UK Healthcare Crisis: BMJ Study Shows Nurses Overworked, Undertrained
Today, DW is taking a break from covering U.S. health issues and taking a look across the pond.  Millie Whitehead discusses recent research that indicates a disturbing trend of missed activities and nursing care for NHS patients. Recently reported research indicates a disturbing trend of missed activities and nursing care for NHS patients. There have also been numerous reports of failing UK hospitals in the mass media. Much has been made of NHS trust and hospital executives and managers allowing bad practice to take place and multiply. Management is under significant pressure to keep costs down while still ensuring good q...
Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - December 25, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: dw at disruptivewomen.net Tags: Advocacy Career Nurses Source Type: blogs

Meeting the needs of patients: improving strategic planning in NHS foundation trusts
Monitor - This document is aimed at NHS foundation trusts; it looks at what strategic and operational planning can achieve and how the sector can be supported in moving towards these goals. Guidance Monitor - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 24, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Commissioning Quality of care and clinical outcomes Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Annual plan review 2014/15 guidance
Monitor - This document is Monitor’s guidance on the 2014/15 planning round. It covers Monitor’s expectations for foundation trusts and sets out details of their forthcoming annual planning review process. Guidance Operational plan commentary template Strategic plan commentary template Monitor - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 24, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Commissioning Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Risk assessment framework: addendum for assessing risk at independent providers of Commissioner Requested Services
Monitor -Since October 2013, Monitor has used the Risk assessment framework to monitor financial and governance risks at NHS foundation trusts. The financial parts of the Risk assessment framework will also apply to all independent sector providers of Commissioner Requested Services from 1st April 2014. This consultation puts forward a proposed approach to monitoring financial risk at those organisations. The consultation closes on 6th February 2014. Consultation Monitor - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 20, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Consultations NHS finances and productivity Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Hard truths: essential actions
The Health Foundation -In November 2013, the government published its full response to the Report of the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust Public Inquiry by Robert Francis QC. The focus of this briefing is on bridging the gap between the actions set out by the government and their practical application by people working in the service. It suggests to policy makers how the continual reduction of harm can be achieved by measuring safety comprehensively and by building the capability of individuals, organisations and systems. Briefing The Health Foundation - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 19, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Patient safety Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust (MSFT) recommendations - final report
This report sets out a series of recommendations for the future of MSFT and the services it currently provides. The TSAs’ recommendations will mean that at least 91% of current patient visits will continue to take place locally at Stafford or Cannock Chase Hospitals and that the services provided at these hospitals will be clinically safe and sustainable. Final report Supporting documents Office of the Trust Special Administrator (TSAs) of MSFT - news (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 18, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Patient safety Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Midwifery supervision and regulation: recommendations for change
This report follows the completion of three investigations into complaints from three families, all of which related to local midwifery supervision and regulation. It finds that the midwifery supervision and regulatory arrangements at the local level failed to identify poor midwifery practice at Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust. It concludes that the current arrangements do not always allow information about poor care to be escalated effectively into hospital clinical governance or the regulatory system. Report Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman - press release (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 11, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Patient safety Quality of care and clinical outcomes Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

The Francis report (report of the Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust public inquiry) and the government’s response
House of Commons Library - This briefing provides background to the public inquiry led by Robert Francis QC, established to examine why serious failures in care at Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust before 2009 were not acted on sooner by the various responsible organisations. It also provides some information on earlier reviews, and the Government’s initial response to the Francis report, which was published on 6th February 2013. Information on the Government's detailed response to each of the Francis report's 290 recommendations can be found in Hard Truths, the Journey to Putting Patients First, published o...
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - December 3, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: NHS measurement and performance Patient involvement, experience and feedback Patient safety Quality of care and clinical outcomes Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

Payment by Results data assurance framework: key findings from the 2012/13 programme
This report summarises the main findings from local audits of acute NHS foundation trusts and NHS trusts in 2012 to 2013, carried out on behalf of the Audit Commission. The audits provide assurance over the quality of data that supports payments to NHS providers for certain treatments and services. Report Department of Health - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - November 21, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: NHS finances and productivity Quality of care and clinical outcomes Regulation, governance and accountability Source Type: blogs

NHS reference costs 2012-13
Department of Health -These are the reference costs for the financial year 2012 to 2013. They detail how NHS expenditure was used to provide healthcare by NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts. Reference costs Department of Health - publications (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - November 21, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: NHS finances and productivity Source Type: blogs

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust public inquiry: government response
Department of Health - These documents build on the government’s initial response: Patients First and Foremost, which was published in March 2013. They explain the changes that have been put in place since the initial response was published, and set out how the whole health and care system will prioritise and build on this. Volume 2 outlines the responses to each of the 290 recommendations made by the public inquiry. Volume one of response Volume two of response Equality analysis Government response to the House of Commons Health Committee third report of session 2013-14: After Francis: making a difference Department of...
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - November 19, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: Changing configuration of health services Developments in primary and community care Leadership and leadership development Patient involvement, experience and feedback Patient safety Quality of care and clinical outcomes Regulation, governance Source Type: blogs

A normal day at the NHS
Those of us in the US who have been overwhelmed lately by overly excited health care stories in the media look fondly across the Pond. We are confident that we can find a much calmer discourse about these issues in the UK.  After all, a single payer system, well established, and held in fond regard by the populace can’t be very controversial.  Well maybe. Here’s a synopsis of one day’s news coverage about the NHS from The Times and The Daily Telegraph.  Make sure you read all the way to the last one.  My head is spinning.•A hospital trust whose staff were allegedly forced to alter waiting times...
Source: Running a hospital - November 17, 2013 Category: Health Managers Source Type: blogs

Unsafe and Unfair. #MentalHealth frontline staff whistleblow Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust cuts #ukmh
Professionals are finding it ‘almost impossible’ to practice safely amid cuts, says grassroots campaign, but trust says claims are inaccurate http://www.communitycare.co.uk/2013/11/07/we-are-no-longer-prepared-to-remain-silent-frontline-staff-blow-whistle-on-impact-of-mental-health-cuts/#.Un0XFlgRHKC.twitterFiled under: Mental Health, The News & Policies. (Source: Dawn Willis sharing the News and Views of the Mentally Wealthy)
Source: Dawn Willis sharing the News and Views of the Mentally Wealthy - November 8, 2013 Category: Mental Illness Authors: Quinonostante Tags: Mental Health, The News & Policies. Source Type: blogs

Senior salaries review body (SSRB) review for 2014: written evidence from the Department of Health
Department of Health - This document provides evidence from the Department of Health to SSRB. Pay raises for very senior managers employed by the Department of Health's arms length bodies and by ambulance trusts that have not attained foundation trust status are determined by the government in light of recommendations made by the SSRB. The SSRB takes evidence from the Department of Health and the Managers in Partnership trade union before making its recommendations. Report Department of Health - news (Source: Health Management Specialist Library)
Source: Health Management Specialist Library - October 31, 2013 Category: UK Health Authors: The King's Fund Information & Knowledge Service Tags: NHS finances and productivity Workforce and employment Source Type: blogs

The This Week in Mentalists Awards 2013 – Meet the Judges
Nominations for the This Week in Mentalists Awards 2013 are now open. Please click on this link and leave a comment there to tell us your favourite mental health blogs and vlogs. On November 1st, when the public nominations end, the top three nominees in each category will be passed to our judges. They’ll then have until just before Christmas to pick their favourites, after which the winners will be announced online on Saturday 21st December. So let’s introduce the judges. Please note that they are all acting here in a personal capacity and not on behalf of their respective employers. Please also note that th...
Source: Dawn Willis sharing the News and Views of the Mentally Wealthy - October 1, 2013 Category: Mental Illness Authors: Zarathustra Tags: Mental Health, The News & Policies. TWIM awards Source Type: blogs