Publications

Jennifer Dixon argues that the NHS chief executive's first major report outlines a well-argued agenda for health service reform, but warns that commissioning may remain too weak.

The lack of a 'big picture' of where NHS reforms will take us means investment and strategic planning are severely hampered. Alasdair Liddell and Laurie McMahon describe a behavioural modelling approach that can help.

The King's Fund was commissioned to carry out this literature review on clinician behaviour on behalf of NICE.

Our report compares the regulatory frameworks in the Autonomous Community of Catalonia in Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and New Zealand to the regulation of the NHS in England.

What impact have community-based compulsory treatment orders had in the first six months since they were introduced in Scotland, and what lessons can England and Wales learn from this experience?

This paper responds to a report on medical regulation, 'Good Doctors, Safer Patients' and the review by the Department of Health on the regulation of non-medical health care professions.

Anna Dixon welcomes the debate around creating an independent NHS but says that an effective case has still to be made for full arm's-length governance.

Discusses the causes of the NHS deficit in 2005/6 and considers three recent policy developments, asking what their impacts might be on NHS organisations and how they could be improved.

This paper responds to questions in the consultation on smoke-free premises and vehicles, the exemption of the smoking ban in treatment facilities, and ensuring protection from secondhand smoke.

Aims to stimulate debate about developing cancer services in England, as demographic trends, new treatments, increasing survival rates and NHS reforms have altered the context in which they operate.

Our briefing on local variations in NHS spending priorities analyses newly-available data, collected by the Department of Health, on the amount spent by primary care trusts on specific disease areas.

An article by Richard Lewis arguing that the focus of the NHS reform agenda is now switching to commissioning, offering the possibility of real change.

Developing a sustainable and flexible workforce, using 'grow-your-own' approaches, could help the NHS face complex challenges as investment slows. This paper explores the conditions required to successfully implement these approaches.

Explores the arguments for and against the proposed ban on indoor smoking in psychiatric units, as well as the impact of smoking and smoking bans in these settings.

This paper is a formal response to the Health Select Committee's inquiry on NHS deficits in June 2006, which revealed a gross deficit of £1.277 billion.

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 King's Fund Insight article by Niall Dixon, which says that the health service in England is undergoing far-reaching change on a scale not seen before.

John Appleby asks whether Scotland will be allowing patients to choose where to have their first outpatient appointment and subsequent treatment.

Niall Dickson and Jennifer Dixon argue that the government needs to focus on improving health to avoid costly hospitalisation.

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.