Blog

It's hard to disagree with the principle that both costs and effects of treatments need to be weighed in order to make decisions about improving value for money and productivity. For a majority of the public however, this is not a principle they hold.

In organisations like hospitals, many of the answers are found among staff rather than in the executive offices and boardrooms, says Chris Ham.

The government expects councils and NHS partners to achieve way too much, with too little, too soon, says Richard Humphries.

How long is it reasonable to wait for treatment of depression after being referred by a GP? The results from the 2013 British Social Attitudes Survey are revealing and suggest that public expectations exceed current policy ambitions.

What are some of the primary care innovations happening both abroad and in the UK? Nicola Walsh reflects on discussions at our recent conference on the role of general practice.

Grand promises have been made about the benefits of recording a deluge of personal data, but what needs to happen for these promises to be realised?

On the face of it, the CDF would seem perhaps to be a good thing, helping improve the quality of life for people at the end of their lives. But is it either a fair or efficient way for the NHS to spend its limited budget?

Parallels between the successful transformation of the Veterans Health Administration in the United States and the changes needed in the NHS in England have been made for a number of years. But recent troubles at the VA offer some important lessons for the NHS in the future.

Leaders across health and care agree that much more needs to be done to address the low representation of women in senior medical leadership roles.

Although earlier rumours of the demise of the Better Care Fund – the government’s £3.8 billion pooled fund to promote integrated care – have turned out to be greatly exaggerated, the significance of the government’s latest announcement about the fund should not be.

Mandip Kaur reflects on Roger Kline's report on discrimination in NHS governance and leadership in London, and her own experience, to call for more action on difference and inclusion in the NHS.

In light of our new report on the NHS productivity challenge, Chris Ham calls for a new transformation fund to stop the NHS approaching a major financial crisis.

The new Department of Health document, Transforming primary care, mostly looks to improve services for those with the most complex needs. But what does it tell us about transforming primary care for the rest of the population?

Rachael Addicott looks at what we can learn from the Southcentral Foundation's system-wide transformation of care in Alaska.

Catherine Foot shares her experience of volunteering at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital – her pledge for this year's NHS Change Day.

Federations and networks of GP practices are working to deliver extended services and raise standards of care. These innovations are valuable, but much more is needed to ensure general practice really is fit for the future, says Chris Ham.

With an ongoing ambition to shift care out of hospitals and closer to people’s homes, what is needed to transform community services?

The focus on delivering improvements in mental health care is currently dominated by how funding is allocated. But in the midst of the debate, little thought has been given to who should receive this money, and importantly how this could lead to reforming the system.

The success of the £3.8 billion Better Care Fund – designed to promote integrated care and help shift care closer to home – depends on a different kind of chemistry between local NHS organisations and their local authority partners.