05/10/2010
Legal intelligence for professionals in health and social care
This Update contains brief details of recent Government publications, legislation, cases and other developments relevant to those involved in health and social care work, which have been published in the last month.
If you have been forwarded this update by a colleague and would like to receive it directly, please email Claire Bentley.
 Care |
Inquests |
| Children |
Mental Health |
| Commissioning |
Obesity |
| Employment/HR |
Primary Care |
| Finance |
Prison Health |
| Foundation Trusts |
Regulation |
| Governance |
General |
| Health and Safety |
Care
Publications/Guidance
Improving
health and social care support for carers from black and minority
ethnic communities. This briefing paper draws attention to the
experience of black and minority ethnic carers in the context of
mainstream service provision and recent policy developments such as
the National Carers Strategies, service user and carer involvement
and the personalisation agenda. It acknowledges that
marginalisation is often a consequence of lack of support for both
carers and black and minority ethnic communities in health and
social care. The paper brings together research evidence and
examples of leading practice and emphasises the importance of
addressing and not concealing existing inequalities in current
changes in policy focus.
Being a young carer in rural England: summary report. This summary report gives details of research conducted with young people aged 11 to 21 years who were living with a family member with a disability and had some caring responsibilities in their families. Interviews were also conducted with local and regional policy managers and frontline support providers working directly with young people or their families in rural England. It offers suggestions to encourage new thinking among practitioners and to provoke innovative, practical solutions for young carers.
End of Life Care Strategy: Second annual report. The End of Life Care Strategy aims to improve care for people approaching the end of life whatever their diagnosis and wherever they are, including enabling more people to be cared for and die at home if they wish. It covers all adults in England with advanced, progressive illness and care given in all settings. In particular it aims to change people’s attitudes towards discussion of death and dying so that they are more comfortable with expressing their wishes and preferences for care at the end of life. The strategy also aims to support the development of services in the community so that people can choose to die at home if that is their preference. This second annual report sets out the continuing progress in implementing the strategy, highlights the need for further work and identifies the action intended for this coming year. It concludes that good progress has been made in improving end of life care but more needs to be done to make sure everyone gets the highest quality of care, in the setting of their choice.
Transforming adult social care delivery support architecture. This paper summarises the national and regional systems in place to support the implementation of the Putting People First, transformation of social care programme. ‘The Putting People First’ (PPF) concordat was published by the Department of Health in December 2007. It sets out information to support the transformation of social care, as outlined in the Health White Paper, Our Health, Our Care, Our Say: a New Direction for Community Services in 2006. It describes the vision for development of a personalised approach to the delivery of adult social care. PPF concordat is an agreement between central and local government and other key organisations about the direction for adult social care for the next ten years and beyond.
Removing the policy barriers to integrated care in England.
This briefing paper by the Nuffield Trust uses five case studies of
health economies in the English NHS as a basis for examining how
local clinicians and managers are working together to develop
closer service integration and less fragmented care for patients.
The authors conclude that the reforms outlined in the NHS White
Paper, such as handing groups of GPs commissioning
responsibilities, accompanied by real budgets, have the potential
to deliver more seamless care for patients. However, the
experiences of the areas studied – Torbay, Nottingham, Redbridge,
Trafford and Cumbria – indicate that policy in areas such as GP
commissioning and local leadership, competition, incentives and
regulation needs to be developed to better support moves towards
integration. They also stress the need to involve both clinicians
and members of the public in service redesign. The paper focuses on
what is facilitating or impeding change and sets out proposals for
policy-makers that are designed to enable more rapid progress
towards developing better coordinated services. It is intended as a
contribution to discussions about the direction health reform
should take under the new Coalition Government following the
publication of the NHS White Paper.
The Government response to Law Commission
consultation paper 192. Review of the law on adult social care.
This DH paper sets out the Government's response to the Law
Commission's consultation on adult social care (February 2010)
which contained detailed proposals for law reform. The Government
agrees with the Law Commission that the legislative framework for
social care is outdated and needs modernising. This document sets
out the Government’s response to the consultation questions. It
states that it will need to look closely at how the Law
Commission’s final recommendations are implemented and any
legislation to take forward reform will need to be set in the wider
policy context. In particular, this will include the
recommendations of the Commission on the Funding of Care and
Support, but also the Government’s commitment to greater local
flexibilities and the localism agenda.
Department of Health: Essence of Care 2010. Essence of Care aims to support localised quality improvement, by providing a set of established and refreshed benchmarks supporting front line care. It helps practitioners to take a structured approach to sharing and comparing practice, enabling them to identify the best and to develop action plans to remedy poor practice. This edition supersedes the previous versions originating since 2001.
Still hungry to be heard. Nearly a third (29.4%) of nurses are not confident that it would be noticed if a relative of theirs was malnourished when entering hospital, according to this report which was released as part of Age UK’s Still Hungry to be Heard campaign. The results spark fears that older people are still being left to go hungry in hospital.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Neil Grant.
Children
Publications/Guidance
National Service Framework for Children, Young
People and Maternity Services: Type one diabetes in childhood and
adolescence. This guidance describes a care pathway for a child
with type one diabetes. The 'patient journey' also provides a
starting point for the development of new local strategies for
managing complex childhood conditions.
Achieving equity and excellence for children.
This discussion paper forms part of the process of engagement with
the NHS White Paper, Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS. It
is not a policy statement or an additional consultation but draws
together information from the White Paper and the associated
consultation documents to create a vision of how the proposed new
arrangements for the NHS could improve services for children and
young people. This document begins an ongoing dialogue on how to
ensure high-quality services for children and young people. The DH
welcomes views on how to achieve the best outcomes for children,
young people and families.
Getting it right for children and young people -
Overcoming cultural barriers in the NHS so as to meet their
needs. This independent review by Sir Ian Kennedy concentrates
on understanding the role of culture in the NHS. It focuses on
those areas where there are cultural barriers to change and
improvement. It examines the NHS’s position in a wider system of
care and support, so as to understand and improve the NHS’s
provision of services to children and young people. The review has
uncovered many cultural barriers standing in the way of improving
services for children and young people. These were created, and
operate, at a number of levels, from Whitehall, through regional
and local organisations, to contacts between individual
professionals, and with children, young people and those looking
after them. Sir Ian makes several recommendations for
improvement.
Guidance on regulating childcare in women's refuges. This Ofsted guidance assists the National Business Unit, inspectors and the Compliance, Investigation and Enforcement Team in carrying out registrations, inspections and compliance investigations of childcare provided in women’s refuges, in line with the protocol with the Women's Aid Federation.
Being a young carer in rural England: summary report. This summary report gives details of research conducted with young people aged 11 to 21 years who were living with a family member with a disability and had some caring responsibilities in their families. Interviews were also conducted with local and regional policy managers and frontline support providers working directly with young people or their families in rural England. It offers suggestions to encourage new thinking among practitioners and to provoke innovative, practical solutions for young carers.
A model for service provision for pregnant women with complex social factors. The care that women should be offered during pregnancy is outlined in NICE clinical guideline 62 ('Antenatal care'). However, pregnant women with complex social factors may need additional support to use antenatal care services. This guideline describes how access to care can be improved, how contact with antenatal carers can be maintained, the additional support and consultations that are required and the additional information that should be offered to pregnant women with complex social factors.
Normal birth as a measure of the quality of
care. This report draws together evidence that highlights how
giving birth without major medical procedures can be used as a
measure of good midwifery care. The report also gives practical
actions to guide the planning of service developments which
increase opportunities for normal birth - whether at home, in a
birth centre or in a hospital setting - without compromising safety
or women’s experiences.
£30m funding for children’s palliative care: second
round of funding applications. Those organisations that applied
for funding through round one have now been notified of the outcome
of their application. The second round of funding applications
closed on Thursday 30th September. For round two, as with round
one, funding for communications activities will be given only a
very limited range of circumstances. No communications activities
exceeding £25,000 in support of a single project will be funding.
Round two will also consider applications from local organisations
wanting to host square table discussions, to cover the direct cost
of these discussions. Further details on the funding, a template for
proposals and frequently asked questions document is also
available.
National Child Measurement Programme 2010/11. This letter from the Chief Medical Officer outlines the revised template results letter and media pack produced to support the National Child Measurement Programme 2010/11.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Penelope Radcliffe, Tracey Lucas or Deborah Jeremiah.
Commissioning
Publications/Guidance
Best practice guidance for managing appointment
slot issues within Choose and Book. This document is aimed at
commissioners and all providers (Acute Trusts, PCTs, the
independent sector) with directly bookable services on Choose and
Book. It informs them about the process they have to follow when
patients, referrers or the National Appointments Lines are unable
to book an appointments on Choose and Book because there are no
appointment slots available with their chosen provider.
The principles of GP commissioning: a General Practitioners Committee statement in the context of "Liberating the NHS". This statement from the British Medical Association (BMA) outlines their views on what the fundamental principles underlying the development of GP commissioning should compromise. The BMA argue that these principles should be used to define policy, inform debate and negotiations and ensure that good medical practice is enshrined within the proposed White Paper changes to the NHS.
Update on commissioning activity. This paper focuses on the Royal College of General Practitioners' current and future engagement with commissioning, and suggests potential ways to support their members in the delivery of the reforms suggested in the White Paper. It is not a comprehensive review of the White Paper and does not in any way pre-empt the results of the RCGP consultation process on the White paper.
Lord Howe: 'GP commissioning: making it happen'. Transcript of a speech given by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Quality Lord Howe to the King’s Fund on 7 September 2010 in which he talks about the shift of power in commissioning NHS services from PCTs to GP practices.
Draft guidance on NHS commissioning and contracting of adult and neonatal critical care services in 2011-12. From 2011-12, the Department of Health plans to mandate the currencies that all providers and commissioners must use for contracting adult and neonatal critical care services. Commissioners and providers will contract for adult and neonatal critical care services using the Healthcare Resource Group (HRG) currencies. These are based on the adult and neonatal critical care minimum datasets. In advance of the publication of the 2011-12 tariff, this guidance provides further information on implementing a 'national currency : local price' NHS contract for critical care.
GP commissioning consortia: building a better
healthcare system for patients. This paper is the first in a
series of white papers exploring how GP commissioning consortia can
meet the new responsibilities they will face under the proposed
government reforms for the NHS. It also suggests how the process of
transferring the various tasks and functions from PCTs can be
managed. This paper also maps out how sector relationships are
likely to change in this new shift from PCTs to GP commissioning
consortia.
Letter to all SHA and PCT chief executives about
the proposals for GP-led commissioning. This is a letter from
Dame Barbara Hakin, National Managing Director of Commissioning.
She refers to a letter from Secretary of State for Health Andrew
Lansley to GPs about the proposals for GP commissioning,
reiterating the intention that the formation of consortia would be
a bottom up approach, led by GP practices.
Next steps on GP-led commissioning. The
Secretary of State for Health has written this letter to GPs about
the proposals for GP commissioning and reiterating the intention
that the formation of consortia would be a bottom up approach, led
by GP practices.
Bevan Brittan Update
The Health White Paper - Unravelling the commissioning
web. The Health White Paper is introducing radical changes in
commissioning both in the creation of new commissioning bodies and
how commissioning is to be carried out. In this article, John Chapman looks at three fundamental
questions that are relevant to both commissioners and providers
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact David Owens.
Employment/HR
Publications/Guidance
Department of Health: Staff experience.
Increasing evidence shows that there is a clear relationship
between staff satisfaction and patient satisfaction. It is not
possible to provide the highest quality of care for patients
without a high quality workforce where the staff can really make a
difference. This page gives more information.
Working and training in the National Health Service
– a guide for international medical graduates thinking about
working or training in the UK. This web-based guidance is aimed
primarily at overseas-qualified medical practitioners from outside
of the European economic area. NHS organisations can use the guide
as part of their recruitment and induction material. The guide aims
to make doctors and dentists from outside the UK aware of the
opportunities available and to help them understand the immigration
processes and requirements. It includes details of sources of
further information and where to check for up-to-date details of
immigration and other requirements.
A framework for managing staff costs in a period of
spending reduction. This paper sets out a framework for
effective management of staff costs in a challenging environment of
cost reduction in public services. It builds on the high level
principles set out in the National Audit Office’s short guide to
structured cost reduction.
BMA cohort study of 2006 medical graduates (fourth report). The fourth report of the BMA's Cohort Study, which traces the career progression of 430 medical graduates who qualified in 2006, shows that junior doctors now spend more time carrying out administrative tasks than they do in formal training. The BMA Cohort Study provides information on the career pathways of the first doctors who have come through a new system of training doctors introduced in 2006 created as part of Modernising Medical Careers.
Liberating the NHS: managing the transition.
NHS Chief Executive Sir David Nicholson has written to NHS and
local authority chief executives and other interested parties
providing further information about the proposed changes set out in
the NHS White Paper, and the role of leaders in the NHS in the
coming weeks and months.
Sir David's communication includes an FAQ document to provide answers to questions
that have arisen during recent engagement with the NHS leadership
community, a timeline setting out key dates and a list of regional appointments as referenced in
his letter.
Preparing for change: implementing the new pre-registration nursing standards. The new standards for education from the Nursing and Midwifery Council provide the framework for pre-registration nurse education programmes and will determine how the future nursing workforce is trained. This briefing outlines the timetable for the change and highlights the roles employers and key partners need to undertake. It provides learning from previous changes to education policy, ideas for ensuring success in your organisation and questions to help you assess how ready you are for the change.
The CIPD, in conjunction with Acas and the Health & Safety Executive, have produced a guide for employers on 'Work Related Stress: What the Law Says'.
Consultations
Equality Act 2010: The public sector equality duty
- promoting equality through transparency. The public sector
equality duty has a key role in ensuring that fairness is at the
heart of public bodies’ work and that public services meet the
needs of different groups. The 2010 Act also gives ministers the
power to impose specific duties, which are legal requirements
designed to help public bodies meet their obligations under the
public sector equality duty. This paper seeks views on draft
regulations for the specific duties and the list of public bodies
that will be subject to the general and specific duties. The
consultation closes on 10 November 2010.
Consultation on equality and human rights. The CQC and EHRC are seeking views on draft guidance on equality and human rights for inspectors and assessors to use when they monitor providers according to the CQC's standards and registration requirements. The consultation closes on 12 November 2010.
News
Consultant pay rewards scheme to be reviewed.
announces that the Government is to conduct a UK-wide review of the
Clinical Excellence and Distinction Awards scheme, first introduced
in 1948, which recognises and rewards the exceptional contribution
of NHS consultants, over and above that normally expected, to the
values and goals of the NHS and to patient care. The review will be
led by the independent Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists'
Remuneration and has been asked to submit recommendations to the UK
Health Ministers by July 2011. The press release includes the terms
of reference.
Bevan Brittan Updates
A MARS a day helps you work... The Social
Partnership Forum (which comprises the Department of Health, NHS
Employers and NHS Trade Union) published, on 2 September, a
nationally applicable Mutually Agreed Resignation Scheme
(MARS). The purpose is to assist Trusts in cost and workforce
reduction, service redesign and efficiency needs. The scheme will
allow employees to agree with their employer to leave Trust
employment on specified terms. We have prepared a briefing note
which considers how in practice this will work and the options
available. Click here to view.
Am I being unreasonable...? Sarah Michael looks at the duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees and job applicants. How should adjustments be assessed, following recent guidance from the EAT? How will the requirement to make adjustments change following the introduction of the Equality Act 2010? In particular, how should employers deal with their obligation to make adjustments during the recruitment process, given the new prohibition on asking prospective employees about their health?
Are you ready for action? At the recent TUC Congress, union delegates backed joint industrial action if "attacks" on jobs, pensions and public services go ahead “to support and co-ordinate campaigning and joint union industrial action, nationally and locally, in opposition to attacks on jobs, pensions, pay or public services".
News round-up September 2010. Tim Woodward takes a look at some of the key provisions of the Equality Act coming into force in October; annual statistics for the EAT; the EAT and reasonable adjustment and lastly Acas and TUC have published a guide on mediation.
Protecting your Business Documents – Privilege after Akzo Nobel. The long awaited decision of the ECJ in the Akzo Nobel case has been handed down, and to no-one’s great surprise, the Court has held that legal advice privilege will not apply to communications between in-house lawyers and their internal clients, at least in the context of competition investigations by the Commission.
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact Claire Bentley.
Finance
Publications/Guidance
Improving data quality in the NHS: Annual report on
the PbR assurance programme 2010. This Audit Commission report
summarises the results of the Payment by Results (PbR) data
assurance programme since it began in 2007. For the last three
years, the Audit Commission has looked at over £200m worth of
payments for inpatient treatments. The report finds that the
accuracy of clinical coding has improved since 2007. The coding
error rate has dropped from 16%to 11% in three years, which shows
that NHS organisations have made real progress in tackling the
quality of their data. But there remains wide variation between the
best and worst performing trusts, even if the gap is narrowing.
Errors are continuing to affect payments. The Commission estimates
that of the £21bn spent on the four specialties it's audited for
three years, £1bn (5%) was paid wrongly. To continue to improve
data quality, the report makes a series of recommendations for PCTs
and NHS trusts to consider.
Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework Funding for 2010-11. This letter from Bob Alexander, NHS Director of Finance sets out the implications for the NHS following agreement on the community pharmacy contractual framework 2010/11 funding settlement . The DH states that PCT chief executives will wish to consider the local implications, whilst SHA chief executives may wish to discuss this with their directors of finance.
Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) Funding for 2010/11. This letter from Bob Alexander, NHS Director of Finance sets out the implications for the NHS following agreement on the community pharmacy contractual framework 2010/11 funding settlement . PCT chief executives will wish to consider the local implications, whilst SHA chief executives may wish to discuss this with their directors of finance.
International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS): learning lessons from the audit of the IFRS-compliant NHS accounts 2009/10. Significant financial report issues arose during the 2009/10 audit of IFRS-compliant NHS accounts. This briefing paper summarises the overall findings of the Audit Commission; it reviews the issues that arose and highlights those that will require particular attention from NHS bodies in the future.
A simple guide to Payment by Results. The aim of this guide is to provide an introduction for newcomers to PbR, from NHS health professionals, managers and administrators, to people engaged in academic study and interested members of the public both in the UK and abroad.
Improving quality and productivity in the NHS whilst facing the financial pressures. This joint statement from the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Healthcare Financial Management Association and the NHS Confederation outlines their views about how NHS organisations across the UK can drive quality and productivity whilst facing financial pressures. The statement highlights that it is crucial for the issue to be addressed in ways that are constructive in order to help maintain the gains in quality, access and activity that have already been achieved over the past decade.
Requirement for NHS organisations to publish expenditure over £25,000. This letter informs SHA directors of finance that, as part of the government commitment to greater transparency, there is a requirement to publish online all expenditure over £25,000. They are asked to bring the letter and guidance to the attention of PCTs and NHS trusts in their region.
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact Claire Bentley.
Foundation Trusts
Publications/Guidance
Progressing to NHS Foundation Trust (FT)
status. This letter provides further information on the
Secretary of State’s request to Chairs and chief executive for
their personal commitment and leadership in bringing their
organisations to Foundation Trust status as quickly as
possible.
NHS foundation trusts: review of three months to
30th June 2010. Monitor requires each NHS foundation trust
board to submit a quarterly report. Performance is monitored
against these reports to identify where potential and actual
problems might arise. Based on these reports, Monitor assigns each
NHS foundation trust with financial and governance risk ratings.
These risk ratings are designed to indicate the risk of a failure
to comply with the foundation trust’s terms of authorisation. This
is the first quarterly report of 2010-11 and is based on data
submitted by the 130 NHS foundation trusts authorised at 30 June
2010.
Transforming community services: transactions
guidance for NHS Foundation Trusts. This document provides
guidance for NHS foundation trusts, which are undertaking
‘Transforming Community Services’ transactions, on Monitor’s
regulatory process for reviewing such transactions. It is largely
based on Monitor’s Compliance Framework, to which NHS foundation
trusts considering transactions should continue to refer.
Key themes from stage two of Monitor’s Annual Plan Review 2010. This paper outlines common themes identified by Monitor which emerged from the second stage of its review of foundation trusts’ annual plans covering the years 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13, which was carried out by independent advisers.
Consultations
Liberating the NHS: Regulating healthcare providers
- A consultation. Deadline date: 11 October 2010 This
consultation seeks views on foundation trusts and the establishment
of Monitor as an independent economic regulator for health and
adult social care.
Transparency in Outcomes: A framework for the NHS - A consultation.Deadline date: 11 October 2010. This consultation seeks the views of those working in the NHS, patients and the public in developing the NHS outcomes framework to hold the NHS commissioning board to account for delivering better health outcomes.
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact David Owens.
Governance
Publications/Guidance
Leadership needs of medical directors and clinical
directors. The King’s Fund conducted a survey of clinical and
medical directors to find out what skills they believed they need
to face future challenges. This report summarises the findings.
The foundations of good governance. In the NHS described by the coalition Government’s recent health white paper, foundation trusts will become even more distinctive within the NHS. They will be the only board-led NHS organisations with unique freedoms to set their own direction and the means by which they will follow it. As a consequence, much more will be expected of them, as laid out in this briefing document.
Improving quality and productivity in the NHS whilst facing the financial pressures. This joint statement from the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Healthcare Financial Management Association and the NHS Confederation outlines their views about how NHS organisations across the UK can drive quality and productivity whilst facing financial pressures. The statement highlights that it is crucial for the issue to be addressed in ways that are constructive in order to help maintain the gains in quality, access and activity that have already been achieved over the past decade.
The intelligent board 2010: patient experience. This report challenges NHS boards and non-executive directors to review the way they treat patient experience.
Consultations
Transparency in Outcomes: A framework for the NHS -
A consultation.Deadline date: 11 October 2010. This
consultation seeks the views of those working in the NHS, patients
and the public in developing the NHS outcomes framework to hold the
NHS commissioning board to account for delivering better health
outcomes.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Vincent Buscemi.
Health and Safety
Publications/Guidance
Managing
serious incidents in National Screening Programmes. This
guidance is endorsed by the National Patient Safety Agency and its
purpose is to make explicit the requirements for national screening
programme related serious incidents and to provide clarity and
understanding for all staff providing NHS funded care.
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact Claire Bentley.
Inquests
Publications/Guidance
Third summary of coroners' reports to prevent
future deaths. Summary of reports by coroners to prevent future
deaths and responses from organisations. This publication gives
details of coroners’ reports and responses received from
organisations asked to consider action to prevent future deaths
during the period between 1 October 2009 and 31 March 2010.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Joanna Lloyd or Nadia Persaud.
Mental Health
Publications/Guidance
Community mental health survey results. The
Care Quality Commission have published the results of a survey
looking at the experiences of more than 17,000 people who had
contact with specialist community mental health services between
July and September 2009. According to the survey, the majority of
respondents are generally very positive about the health and social
care worker they had seen most recently for their mental health
condition. However, the findings also show that some had not been
involved as much as they would have liked in some aspects of their
care.
Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT)
year one sites data review. Improving Access to Psychological
Therapies is a programme designed to make psychological therapies
for common mental health problems widely available. Following pilot
work in Doncaster and Newham, the first wave of rollout sites
started operation in 2008. This report is a study of their work in
the year from October 2008 to September 2009. Allowing for varying
start times, this was roughly their first full year of
operation.
Cross-border Transfers of Patients Under the Mental
Health Act. This document outlines the considerations for the
transfer of a patient from England to Scotland, Northern Ireland,
the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man.
Section 67 of the Mental Health Act. One
document on this page outlines the Secretary of State for Health's
discretionary power to refer cases involving certain patients to
the First-tier Tribunal. Another sets out when patients and their
relatives may apply.
Patterns of specialist mental health service usage
in England. This report analyses mental health service usage by
age and gender, and by region/sub-region. The data comes from an
administrative source, the Mental Health Minimum Dataset, which
provides information on the number of people aged 18 and above who
were in contact with NHS specialist mental health services in a
year.
World Alzheimer report 2010: the global economic impact of
dementia. Dementia costs the world $604 billion a year - 1% of
the global GDP - according to this report. The figures, published
by Alzheimer's Disease International, also suggest that there will
be a further 85% increase in costs by 2030 as the number of people
with dementia continues to rise.
Quality Outcomes for People with Dementia: Building
on the work of the National Dementia Strategy. This document
presents the department’s revised implementation plan for ‘Living
well with dementia: A National Dementia Strategy’, which was
published in February 2009. It updates the previous implementation
plan for the strategy published in July 2009.
Prison mental health: vision and reality. This
publication aims to examine what has been achieved in prison mental
health over recent years from a number of different personal
perspectives and individual observations of working in England. It
looks at the specific achievements of inreach teams and of efforts
to divert offenders from custody. It also looks more broadly at the
rapid growth of the prison population during the same period and
the treatment of offenders with mental health problems outside as
well as inside prison.
Consultations
Psychosis with substance misuse: guideline
consultation. A clinical practice guideline on Psychosis in
conjunction with substance misuse: the assessment and management of
psychosis with substance misuse is being developed for use in the
NHS in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Registered stakeholders
for this guideline are invited to comment on the provisional
recommendations via this website. Individuals and organisations not
registered as stakeholders are not able to comment. NICE recommends
that you register as a stakeholder or you contact the registered
stakeholder organisation that most closely represents your
interests and pass your comments to them. Consultation dates: 10
August – 5 October 2010.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in the above section please contact Simon Lindsay.
Bevan Brittan Online Resources
NEW! Bevan Brittan Mental Health Portal. Bevan
Brittan has a wealth of mental health knowledge it would like to
share with clients. We have therefore developed an online resource
which has been designed to bring various sources of mental health
information and guidance into one place. The aim is simple - to
keep professionals in mental health up-to-date with what is
happening in an ever changing landscape. If you would like
more information please contact
Claire Bentley.
Obesity
Publications/Guidance
Shedding the pounds: obesity management, NICE
guidance and bariatric surgery in England. This report details
the results of an exercise undertaken by the Office of Health
Economics looking at trends in obesity, current provision of
bariatric surgery in England with particular reference to the NICE
clinical guideline for obesity, and potential economic benefits
that could be achieved through adherence to the NICE guideline.
News
Surgery for obese could 'save millions of
pounds.' Following NICE guidance on bariatric surgery could
save the economy hundreds of millions of pounds and the NHS around
£56 million every year, leading surgeons have said.
A woman has succeeded in a landmark attempt to
force the NHS to fund her gastric bypass operation. Berkshire
East Primary Care Trust originally refused to offer Hazel Kent the
operation as her body mass index was too low, but has now agreed to
fund the operation after she threatened legal
action.
If you would like more information about any of the items in this section please contact Julie Chappell.
Primary Care
Publications/Guidance
Best practice guidance for managing appointment
slot issues within Choose and Book. This document is aimed at
commissioners and all providers (Acute Trusts, PCTs, the
independent sector) with directly bookable services on Choose and
Book. It informs them about the process they have to follow when
patients, referrers or the National Appointments Lines are unable
to book an appointments on Choose and Book because there are no
appointment slots available with their chosen provider.
The principles of GP commissioning: a General Practitioners Committee statement in the context of "Liberating the NHS". This statement from the British Medical Association (BMA) outlines their views on what the fundamental principles underlying the development of GP commissioning should compromise. The BMA argue that these principles should be used to define policy, inform debate and negotiations and ensure that good medical practice is enshrined within the proposed White Paper changes to the NHS.
Lord Howe: 'GP commissioning: making it happen'. Transcript of a speech given by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Quality Lord Howe to the King’s Fund on 7 September 2010 in which he talks about the shift of power in commissioning NHS services from PCTs to GP practices.
Effective use of vaccines. This letter aims to
inform SHA and PCT Immunisation leads on the work done on VESPA
(Vaccine Efficiency Savings Programme Audit) and advises of future
developments.
Midwifery 2020: delivering expectations. The
Midwifery 2020 programme was commissioned in 2008 by the Chief
Nursing officers for England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
This document is the final report of the programme. It underpins
the vision of how midwives can lead and deliver care in a changing
health care environment, reflecting policy and service direction.
It also identifies the changes required to the way that midwives
work, their role, responsibilities, education and/or professional
development to meet the vision.
General Practitioners Committee guide to the NHS
White Paper - GP consortia commissioning: initial observations.
This document sets out how GPs in England could progress with
making consortia arrangements. This guidance covers areas such as:
determining commissioning population size, responsibilities and
governance, funding and budget setting and ensuring probity.
The impact of incentives on the behaviour and
performance of primary care professionals. This report is the
result of a study on the influence of incentives on the behaviour
of primary care professionals. Using incentives can produce
benefits for patients but it may also have complex and unintended
outcomes. The aim of this study is to produce evidence to help
policy makers design incentive structures which help to maximise
outcomes for patients.
GP commissioning consortia: building a better
healthcare system for patients. This paper is the first in a
series of white papers exploring how GP commissioning consortia can
meet the new responsibilities they will face under the proposed
government reforms for the NHS. It also suggests how the process of
transferring the various tasks and functions from PCTs can be
managed. This paper also maps out how sector relationships are
likely to change in this new shift from PCTs to GP commissioning
consortia.
Letter to all SHA and PCT chief executives about
the proposals for GP-led commissioning. This is a letter from
Dame Barbara Hakin, National Managing Director of Commissioning.
She refers to a letter from Secretary of State for Health Andrew
Lansley to GPs about the proposals for GP commissioning,
reiterating the intention that the formation of consortia would be
a bottom up approach, led by GP practices.
Next steps on GP-led commissioning. The
Secretary of State for Health has written this letter to GPs about
the proposals for GP commissioning and reiterating the intention
that the formation of consortia would be a bottom up approach, led
by GP practices.
Department of Health: What to expect after
vaccinations. This leaflet explains the common side-effects of
vaccinations that might occur in babies and young children up to
five years of age. It is intended for nurses and other immunisation
practitioners to download and print out for parents and guardians
when their children are being immunised.
Delays in deliveries of seasonal influenza vaccine
2010. This letter informs GP surgeries that there has been
delays in deliveries of some seasonal influenza vaccines due to
packaging problems. Affected surgeries should in the first instance
try to reschedule their clinics in line with the updated delivery
schedules. Failing that, surgeries should try to contact other flu
manufacturers to see if they can provide stocks to cover clinics
planned for October.
Consultations
Liberating the NHS: Commissioning for patients -
Consultation on proposals. Deadline date: 11 October
2010 This consultation seeks views on how proposals for
putting local GP practices in charge of commissioning services, to
best meet the needs of local people, should be implemented.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact David Owens.
Prison Health
Publications/Guidance
Prison mental health: vision and reality. This
publication aims to examine what has been achieved in prison mental
health over recent years from a number of different personal
perspectives and individual observations of working in England. It
looks at the specific achievements of inreach teams and of efforts
to divert offenders from custody. It also looks more broadly at the
rapid growth of the prison population during the same period and
the treatment of offenders with mental health problems outside as
well as inside prison.
The Patel report: reducing drug-related crime and rehabilitating offenders. A report by Professor Lord Patel of Bradford OBE, chair of the independent Prison Drug Treatment Strategy Review Group has been produced on drug treatment and interventions in prison and has been submitted to Ministers in the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Health in response to the drug strategy consultation. The report focuses on drug treatment and interventions for people in prison, people moving between prisons and the continuity of care for people on release from prison. The report outlines the evidence gathered and work carried out by the Review Group and summarises their conclusions and recommendations.
The CIPD, in conjunction with Acas and the Health & Safety Executive, have produced a guide for employers on 'Work Related Stress: What the Law Says'.
Bevan Brittan Training
Annual Prison Health Update. 09 December 2010 : Location:
Fleet Place House, 2 Fleet Place, Holborn Viaduct, London EC4M
7RF.
register your interest in this event.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Nadia Persaud.
Regulation
Publications/Guidance
Analysis of consultation on assessments of quality
in 2010-11. This report presents the analysis of a consultation
on the framework for Care Quality Commission assessments of health
and social care commissioners in 2010-11 and beyond.
Consultations
Liberating the NHS: Regulating healthcare providers
- A consultation. Deadline date: 11 October 2010 This
consultation seeks views on foundation trusts and the establishment
of Monitor as an independent economic regulator for health and
adult social care.
Consultation on equality and human rights. The CQC and EHRC are seeking views on draft guidance on equality and human rights for inspectors and assessors to use when they monitor providers according to the CQC's standards and registration requirements. The consultation closes on 12 November 2010.
Public service ombudsmen. The Law Commission is conducting a review of the law relating to the public services ombudsmen. This consultation paper contains detailed provisional proposals for reform. The consultation period will run until 3 December 2010.
News
Registration support for providers of dental
services. Announces that the CQC is extending its national
contact centre's opening hours and publishing new guidance on
registration to help support primary dental providers preparing to
apply for registration. All providers have to be registered from 1
April 2011. The Newcastle-based centre will now open from 8.30am to
8pm Monday to Thursday, from 8.30am to 5.30pm on Friday and from
8am to 4pm on Saturdays. CQC has also issued new guidance for the providers of primary dental
services that provides more information on the application
process, which has been refined following a series of pilot
projects. CQC is expecting applications from more than 8,500
providers.
Bevan Brittan Updates
The Health White Paper - A New Regulatory Order? The
Health White Paper makes a commitment to move to a new system of
control based on economic and quality regulation, and commissioning
and payment by results, instead of national and regional
management. At the same time, the Government has indicated a clear
intention to significantly reduce the overall burden of regulation
in both the health and social care sectors. Neil Grant examines the
proposed regulatory changes, looking at the key objectives behind
the reforms, how the new regulatory landscape will look and
operate, and when the changes will come into effect.
If you wish to discuss any of the items raised in this section please contact Neil Grant.
General
Publications/Guidance
Regional Trauma Networks: Clinical Advisory Group
document. This report contains advice on the planning and
designing of networks by the NHS Clinical Advisory Groups for major
trauma to their colleagues in the NHS. The report is hosted on the
East Midlands Strategic Health Authority website, along side other
relevant supporting information.
Protocol for ordering, storing and handling vaccines. This protocol applies to all staff involved in immunisation. It aims to ensure that vaccines are stored and managed properly so that immunisation is carried out safely and efficiently.
On
the face of it: a review of the organisational structures
surrounding the practice of cosmetic surgery. This report
reviews variations in organisational structures surrounding the
practice of cosmetic surgery and takes a critical look at areas
that have been identified where the organisation of care of
cosmetic surgery patients can be improved. It investigates policies
surrounding advertising and consent; the structure and case-mix of
teams providing cosmetic surgery, the number and types of
procedures performed; the provision of post-operative follow-up;
policies, facilities and protocols and policies for clinical
audit.
NHS car parking: response to consultation. Sets
out the Government's response to the consultation on the
implementation of free NHS hospital car parking for inpatients,
which looked at a limited range of options around a premise of
mandatory free parking for the majority of patients or visitors to
NHS hospitals. The Government considers that the introduction of
widespread free parking would have adverse consequences including
congestion and capacity problems, and lack of future investment,
that would compromise the convenient access that people say is
their most important need. It considers that Trust boards should
continue to be responsible for developing local parking policies
that reflect the circumstances of their location and the needs of
the local community. The Government does, however, see the
provision of appropriate concessions for patients whose healthcare
needs require extended access to hospitals as fundamental to a
patient centred NHS. This response sets out a number of levers
through which it believes that such fair policies can be supported
and maintained, and challenges hospital trusts collectively and
individually to review their current policies to ensure that they
are consistent with these principles and standards.
Moving beyond sponsorship: Interactive toolkit for
joint working between the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry.
To enable NHS organisations and the pharmaceutical industry to work
together in the interests of patients, the Ministerial Industry
Strategy Group recommended that the Department should develop an
interactive toolkit to support joint working so as to improve
patient outcomes. The purpose of this toolkit is to encourage NHS
organisations and staff to consider joint working as a realistic
option for the delivery of high-quality healthcare and a way to
drive efficiency in the delivery of services in both primary and
secondary care, and to provide the necessary information and have
easy access to the tools which will help to enter into joint
working. The initial version of the toolkit was published in March
2008. Following feedback from users, the toolkit has been updated
to include some new templates as well as more examples of good
practice for reference. This toolkit should be used in conjunction
with the document "Best practice guidance for joint working between
the NHS and the pharmaceutical industry".
The templates are all available on the DH website.
Community engagement report for the Health
Foundation. This report looks at how communities are defined
and addresses barriers that some communities face when accessing
health services. There is a key focus on maternity, where the
report finds there are specific obstacles around engagement.
Engaging communities for health improvement: a
scoping study for the Health Foundation. A community engagement
project involves talking to people in different communities about
what they want and need from their healthcare services. This report
looks at community engagement projects and provides some ideas
about what can make them work well.
Pillars of the community: the RCN's UK position on
the development of the registered nursing workforce in the
community. This policy statement highlights 27 core conditions
that the Royal College of Nursing believes should be satisfied for
community services to survive and develop as more care is delivered
closer to home, while helping health services throughout the UK to
become more efficient.
Adaptation to climate change in NHS organisations: what you need to know. This guidance summarises the current knowledge on adapting to climate change in NHS organisations. It describes what climate change adaptation is, why it is a priority for the NHS and how organisations can include adaptation in their Sustainable Development Management Plans.
'Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS' - opportunities and challenges. In this commentary paper, the Bow Group Health Policy Committee outline their response to Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS – the Health White Paper, which sets out the Government's long-term vision for the future of the NHS in England. The analysis focuses on five key areas, which feature prominently in the White Paper. These include GP commissioning, quality and outcomes, public health, efficiency savings and QUANGOs, and value and innovation.
Telehealthcare toolkit. This is a support aid for NHS staff to help make a viable business case for the introduction of new technology to assist with the provision of healthcare in the home. This toolkit gives suggestions, information and advice about how to make ideas for technological changes in home healthcare provision become a reality.
Meeting the healthcare needs of veterans: a guide for general practitioners. The Royal College of General Practitioners, The Royal British Legion and Combat Stress have launched guidance to support GPs in identifying and meeting the healthcare needs of veterans more effectively - including accessing the priority treatment to which all veterans are entitled for service-related conditions.
Rising to the challenge: creating momentum through QIPP in the new NHS. This guide is provided as a practical resource for healthcare professionals to help them prepare for and, most importantly, deliver the improvements in efficiency and performance required by all UK healthcare organisations.
Consultations
Equality Act 2010: The public sector equality duty
- promoting equality through transparency. The public sector
equality duty has a key role in ensuring that fairness is at the
heart of public bodies’ work and that public services meet the
needs of different groups. The 2010 Act also gives ministers the
power to impose specific duties, which are legal requirements
designed to help public bodies meet their obligations under the
public sector equality duty. This paper seeks views on draft
regulations for the specific duties and the list of public bodies
that will be subject to the general and specific duties. The
consultation closes on 10 November 2010.
News
111 - The new number for the future of
non-emergency health services. Announces the launch of the NHS
111 service, which guides patients to a locally available service
or provides appropriate advice and information 24 hours a day, 365
days a year. The number can be used when someone needs help fast
but it is not life threatening, or when they do not know who to
call. The new 111 service has been launched initially in County
Durham and Darlington; calls are handled by North East Ambulance
Service NHS Trust, who also handle 999 calls. It will also be
launched in three other pilot areas in 2010: Nottingham City,
Lincolnshire, and Luton. A full assessment of the service in these
areas will guide the national roll out of the NHS 111 service.
Government implements saving ideas submitted through the
Spending Challenge. Announces that three ideas submitted to the
Spending Challenge by members of the public and public sector
workers will be implemented as policy by the Government. One of the
ideas being implemented is to reduce the number of CRB checks for
junior doctors by taking a more commonsense approach across the
NHS, so that junior doctors are not checked repeatedly over a short
space of time. This will save up to a £1m a year and cut
administrative burdens for the NHS.
The GBP 12.7 billion scheme to give every patient
in England an electronic medical record will cease to be a
centralised national programme and will be devolved to the NHS.
The Government announced on September 16, 2010 that
patients in England will continue to pay for hospital car parking,
refusing to back a promise made by the previous Government to scrap
the charges in England. This is the government's response to the
consultation on the implementation of free NHS hospital car parking
for inpatients.
Bevan Brittan Training
Medical Law seminar. 12 October 2010 : Registration: 9.15am,
Seminar 9.30am - 11.30am. Location: Fleet
Place House, 1 Fleet Place, Holborn Viaduct London EC4M
7RF. Click
here for more information.
Complaints and claims forum. 01 December 2010 . Location:
Fleet Place House, 2 Fleet Place, Holborn Viaduct, London EC4M
7RF. Further details to follow.
register your interest in this event.
Bevan Brittan Online Resources
NEW! Bevan Brittan Mental Health Portal. Bevan
Brittan has a wealth of mental health knowledge it would like to
share with clients. We have therefore developed an online resource
which has been designed to bring various sources of mental health
information and guidance into one place. The aim is simple - to
keep professionals in mental health up-to-date with what is
happening in an ever changing landscape. If you would like
more information please contact
Claire Bentley.
If you require further information about any of the items raised in this section please contact Claire Bentley.
