, medical error was the third leading cause of death in the United States, with conservative estimates of more than 250,000 patients dying annually from preventable medical harm and costs of more than $17 billion to the U.S. healthcare system. Recent data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that patient safety worsened during the pandemic.

The NPSB’s solutions would focus on problems like medication errors, wrong-site surgeries, hospital-acquired infections, errors in pathology labs, and issues in transition from acute to long-term care. By leveraging interdisciplinary teams of researchers and new technology, including automated systems with AI algorithms, the NPSB’s solutions would help relieve the burden of data collection at the frontline, while also detecting precursors to harm.

A coalition of leaders in health care, technology, business, academia, and other industries has united to call for the establishment of an NPSB. 

“We have seen many valiant efforts to reduce the problem of preventable medical error, but most of these have relied on the frontline workforce to do the work or take extraordinary precautions,” said Karen Wolk Feinstein, PhD, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative and spokesperson for the NPSB Advocacy Coalition. “The pandemic has now made things worse as weary, frustrated, and stressed nurses, doctors, and technicians leave clinical care, resulting in a cycle where harm becomes more prevalent. Many organizations have united to advance a national home for patient safety to promote substantive solutions, including those that deploy modern technologies to make safety as autonomous as possible.”

Read full story

Source: Business Wire, 8 December 2022

Read more

Senior doctor accused of failures in case that gave rise to Martha’s rule

A senior doctor has been accused of wrongly failing to escalate the care of a 13-year-old girl whose death led to the adoption of Martha’s rule, which gives the right to a second medical opinion in hospitals.

At a disciplinary tribunal in Manchester, Prof Richard Thompson was also said to have provided a colleague with “false and misleading information” about the condition of Martha Mills.

Martha died on 31 August 2021 at King’s College hospital (KCH) in south London after contracting sepsis. In 2022, a coroner ruled that she would most likely have survived if doctors had identified the warning signs of her rapidly deteriorating condition and transferred her to intensive care earlier, which her parents had asked doctors to do.

Thompson, a specialist in paediatric liver disease, and the on-duty consultant – although he was on call at home – on 29 August 2021, is accused by the General Medical Council (GMC) of misconduct that impairs his fitness to practise.

Opening the GMC’s case at the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service on Monday, Christopher Rose said, based on a review of the case by Dr Stephen Playfor, a medical examiner at Manchester Royal Infirmary, Thompson:

  • Should have taken more “aggressive intervention” between noon and 1pm on 29 August, including referring Martha to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
  • Should have gone into the hospital from about 5pm to carry out an in-person assessment of a rash Martha had developed.
  • Gave “false, outdated and misleading information” in a phone call at approximately 9.40pm to Dr Akash Deep in the PICU team.

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 19 May 2025

Read more

‘Defining moment’ for nursing in the USA: Joint Commission recognises staffing as quality component

Starting in 2026, The Joint Commission will formally recognise nurse staffing as a national performance goal, meaning hospitals seeking accreditation must meet certain standards related to staffing and oversight. 

Under the new element of performance, known as Goal 12, healthcare organisations must have a nurse executive responsible for overseeing staffing policies and procedures. The goal stipulates that hospitals have a registered nurse on duty to either directly provide care or supervise nursing services provided by other staff 24/7. This marks the first time the organization has included nurse staffing as a core component of quality.

“There must be an adequate number of licensed registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and other staff to provide nursing care to all patients, as needed,” the rule states. 

The American Nurses Association celebrated the move, calling it a “defining moment” for the profession. The change also could influence how payers and policymakers approach reimbursement tied to care quality.

Read full story

Source: Becker's Clinical Leadership, 14 October 2025

Read more
 

Foundation trust to seek merger to avoid ‘patient safety risks’

A mental health trust is preparing to seek a merger or acquisition by another provider in a bid to address its financial challenges, HSJ has learned. 

In a message to staff, North West Boroughs Healthcare Foundation Trust said growing financial pressures were “likely to put the quality and safety of patients at risk”.

It said various options were discussed by governors and the trust board at a meeting yesterday, and it was agreed to pursue a “merger or acquisition of the whole organisation with one or more provider trusts”.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 12 September

Read more
 

Children's Society latest research: Lives on hold and what it means for young people's well-being

Over the past few months, we have been living in unprecedented and uncertain times as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Lockdown measures, school closures and social distancing have all had a substantial impact on the way we live our lives.

But, what have been the experiences of children, young people and their families during this time? And how has children’s well-being been affected?

Our well-being research

Every year we (The Children's Society) measure the well-being of children in the UK through a regular survey, with the findings presented in our Good Childhood Report. This research has shown how, since 2009, children’s well-being in this country has been in decline.

In our 2020 survey, we included a number of questions to gauge the impact of Covid-19 and the resulting social distancing/lockdown measures on children’s lives. The survey was completed between April and June, when the UK was in lockdown.

Our latest briefing, Life on Hold, brings together the findings of these survey questions about Covid-19, together with children’s own accounts. 

Read the full article and findings here.

Read more
 

Record poor performance ‘dashes hopes of near normal’

Unprecedentedly poor waiting time data for electives, diagnostics and cancer suggests the chances of NHS England’s ambitions for ‘near normal’ service levels this autumn being met are very unlikely, experts have warned.

The statistics prompted one health think tank to urge NHS leaders to be “honest that with vital infection control measures affecting productivity, and a huge backlog, there are no shortcuts back to the way things were”.

NHS England data published today revealed there were 50,536 patients who had been waiting over a year for elective treatment as of June – up from 1,613 in February before the covid outbreak, a number already viewed as very concerning. The number represents the highest level since 2009 and 16 times higher than they were in March.

Nuffield Trust deputy director of research Sarah Scobie said: “These figures are a serious warning against any hope that the English NHS can get planned care back to normal before winter hits. The number of patients starting outpatient treatment is still a third lower than usual and getting back to 100 per cent by September will be a tall order.”

“The increase in patients waiting more than a year has continued to accelerate at a shocking pace, with numbers now at their highest since 2009 and 16 times higher than they were in March. 

“Unfortunately, despite the real determination of staff to get back on track, some of these problems are set to grow… We need to be honest that with vital infection control measures affecting productivity, and a huge backlog, there are no shortcuts back to the way things were.”

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 13 August 2020

Read more
 

Coronavirus spread has ‘kicked NHS forward in adopting digital solutions’

The rapid spread of coronavirus has given the NHS a “kick forward” in the need to accelerate technology and ensure staff are digitally prepared, a GP has said.

Neil Paul, a Digital Health columnist and GP in Ashfields, said the need to reduce face-to-face appointments to prevent the potential transmission of Covid-19 has forced the NHS, particularly in primary care, to adopt already available technologies.

He said practices “still in the stone ages” and “technophobes” were less prepared for the current situation, but that it would force them to move into the digital age.

“It’s absolutely made my surgery go ‘right, how do we do online consults’. I think it actually has given people a real kick forward,” he told Digital Health News.

“I think in six months’ time my surgery might be very different in that actually we will be doing a lot of online and telephone consults where previously we may have been a bit reluctant."

GP practices across the country have been advised to assess patients online or via telephone and video appointments to mitigate the potential spread of coronavirus.

In a letter to GPs last week, NHS England urged Britain’s 7,000 GP surgeries to reduce face-to-face appoints for patients displaying symptoms of Covid-19. The preemptive move means millions of patients will now be triaged online, via telephone or video and contacted via text messaging services.

Read full story

Source: Digital Health News, 13 March 2020

Read more
 

‘Confidential’ document warns second covid peak could hit NHS five times harder

Modelling being used by NHS officials forecasts that hospital admissions could peak at five times the level seen in April without additional measures to control the virus, HSJ can reveal.

In all scenarios presented, covid hospital admissions would remain high for an extended period of many months, even if new lockdown actions were taken. However, putting multiple measures in place could contain them to a peak of less than that seen in the spring, according to the work.

They were included in a document marked “confidential” and included, apparently by accident, in public papers for Thursday’s meeting of Medway Foundation Trust board. Within hours of HSJ asking for more information, they were removed.

They were badged with Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group, the NHS body which oversees services for that area. The forecasts were marked as being “Kent and Medway level”, but were referred to as “regional scenarios”, indicating they may have been produced by regional teams of NHS England and Improvement. The trust’s board papers said its own planning for the coming months would make use of the three scenarios presented in the document.

Read full story

Source: HSJ, 7 September 2020

Read more

Performance management role stripped from ICBs

NHS England — not integrated care boards — will be solely responsible for the performance management of trusts, the chief executive of NHSE has announced.

In her speech at the NHS Providers’ annual conference today, Amanda Pritchard clarified the roles of NHSE, ICBs and providers — something many trust leaders had been asking for since the establishment of ICBs. A call for greater clarity in this area was also a recommendation of the Darzi review of NHS performance.

Ms Pritchard also told the conference the financial position next year would be even “tighter” than this year, despite local NHS organisations setting unprecedented and often unrealistic savings targets in 2024-25.

Explaining how the service would now be run, she said NHSE would carry out “planning, assurance and support”, as well as “intervening quickly, providing expertise, and using our regulatory levers where performance is not acceptable”.

ICBs would focus “on strategic commissioning” and “creating the environment for more action on prevention and for the neighbourhood health model”.

Providers would have responsibility for “delivery, quality and safety and on joining up pathways”.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 12 November 2024

Read more

© 2026 Patient Safety Learning. All rights reserved.

Patient Safety Learning is registered as a charity with the Charity Commission Registration number 1180689.

×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.