Archived Projects

These health and social care projects have been completed (see individual project pages for completion dates).

Assessing the evidence on polyclinics

A major piece of research to find out if GP-led health centres can really deliver better, more integrated care and bring down costs.

Building high-quality commissioning: what role can external commissioners play?

This project explores the role and impact that external organisations providing commissioning support services have had so far, and could do in the future.

Caring choices: the future of social care funding

A coalition of 15 organisations seeking to engage the public in debate about how social care should be funded and provided.

Choice at the end of life

The King's Fund evaluated Marie Curie's flagship Delivering Choice programme, which helps patients make informed choices about where they wish to die.

Commission on leadership and management in the NHS

With the NHS facing unprecedented financial pressures and about to undergo radical reform, our commission assessed the leadership and management needs of the NHS.

From Ward to Board

This project examined the role executive nurses can play to influence the clinical quality agenda at ward level.

General Election 2010

During the general election we provided commentary and analysis on the health and social care issues of the three main parties. You can still see the manifesto guides, audio and video content and key election questions.

Health Care Spending Review 2007

Our 2007 review of NHS funding and performance, led by Sir Derek Wanless.

Informed choice: helping patients make better decisions

This project explores whether or not comparative hospital data helps patients to make better choices.

Inquiry into the quality of general practice in England

The King's Fund ran an 18-month inquiry into the quality of general practice in England.

Kicking Bad Habits

How can primary care trusts best encourage people to change their behaviour and adopt healthier lifestyles?

Maternity services inquiry

An independent inquiry that began in late 2006 to find out what can be done make maternity care safer.

Mental health and the productivity challenge

This project explored opportunities to re-design mental health services in order to improve productivity, but without sacrificing quality of care.

Partners for Health in London

This project aims to assist health care providers in London to make explicit their ideas and explanations about how andwhy particular health care innovations work.

Patient choice: how patients choose and how providers respond

This project examines the implementation of the patient choice policy and its impact on the quality of service in the NHS.

Practice-based commissioning

Our research to assess progress against the main objectives and identify the barriers that are limiting the success of practice-based commissioning.

Predicting and reducing re-admission to hospital

Between 2005 and 2007, The King's Fund was commissioned to produce software tools and models to identify individuals at high risk of re-admission to hospital.

Progress made by the NHS in the past 13 years

Examining what progress the NHS in England has made since 1997 against eight criteria for a high-performing health system.

Quality and Outcomes Framework

Aims to examine the quality of the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) on general practice, public health outcomes and health inequalities in England.

Quality in a Cold Climate

The NHS is facing the biggest financial challenge in its history. Our Quality in a Cold Climate project aimed to support the NHS in delivering productivity improvements required to meet this challenge.

Reducing acute care bed utilisation

Analysing how acute care beds are being used in the NHS in England, and considering the pressure placed on availability by the NHS reforms.

Social care: reform of funding and delivery

Seeks to maintain the momentum for change to the funding and delivery of the social care system.

Technology in the NHS

Identifying what determines whether and how technology is adopted in the NHS, and how barriers to adoption and uptake could be overcome.

The 21st-century doctor

Aims to engage medical students around the country in the issues surrounding medical professionalim.

The future of community health services

Examines the issues faced by primary care trusts in determining the future of primary care services patients receive in the community.

Transforming NHS provider services through social enterprise

Identifying the challenges for health organisations considering becoming a social enterprise, and the support they will need from the government.

Understanding patients' choice at the point of referral

Exploring the factors which influence patients when making decisions about which hospital to attend for treatment.

Wanless Social Care Review

Looks at the challenges facing social care up until 2025, and the resources that will be needed to meet them.

Whole Systems Demonstrator Action Network (WSDAN)

Combines research and learning opportunities to examine the use of telehealth and telecare in improving the management of long-term conditions.