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Publications

Independent research and analysis on health and social care

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  • Health and care services
    • Adult social care
    • Community services
    • Emergency care
    • General practice
    • Hospital care
    • Long-term conditions
    • Mental health
    • New models of care
    • Public health
  • Leadership, systems and organisations
    • Clinical commissioning groups
    • Clinical leadership
    • Equality and diversity
    • Health and wellbeing boards
    • Integrated care
    • Local service design
    • Quality improvement
    • Sustainability and transformation plans
    • System leadership
    • Voluntary and community sector
    • Workforce and skills
  • Patients, people and society
    • Carers
    • Health inequalities
    • Patient experience
    • (-) Patient involvement
    • Population health
    • Public opinion
    • Technology and data
  • Policy, finance and performance
    • Access to care
    • Commissioning and contracting
    • General election 2019
    • Governance and regulation
    • Health and Social Care Act 2012
    • (-) NHS finances
    • NHS five year forward view
    • NHS long-term plan
    • Performance
    • Productivity
    • Social care finances
  • 2015
  • 2016
  • 2017
  • 2018
  • 2019
  • 2020
Brexit
Long read

Brexit and the end of the transition period: what does it mean for the health and care system?

On Christmas Eve 2020 a new EU-UK trade and co-operation deal was agreed. Jonathon Holmes looks at what the new deal means for the health and care system.
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By Jonathon Holmes - 11 January 2021
Long read

The next steps towards integrated care

This explainer considers NHS England and NHS Improvement’s proposals to further integrate health and care services and describes the associated proposals for legislative change.
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By Richard Murray et al - 9 December 2020 11-minute read
Rising cost of medicines teaser image
Long read

Access to new medicines in the English NHS

Have you ever wondered how new medicines are developed, approved and priced? This explainer outlines the long journey from the discovery of a new drug to when it becomes available on the NHS.
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By Ben Collins - 28 October 2020 30-minute read
The economic influence of the NHS at the local level
Long read

The economic influence of the NHS at the local level

As the biggest employer in England and a significant economic force in local communities, the NHS has a unique opportunity to influence the wellbeing of the population it serves. David Maguire looks at how the NHS can affect the health of their local population as an economic agent.
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By David Maguire - 16 January 2020
Long read

Reforming the finances of the NHS

A new financial architecture for the NHS requires coherence and balance, and a recognition that that any national financial strategy will be heavily mediated by the quality of local relationships. Richard Murray and Siva Anandaciva discuss how lessons from the recent history of NHS finances can help the system plan for the future.
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By Siva Anandaciva et al - 15 December 2020 30-minute read
Loans explainer
Long read

Financial debts and loans in the NHS

In April 2020, the government announced it would write off more than £13 billion of historical NHS debt. This explainer brings together information on why this debt built up, how the write-off will work, and why this issue is important.
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By Siva Anandaciva - 2 July 2020
GP contracts explainer figure 1
Long read

GP funding and contracts explained

This explainer sets out how general practices are contracted and paid in England, looking at the services they are contracted to deliver, and the different streams of funding they receive.
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By Jake Beech et al - 11 June 2020 9-minute read
First 100 days of new government
Long read

Health and care: the first 100 days of the new government

We provide a record of the progress made towards meeting the government’s manifesto pledges and campaign commitments during its first 100 days in office.
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By Jonathon Holmes - 27 March 2020
The politics of health
Long read

The politics of health: what do the public think about the NHS?

As we head towards the 2019 general election, what are patient and public perceptions of the NHS? And have the public's views changed since the country last went to the ballot box?
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By Dan Wellings et al - 3 October 2019
Long read

Five numbers to sum up the Spending Round for health and social care

Siva Anandaciva takes a look at the key numbers mentioned in the Spending Round (and those that weren’t) add up, and the implications they have for health and social care.
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By Siva Anandaciva - 6 September 2019
Long read

The NHS long-term plan explained

On 7 January, the NHS long-term plan was published setting out key ambitions for the service over the next 10 years. In this explainer, we set out the main commitments in the plan and provide our view of what they might mean, highlighting the opportunities and challenges for the health and care system as it moves to put the plan into practice.
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By Anna Charles et al - 23 January 2019
Long read

Shared responsibility for health: the cultural change we need

We believe that the relationship between the public and the NHS, and between patients and the staff who care for them, needs to be transformed. As well as ensuring that the resources (funding and workforce) needed to deliver care are available, national and local leaders must work to fully engage patients and the public in improving health and care.  
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By Professor Sir Chris Ham et al - 23 November 2018
Long read

Joined-up listening: integrated care and patient insight

In this article, we articulate the opportunity that integrated care presents for using insight from people and populations to design services that meet their needs and reflect their priorities.
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By Dan Wellings et al - 30 August 2018
Long read

Spending on and availability of health care resources: how does the UK compare to other countries?

The recent announcement by the Prime Minister to bring forward a new long-term funding settlement for the NHS means it is timely to look at how health spending in the UK compares to other countries and how the NHS measures up on some of the key resources this spending pays for.
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By Deborah Ward et al - 5 May 2018
Long read

Does the public see tax rises as the answer to NHS funding pressures?

We have analysed the latest data from the British Social Attitudes survey on public attitudes to NHS funding and the quality of care provided by the NHS.
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By Harry Evans - 12 April 2018
Priorities for health and care
Long read

What are the priorities for health and social care?

Ahead of the party conference season, we assess the state of health and social care and set out the big issues facing the government.
8 August 2017
Long read

Nine things we learnt about provider finances in 2016/17

Nine things we have learnt from NHS Improvement's financial data, which gives an insight into the challenges facing NHS providers of hospital, ambulance, mental health and community services.
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By Siva Anandaciva - 14 July 2017
Long read

The capped expenditure process explained

In response to significant financial pressures in the NHS, a capped expenditure process has been introduced to provide tighter controls on spending. We explain how the process works and what it involves.
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By Siva Anandaciva - 29 June 2017
Health care funding models
Long read

How health care is funded

The way that health care is funded varies between different countries. Here we explain the main models used in their purest form, although most countries typically use a combination of these methods.
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By Helen McKenna et al - 23 March 2017
2017 priorities
Long read

Priorities for the NHS and social care in 2017

2017 promises to be another challenging year for the health and care system. We identify five priorities for the year ahead.
1 January 2017
Long read

Tackling the growing crisis in the NHS: An agenda for action

Drawing on our previous work and a lecture given by Chris Ham to the Cambridge Whitehall Group, we offer some practical solutions to help the NHS address one of the biggest crises in its history.
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By Professor Sir Chris Ham et al - 7 April 2016
Long read

The future is now

Featuring the voices of patients, volunteers, clinicians and managers, our new digital report explores future ways of changing health and health care for the better.
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By Professor Sir Chris Ham et al - 10 February 2015
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This selection of content aims to make sense of the health and care system – including videos, articles, illustrated summaries and more.

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