In 2004 the Quality and Outcomes Framework was developed to combat GP’s dissatisfaction regarding pay and working conditions, a major component being performance related pay. Fast forward 10 years and shifts away from performance pay are now occurring. Thomas Allen, research fellow in Health Economics examines whether removing the measure will impact the working lives of GPs: The Quality […]
Dementia health check – will more checks lead to more use of services?
It’s Dementia Awareness Week, which this year aims to encourage people who are worried about dementia to confront their worries by addressing dementia directly and seeking support. Brenda Gannon explains how new research indicates this may not mean increased costs to the NHS. In the era of health budget Devolution and integrated health and social […]
The NHS has rushed to fix a weekend problem that doesn’t exist
Extended weekend working is being introduced by the National Health Service in a bid to save lives. But, as Matt Sutton and Rachel Meacock explain, new research casts serious doubt on the premise that more hospital staff on Saturday and Sunday will mean fewer patient deaths. As the raft of recent media coverage has highlighted, […]
Health and social care devolution: it’s complicated
Devolving health and social care decisions to local politicians and professionals adds further complexity to an already complex system – and does not guarantee that the correct or popular decisions will be taken – argue Julia Segar, Anna Coleman and Kath Checkland. ‘Keep Wythenshawe Special’ is a campaign led by clinicians from Wythenshawe Hospital. […]
What can be gained from focusing on positives which emerge from the current GP gloom?
Morale in UK general practice has dropped to a low ebb and a shortage of doctors is blamed for an increasing proportion of practices seeking to avoid accepting new patients. Yet week after week around 40,000 NHS GPs continue to work. Researcher and part-time GP Sharon Spooner explores the nature and significance of what motivates […]
The well-being of young migrant men
As large numbers of migrants, many of them young men, arrive on European shores, questions abound about their future. What do the coming years hold for them? What challenges will they face? And will they be happy? Necla Acik looks at the evidence….. A project just completed asked over 300 young migrant men about their […]
Are patients interested in pharmaceutical research?
It is important to involve patients and the public in pharmaceutical medicines research and development. Suzanne Parsons and Bella Starling examine who is interested, who is not and why. Involving patients and the public as active partners in their healthcare and in healthcare research has become an increasingly important policy issue in the last two […]
The Drug Resistance Crisis
Drug resistance and the lack of new antibiotics are creating a potential medical crisis, the government’s Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies warned in this year’s University of Manchester Cockcroft Rutherford Lecture. We are in danger of losing modern medicine. Growing drug resistance among bacteria, viruses and other microbes poses a catastrophic threat to […]
Integrating physical and mental healthcare for people with multi-morbidity
Multi-morbidity – having more than one long-term health condition, often affecting mental health – is a worsening problem. In the first of two blogs considering the issue, Dr Peter Coventry explains there are ways to improve care. Of the 53 million people living in England, more than 15 million live with a long-term health condition […]
Why childcare matters
Increased provision of free childcare will not only help to lift the UK’s productivity, it will also raise household incomes – potentially improving health outcomes for children, explains Dr Brenda Gannon. Currently, all children aged three or four are entitled to 15 hours of free childcare per week for 38 weeks. In last week’s Queen’s […]