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Approaches to demand management: commissioning in a cold climate

28 Oct 2010

Candace Imison, Sarah Gregory

This write-up summarises presentations made at a seminar, which brought together commissioners, policy-makers, providers and others to consider some of the available evidence about demand management.

How to deliver high-quality, patient-centred, cost-effective care

16 Sep 2010

This article is the collective effort of ten of the leading health and social care organisations in the voluntary sector to identify the five key themes that the health and social care system must embrace to be sustainable and to ensure quality.

Supporting staff to deliver compassionate care using Schwartz Center Rounds - a UK pilot

18 Jun 2010

Jocelyn Cornwell, Joanna Goodrich

Staff who feel supported deliver better care. This article explores how a US system, which encourages sharing of experiences, is being piloted in the UK.

Helping patients choose: how to improve the design of comparative scorecards of hospital quality

18 May 2010

Anna Dixon, Tammy Boyce, Barbara Fasolo, Elena Reutskaja

In this article, we investigate how the public understand comparative quality information as presented on NHS Choices.

Caring for patients means caring for nurses

16 Mar 2010

Jocelyn Cornwell

As far as patient and staff experiences are concerned, no problem is too small. As well as tackling the issues, leaders must involve their teams in the solutions.

In praise of compassion

30 Jan 2010

Jocelyn Cornwell, Jill Maben, Kieran Sweeney

Compassion, in its original meaning in Latin, means 'with suffering'. Compassion is usually expressed towards others when we experience their suffering, being there with them in some way that makes their pain more bearable (Firth-Cozens and Cornwell, 2009).

See the person in the health professional: how looking after staff benefits patients

4 Dec 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell

Improving staff experience is an essential step towards providing high-quality care.

A patient's journey: Mesothelioma

14 Aug 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell, Kieran Sweeney, Liz Toy

Professor Kieran Sweeney was diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma at age 57. He describes here his thoughts on his interactions with the health professionals who care for him.

Exploring how to measure patients' experience of care in hospital to improve services

27 Jul 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell, Joanna Goodrich

With the new requirement that patients' experience of care be measured as part of the drive to improve quality across the NHS, acute trusts face the challenge of choosing from a potentially dizzying array of options for carrying this out.

What's the difference between a hospital and a bottling factory?

20 Jul 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell, Alec Morton

Efficient processes are essential to good and cost effective care. But health services need to look beyond manufacturing for models.

Exploring how to enable compassionate care in hospital to improve patient experience

21 Apr 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell, Joanna Goodrich

This article is the first in a series by the Point of Care programme looking at practical interventions to improve patients' experiences of care.

Enabling compassionate care in acute hospital settings

1 Apr 2009

Jocelyn Cornwell, Jenny Firth-Cozens

In December 2008 we published a review paper to launch the programme, Seeing the Person in the Patient, which drew on available published research and our own qualitative research with patients, their families and staff.

Q&A on the Operating Framework for NHS leaders

16 Dec 2008

Karen Lynas

How can chief executives seize the new freedoms offered by David Nicholson and the Operating Framework? The King's Fund Director of Leadership Development, Karen Lynas offers some advice.

Quality in a cold climate: is the NHS on course?

16 Dec 2008

Anna Dixon

Anna Dixon questions whether the Outcomes Framework offers a coherent guide to help steer the health service through the more difficult financial times ahead.

Service with a smile

10 Dec 2008

Jocelyn Cornwell

In this article for the Guardian, Jocelyn Cornwell discusses the issues facing health staff wanting to provide high-quality care for their patients.

Getting quality from the regulators

24 Oct 2008

Niall Dickson

Deciding who does what will be vital if we’re to get a quality service from the regulators. Niall Dickson reflects on the new role of the CQC and its chair, Lady Young.

Making Darzi's vision a reality

17 Jul 2008

Niall Dickson

The NHS Next Stage Review outlines a sensible set of measures to transform patient care, but The King's Fund's chief executive Niall Dickson argues that real cultural change will be needed in the health service if the vision is to be translated into reality.