Publications

Bringing you the latest independent views on health and social care from The King's Fund, all of our reports and findings from our projects are available to buy or download.

To order printed copies of our publications, please purchase online or contact publications@kingsfund.org.uk or 020 7307 2568.

Designing the 'new' NHS publication cover

Designing the 'new' NHS

Ideas to make a supplier market in health care work
Amid increasing independent and voluntary sector involvement in NHS service delivery this report highlights issues that the government and health service providers in all three sectors should address.
The NHS in England publication cover

The NHS in England: The operating framework for 2006/7

This briefing describes the main points contained in the 2006/7 Operating Framework and provides some commentary about what the document implies for the competing strands of NHS reform.
Assessing the new NHS consultant contract publication cover

Assessing the New NHS Consultant Contract

A something for something deal?
Sally Williams, James Buchan
Drawing on evidence from five acute NHS trusts, this paper assesses the impact of the new consultant contract in England and asks whether reforms will translate into benefits for patients.
Deficits in the NHS briefing cover

Deficits in the NHS

The NHS has rarely managed to balance its books exactly; in many years it has overspent, and in some it has carried a surplus. This briefing analyses what is known about the causes of current deficits.
Social enterprise and community-based care publication cover

Social Enterprise and Community-based Care

Is there a future for mutually-owned organisations in community and primary care?
Richard Lewis, Peter Hunt, David Carson
Explores how social enterprises, particularly those with a 'mutual' structure, could add value to the provision of primary and community care and practice-based commissioning, and suggests how this system could be implemented.
Securing good care for older people publication front cover

Securing Good Care for Older People

Taking a long-term view
Derek Wanless
How much should be spent on social care for older people over the next 20 years, and what funding arrangements are needed? Our report sets out the findings of the Wanless Social Care Review.
Working to sustain progress publication cover

Working to Sustain Progress

Black and minority ethnic non-executive directors in London
Eleanor Stanley
Examines the current situation and experiences of NEDs from BME communities in London's NHS trusts and health authorities, and asks what is required to sustain this BME representation.
Access to health care and minority ethnic groups publication cover

Access to health care and minority ethnic groups

How effective is the NHS in providing accessible health care for all Britons, regardless of their ethnic or religious background? This briefing sets out the background to some of the issues.
Spending on health care: How much is enough? publication conver

Spending on Health Care

How much is enough?
This government has significantly increased investment in the NHS; if pressure to spend more continues, how can we judge the health benefits of this extra spending?
Where's the money going? briefing cover

Where's the money going?

John Appleby analyses new data to reveal how much extra NHS funding is absorbed by higher pay and other cost pressures, and how much is left over for other developments.
Where the patient was king? publication cover

Where the Patient was King?

A study of patient choice and its effect on five specialist HIV units in London
Ruth Thorlby
Explores the experience of patients and staff in five HIV/AIDS units to assess whether wide-ranging NHS reforms, including patient choice and payment by results, really make services more responsive.
Regulating health care: The way forward publication cover

Regulating Health Care

The way forward
Jennifer Dixon
How should the roles of government and independent regulators change in the context of NHS reforms?
How should we deal with hospital failure? publication cover

How Should we Deal with Hospital Failure?

Facing the challenges of the new NHS market
Keith Palmer
Financial instability is just one reason for failure in the NHS. This paper explores how failure can be prevented or managed, while protecting the quality of patient care and restoring viability.
The Future of Primary Care: Meeting the challenges of the new NHS market front cover

The Future of Primary Care

Meeting the challenges of the new NHS market
Richard Lewis, Jennifer Dixon
How will primary care be affected by the changing role of primary care trusts and the introduction of both practice-based commissioning and competition between providers?
Sustainable food and the NHS publication cover

Sustainable Food and the NHS

Karen Jochelson, Sally Norwood, Sabina Hussain, Baljinder Heer
How can hospitals manage food procurement sustainably and promote healthy eating? Includes a framework for assessing procurement and catering practices and offers recommendations for policies, menu designs and contract specifications.
Public views on choices in health publication cover

Public Views on Choices in Health and Health Care

A qualitative study
Rebecca Rosen, Natasha Curry, Dominique Florin
This report presents the key findings and emerging policy implications from ten focus groups that explored public views about choice in health and health care.
Trends in the London care market 1994-2024

Trends in the London Care Market 1994-2024

William Laing
We look at London's care market, examining trends in its population profile and in the resources and services available for older people in our paper.
Putting health in local hands publication cover

Putting Health in Local Hands

Early experiences of Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Richard Lewis, Lisa Hinton
Reveals how one of the first foundation hospitals implemented its governance arrangements, and explores the emerging role of trust members and governors and their relationship with the board of directors.
Nanny or steward? The role of governmnet in public health publication cover

Nanny or Steward?

The role of government in public health
Karen Jochelson
What actions can governments take to influence individual and collective behaviour to reduce health risks, and how does state intervention impact on public health?
Incentives for reform in the NHS publication cover

Incentives for Reform in the NHS

An assessment of current incentives in the south-east London health economy
Jenny Grant
This paper examines whether incentives are helping or hindering progress. Its findings are based on interviews with health sector representatives in south-east London.

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