Improving integrated care: modelling the performance of an online community of practice

"Public policies promoting the use of information and communication technologies in the field of medicine in general, and in communities of practice in particular, should go beyond the purely technological dimension and consider other professional and social determinants, as well as those of a contextual and organisational nature."

Improving integrated care: modelling the performance of an online community of practice
Á Díaz-Chao, J Torrent-Sellens, D Lacasta-Tintorer, F Saigí-Rubió
International Journal of Integrated Care, 2014; Jan–Mar

Read more here.

Challenges and improvements in diagnostic services across seven days

"Across the country, hospitals and primary and community care organisations are working together to look at ways of delivering safe and effective care over seven days a week ... This new publication summarises service improvement achievements and potential challenges." 

Challenges and improvements in diagnostic services across seven days 
NHS Improving Quality
March 2014

Read more here.

Supporting recovery in mental health services: quality and outcomes

"Recovery is a complex construct and measuring quality and outcomes is therefore bound to be a complex process. This has to be acknowledged. It cannot be reduced to a single measure or practice just because this is convenient. At the heart of recovery outcomes must be the experience of the person themselves and their unique hopes and dreams for the future."

Supporting recovery in mental health services: quality and outcomes
G Shepherd, J Boardman, M Rinaldi, G Roberts
Centre for Mental Health and Mental Health Network, NHS Confederation
March 2014

Read more here.

Telehealth and telecare

"Increased use of technology such as telehealth and telecare may help to improve quality of care and reduce costs. This note describes current UK telehealth and telecare initiatives and the role they may play in delivering future care."

Telehealth and telecare - POST Note
P Border
Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology
February 2014

Read more here.

Unit costs of health and social care 2013

"With increased demand for health and social care expected, health and local authorities are faced with more pressure than ever to keep a tight rein on expenditure, so information on the costs of services continues to be an important contribution to accurate planning and commissioning."

Unit costs of health and social care 2013 
L Curtis
Personal Social Services Research Unit, University of Kent

Read more here.

Commissioning guide: weight assessment and management clinics

"This Tier 3 guidance describes the role of the referring GP, what should be achieved in the clinics and who should be referred for bariatric surgery. Given the lack of consistency in the provision of medical obesity services, this guidance should provide an organised structure and evidence-base for treatment"

Commissioning guide: weight assessment and management clinics (tier 3)
Royal College of Surgeons, British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society

March 2014

Read more here.

Personal health budgets: including people with learning disabilities

"Implementing personal health budgets for people with learning disabilities can improve the quality of support, and thus the quality of life, for individuals and their families."

Personal health budgets: including people with learning disabilities
S Turner, A Giraud-Saunders
Think Local Act Personal

February 2014

Read more here.

Voluntary organisations experiences of local health organisations

"In March 2014 NAVCA published three research briefings exploring local charities and voluntary organisations attitudes and experiences of local health organisations. The three reports explore the extent to which they feel able to influence Joint Strategic Needs Assessments (JSNA) and the nature of their relationship with local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and local Healthwatch."

Find out more and access the reports here.

Statutory duty of candour for health and adult social care providers

"The duty of candour will require all health and adult social care providers registered with CQC to be open with people when things go wrong. The regulations would impose a specific and detailed duty of candour on all providers where any harm to a service user from their care or treatment is above a certain harm-threshold."

Open consultation: Statutory duty of candour for health and adult social care providers
Department of Health
March 2014

Read more and respond to the consultation here.

Learning communities and the skills needed to improve care

"Part of the reason why quality improvement is so hard to achieve may be that those involved in leading QI programmes need to deploy three different but interrelated types of improvement skills: technical, soft and learning skills. A lack of skills in one area will constrain progress, irrespective of the team’s strengths in other skill areas."

Skilled for improvement? Learning communities and the skills needed to improve care: an evaluative service development
J Gabbay, A le May, C Connell, JH Klein
The Health Foundation
March 2014

Read more here.

Improvement Capability Self-Assessment Tool

"You can use the tool to assess your hospital’s capability in six key areas: 1) Leadership for Improvement, 2) Results, 3) Resources, 4) Workforce and Human Resources, 5) Data Infrastructure and Management, and 6) Improvement Knowledge and Competence."

IHI Improvement Capability Self-Assessment Tool
Institute for Healthcare Improvement

Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA 

Access the tool and additional resources here.

International prevalence of adverse drug events in hospitals

"Adverse drug events (ADEs) are frequent in hospitals, occurring either in patients before admission or as a nosocomial event, and either as a drug reaction or as a consequence of a medication error. Routine data primarily recorded for reimbursement purposes are increasingly being used on a national level both in pharmacoepidemiological studies and in trigger tools. The aim of this study was to compare the prevalence rates of coded ADEs in hospitals on a transnational level."

International prevalence of adverse drug events in hospitals: an analysis of routine data from England, Germany, and the USA
J Stausberg
BMC Health Services Research, 2014, 14:125

Read more here.

Care in crisis: what’s next for social care?

"The care system in England is in crisis. Older people, their families and carers are often placed under incredible pressure navigating a system which is confusing and unfair. Many are denied access to help, while others are forced to sacrifice what they have worked all their lives for."

Care in crisis: what’s next for social care?
Age UK
January 2014
Read more here.

Annual Report of the CMO: On the state of the public’s health

"I strongly believe that data and scientific evidence should be at the heart of policy making and advice to government. Data should be used to inform our prioritisation of action and to evaluate the effectiveness of such action; scientific evidence should be used to determine what actions should be taken." 

Annual Report of the Chief Medical Officer, Surveillance Volume, 2012: On the state of the public’s health
Department of Health
March 2014

Read more here.

Focus On: Social care for older people

"Given the future trends in population growth and the visible constraints to local government, which is facing further budget cuts in the coming years, it is imperative that we develop better information systems that span care providers for older people."

Focus On: Social care for older people: Reductions in adult social services for older people in England 

S Ismail, R Thorlby, H Holder

The Health Foundation, Nuffield Trust

March 2014

Read more here.

2014 Global health care outlook

"Across the globe there have never been more health care challenges than there are today. However, these challenges can push stakeholders to innovate in new and exciting ways and to generate scientific, medical, and care delivery breakthroughs that can improve the health of people worldwide."

2014 Global health care outlook: Shared challenges, shared opportunities
Deloitte
February 2014

Read more here.

Do variations in hospital mortality patterns after weekend admission reflect reduced quality of care?

"Not every diagnostic group demonstrates a weekend effect, and those that do are associated with quite different risk profiles, suggestive of different causal pathways. Recognising how these different patterns shape the impact of weekend admissions should lead to more diagnosis- and service-specific analyses and solutions."

Do variations in hospital mortality patterns after weekend admission reflect reduced quality of care or different patient cohorts? A population-based study
O Perez Concha, B Gallego, K Hillman, GP Delaney, E Coiera
BMJ Quality and Safety, 2014; 23(3): 215-222

Read more here.

NHS Right Care videos supporting commissioning

NHS Right Care have created four videos to support commissioning:

• Integrating Hub/Prime Vendor
• Commissioning for Value Deep Dives
• Value Based Guidance for Elective Surgery
• Data Tools to Support the RCSE Commissioning Guidance

These videos and more can be accessed from the NHS Right Care Resource Centre.

Focus on Stroke

In February the National Institute for Health Research launched their new Focus on Stroke website. The website showcases NIHR research activities, including a searchable list of studies, patient information resources, and stroke research case studies.

Find out more and access all of the resources here.

The future of public health: A horizon scan

"Public Health England is responsible for a broad range of health improvement, protection and surveillance activities. Research and science are core to the organisation’s function and success. As the organisation evolves, the capabilities it needs to address future public health science will also evolve. This report contributes to that endeavour and sheds some light on the extent to which an integrated science hub and network of facilities could serve PHE in the future."

The future of public health: A horizon scan
MM Jones, A Hall, D Brooker, S Castle-Clarke, E Winpenny, D Jahagirdar, J Exley, J Chataway
RAND Europe
2013

Read more here.

Medical revalidation: From compliance to commitment

"Medical revalidation, with the right conditions, can be a valuable driver of behaviours and cultures that support sustained quality improvement. The time to develop those conditions is now. Above all, leaders should bear in mind that large-scale change requires them to have the tenacity and vision to create a process that is valued by all who are involved in it." 

Medical revalidation: From compliance to commitment
V Nath, B Seale, M Kaur
The Kings's Fund
March 2014

Read more here.

International Forum on Quality and Safety In Healthcare 2014 abstracts

Abstracts are available for the International Forum on Quality and Safety In Healthcare 8-11 April 2014, Paris. This year's theme is "Improve Quality, Reduce Costs, Save Lives".

To view the abstracts go here.

Strategies to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infection

"Urinary catheter reminders and stop orders appear to reduce catheter-associated urinary tract infection rates and should be used to improve patient safety. Several evidence-based guidelines have evaluated CAUTI preventive strategies as well as emerging evidence regarding intervention bundles. Implementation strategies are important because reducing urinary catheter use involves changing well-established habits."

Reducing unnecessary urinary catheter use and other strategies to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infection: an integrative review
J Meddings, MAM Rogers, SL Krein, MG Fakih, RN Olmsted, S Saint
BMJ Quality and Safety, 2014, 23 (4) 277–289

Read more here.

Working to make the payment system do more for patients

"The main context for our work over the next year is the need for new and sustainable patterns of care that can do more for patients. Here, we describe how we are working towards a longer-term redesign of the payment system that will help meet that need, and how locally-led innovations encouraged by the 2014/15 national tariff are a first step in that direction."

How Monitor and NHS England are working to make the payment system do more for patients from 2015/16
Monitor and NHS England
February 2014

Read more here.

Leeds children’s heart surgery services review

"The Leeds children’s heart surgery services review was undertaken to issues raised regarding the safety and quality of care at the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. A significant amount of work has been undertaken to establish an accurate picture of the services provided by the Trust, including a detailed review of cases and interviews with families to understand their experiences."

The review contains two papers:

• Mortality Case Review for the period 2009- 2013
• Family Experience Report

Children’s Congenital Cardiac Surgery Services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
NHS England
March 2014

Read more here.

House of Care model

"NHS England and partners are using the ‘House of Care’ model as metaphor for these building blocks of high quality person-centred coordinated care. The House relies on four key interdependent components, all of which must be present for the goal, person-centred coordinated care, to be realised:

• Commissioning 
• Engaged, informed individuals and carers
• Organisational and clinical processes
• Health and care professionals working in partnership"

Find out more and access all the resources here.

Early benefits and impact of medical revalidation

"Our research shows there is strong support, particularly among responsible officers and appraisers, for the principles and value of revalidation and its ability to improve safety, quality and effective delivery of care for patients. However this is not yet shared universally among doctors: some of whom feel that the system is not relevant to their needs."

The early benefits and impact of medical revalidation: report on research findings in year one
R Critchley, P Ader, A Godden, K Ball
NHS Revalidation Support Team
March 2014

Read the report and supporting documents here.

Improving general practice - phase one report

"This report focuses on the central role we want general practice to play in wider systems of primary care, and it describes our ambition for greater collaboration with CCGs in the commissioning of general practice. Transformational change will be led locally, but we outline the work underway nationally to support it."

Improving general practice - A call to action: phase one report
B Dyson
NHS England
March 2014

Read more here.

Bite-size guides to support patient and public participation

NHS England has developed four bite-size guides to support patient and public participation in the NHS. These guides are linked to the Transforming participation in Health and Social Care guidance (published September 2013).

Access the guides via the following links:

1. Principles for Participation in Commissioning
2. Governance for Participation
3. Planning for Participation
4. Budgeting for Participation

Joined up clinical pathways for obesity

"NHS England should in the medium term prioritise early consideration of the transfer of the majority of adult bariatric surgery to local commissioning, through CCGs, once they have been shown to be functioning well with sufficent volume of patients to justify de-specialising the service."

Report of the working group into: Joined up clinical pathways for obesity
Jamie Blackshaw, S Montel, S King, A Jarvis, J Valabhji
NHS England
March 2014

Read more here.

Patient safety alerts to increase incident reporting

NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have issued two patient safety alerts to improve incident reporting for medication errors and medical devices. They aim to improve data report quality and prompt the establishment of national networks of online learning which will work to improve communication and sharing of safe practice ideas in order to reduce harm.

Find out more and access the alerts with their supporting information here.

Surgical checklists: a systematic review of impacts and implementation

"Surgical safety checklists were associated with increased detection of potential safety hazards, decreased surgical complications and improved communication among operating room staff."

Surgical checklists: a systematic review of impacts and implementation
JR Treadwell, S Lucas, AY Tsou
BMJ Quality and Safety, 2014; 23(4): 299–318

Read more here.

Patient safety and quality improvement education

"Teaching of patient safety and quality improvement to medical students will be best received if it is integrated into clinical education rather than solely taught in pre-clinical lectures or through independent computer modules."

Patient safety and quality improvement education: a cross-sectional study of medical students' preferences and attitudes
CL Teigland, RC Blasiak, LA Wilson, RE Hines, KL Meyerhoff, AJ Viera
BMC Medical Education, 2013, 13:16

Read more here.

Application of the plan–do–study–act method to improve quality in healthcare

"There is varied application and reporting of plan-do-study-act cycles and lack of compliance with the principles that underpin its design as a pragmatic scientific method. The varied practice compromises its effectiveness as a method for improvement and cautions against studies that view quality improvement or PDSA as a ‘black box’ intervention."

Systematic review of the application of the plan–do–study–act method to improve quality in healthcare
MJ Taylor, C McNicholas, C Nicolay, A Darzi, D Bell, JE Reed
BMJ Quality and Safety, 2014; 23(4): 290-298

Read more here.

Having quality as an item on the executive board agenda

"Having quality as an item on the executive board’s agenda allows them to review and discuss quality performance more often in order to improve their hospital’s quality management. Generally, and as this study found, having quality on the executive board’s agenda matters."

Is having quality as an item on the executive board agenda associated with the implementation of quality management systems in European hospitals: a quantitative analysis
D Botje, NS Klazinga, R Suñol, O Groene, H Pfaff, R Mannion, A Depaigne-Loth, OA Arah, M Dersarkissian, C Wagner
International Journal of Quality in Health Care, 2014, February 17, doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzu017

Read more here.

Health service redesign: from structure to function

"The findings suggest that large scale redesign projects are difficult to sustain because of changing circumstances, staff turnover, and the challenge of maintaining momentum. A more realistic approach centres on building teams, with local leadership, focussed on clinical/patient concerns and engagement with services provided outside hospital."

Theme 1: Health service redesign: from structure to function: the impact of change
A Hewison
Collaborations for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care: Birmingham and Black Country
University of Birmingham, National Institute for Health Research
2014

Read more here.

Building a culture of candour

"Leaders within health and care organisations have a responsibility for ensuring that both the organisational commitment and the resources for building a culture of candour as part of a wider culture of safety, learning and improvement are in place."

Building a culture of candour: A review of the threshold for the duty of candour and of the incentives for care organisations to be candid
D Dalton, NS Williams

March 2014

Whole-system solutions for urgent and emergency care

"Demand for urgent and emergency care continues to increase year on year and it has been evident for some time that the system for delivering this care must adapt to meet ongoing and new challenges."

Ripping off the sticking plaster: Whole-system solutions for urgent and emergency care
Urgent and Emergency Care Forum
NHS Confederation
March 2014

Read more here.

Monitor: Regulating NHS foundation trusts

"This report examines whether Monitor’s regulation of NHS foundation trusts has been effective."

Monitor: Regulating NHS foundation trusts
A Morse, Controller and Auditor General
National Audit Office

February 2014

Read more here.

Adult social care in England

"This report, the first in a series on adult care, describes the care system. It highlights the main risks and challenges as the system is changed radically, some of which will be covered in more detail in future years."

Adult social care in England: overview
A Morse, Comptroller and Auditor General
Department of Health and Department for Communities and Local Government
National Audit Office
March 2014

Read more here.

The NHS payment system: evolving policy and emerging evidence

"This research report takes a comprehensive look at different approaches to payment and how they function in the English NHS. It then brings together and summarises the available evidence on whether recent payment initiatives have met their goals."

The NHS payment system: evolving policy and emerging evidence
L Marshall, A Charlesworth, J Hurst
Nuffield Trust
February 2014

Read more here.

NHS payment reform: lessons from the past and directions for the future

"To ensure that the long-term reforms to the payment system support the NHS to deliver efficient, high-quality care, Monitor and NHS England need to develop an approach that is:

• Comprehensive.
• Focused
• Aligned with wider system changes
• Transparent and evidence-based
• Predictable and credible"

NHS payment reform: lessons from the past and directions for the future
A Charlesworth, L Hawkins, L Marshall
Nuffield Trust
February 2014

Read more here.

One person, one team, one system (The Oldham report)

"Lessons need to be learnt from examples of more coordinated models of care in action. We believe achieving a shift towards coordinated, person-centred care requires a fundamental shift in the way that health and care is delivered, and can’t be achieved within the existing fragmented system."

One person, one team, one system: report of the Independent Commission on Whole Person Care for the Labour Party (the Oldham report)
Chaired by Sir John Oldham
February 2014

Read more here.

The importance of multimorbidity in explaining utilisation and costs

"

This work forms a basis for identifying groups that would most benefit from improved integrated 

care, which might be facilitated by integrated financial arrangements and better pathway 

management

."

The importance of multimorbidity in explaining utilisation and costs across health and social care settings: evidence from South Somerset’s Symphony Project

P Kasteridis, A Street, M Dolman, L Gallier, K Hudson, J Martin, I Wyer

Centre for Health Economics, University of York 

February 2014

Read more here.

The Francis Report: one year on

"Many senior leaders of the acute trusts said that the publication of the Francis Report had prompted them to reflect in greater depth on the quality of care being delivered in their organisations." 

The Francis Report: one year on: The response of acute trusts in England
R Thorlby, J Smith, S Williams, M Dayan
Nuffield Trust
February 2014

Read more here.

Making our health and care systems fit for an ageing population

"Improving services for older people requires us to consider each component of care, since many older people use multiple services, and the quality, capacity and responsiveness of any one component will affect others."

Making our health and care systems fit for an ageing population
D Oliver, C Foot, R Humphries
The King's Fund
March 2014


Read more here.

Identifying key vulnerable groups in data collections

"Our report, Hidden Needs, is about making the invisible visible. It demonstrates the yawning gaps in data, information analysis and research in four of the most vulnerable populations in society." 

Hidden needs: Identifying key vulnerable groups in data collections: Vulnerable migrants, gypsies and travellers, homeless people, and sex workers 
PJ Aspinall
Centre for Health Services Studies, University of Kent
March 2014

Read more here.

Closing the NHS funding gap

"So, can the £30bn a year gap be closed through efficiency savings by 2021? The general consensus at the roundtable was probably not, given the current pressures on the health system and the impact of funding cuts on other public services. However, participants did recognise that significant improvements in efficiency could be made..."

Closing the NHS funding gap: Can it be done through greater efficiency? (Summary of a roundtable discussion, 30 January 2014)
The Health Foundation
February 2014

Read more here.

What can the UK learn from healthcare innovation in India?

"Participants saw first-hand how innovation can drive quality and efficiency simultaneously, two dimensions that, in the US and UK, we often think of as opposing values."

What can the UK learn from healthcare innovation in India?: Reflections from an International Partnership for Innovative Healthcare Delivery (IPIHD) study tour to India
The Health Foundation
February 2014

Read more here.

Social and organizational factors affecting implementation of evidence-informed practice

"Managers were identified frequently as information sources, even though this is not a part of their formal role. Self-perceived implementation of EBP in practice was a significant predictor of being an information source or an expert, implying a positive atmosphere towards implementation of evidence-informed decision making in this public health organization. Results also implied that the perception of accessibility and trust were significant predictors of expertise recognition."

Social and organizational factors affecting implementation of evidence-informed practice in a public health department in Ontario: a network modelling approach
R Yousefi-Nooraie, M Dobbins, A Mari
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:29

Read more here.

The role of context in successful quality improvement

"This report contains four essays from leading academics aiming to explore the role of context in improving the quality of patient care."

Perspectives on context: A selection of essays considering the role of context in successful quality improvement
The Health Foundation
March 2014

Read more here.

Effective networks for improvement

"This report will help those who want to use networks as a mechanism for change, and guide improvement leaders to ensure their networks are designed and run in line with what works best."

Effective networks for improvement: Developing and managing effective networks to support quality improvement in healthcare
The Health Foundation
March 2014

Read more here.

A review of support available for loss in early and late pregnancy

"The purpose of this work is threefold: 

1. To highlight with stakeholders the need to consider this patient group when commissioning services and quality monitoring processes
2. To identify gaps and opportunities to work in partnership across all sectors to improve the experience, quality and consistency of care provided
3. To acknowledge practitioners and practice, and in doing so, encourage others to reflect on their own service and practice and if needs be take action to move forwards."

A review of support available for loss in early and late pregnancy

NHS Improving Quality

February 2014

Read more here.

Closing the gap: priorities for essential change in mental health

"High-quality mental health services with an emphasis on recovery should be commissioned in all areas, reflecting local need."

Closing the gap: priorities for essential change in mental health
Social Care, Local Government and Care Partnership Directorate
Department of Health
January 2014

Read more here.

Faculty for Homeless and Inclusion Health Service Standards for Commissioners and Service Providers

"The purpose of this document is to set clear minimum standards for planning, commissioning and providing health care for homeless people and other multiply excluded groups."

The Faculty for Homeless and Inclusion Health Service Standards for Commissioners and Service Providers (version 2)
Faculty for Homeless and Inclusion Health
January 2014

Read more here.

Patient-specific computer-based decision support in primary healthcare

"Computerized, tailored reminders in primary care did not decrease during the 12 months of follow-up time after the introduction of a patient-specific decision support system."

Patient-specific computer-based decision support in primary healthcare—a randomized trial
T Kortteisto, J Raitanen, J Komulainen, I Kunnamo, M Mäkelä, P Rissanen, M Kaila
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:15

Read more here.

Comparing in-person and webinar delivery of an immunization quality improvement program

"In-person and webinar delivery modes were both well received, but webinar AFIX consultations cost substantially less. Interactive webinar delivery shows promise for considerably extending the reach of immunization quality improvement programs."

Comparing in-person and webinar delivery of an immunization quality improvement program: a process evaluation of the adolescent AFIX trial
MB Gilkey, JL Moss, AJ Roberts, AM Dayton, AH Grimshaw, NT Brewer
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:21

Read more here.

The effect of a national quality improvement collaborative on prehospital care

"This first national prehospital QIC led to significant improvements in ambulance care for AMI and stroke in England. The use of care bundles as measures, clinical engagement, application of quality improvement methods, provider prompts, individualized feedback and opportunities for learning and interaction within and across organizations helped the collaborative to achieve its aims."

The effect of a national quality improvement collaborative on prehospital care for acute myocardial infarction and stroke in England
AN Siriwardena, D Shaw, N Essam, FJ Togher, Z Davy, A Spaight, M Dewey
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:17

Read more here.

Involving patients in setting priorities for healthcare improvement

"Patient involvement can change priorities driving healthcare improvement at the population level. Future research should test the generalizability of these findings to other contexts, and assess its impact on patient care."

Involving patients in setting priorities for healthcare improvement: a cluster randomized trial
A Boivin, P Lehoux, R Lacombe, J Burgers, R Grol
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:24

Read more here.

The challenge of change in acute mental health services

"VOCALISE can be used to explore staff perceptions of implementation climate and to assess how staff attitudes shape the successful outcomes of planned changes."

The challenge of change in acute mental health services: measuring staff perceptions of barriers to change and their relationship to job status and satisfaction using a new measure (VOCALISE)
C Laker, F Callard, C Flach, P Williams, J Sayer, T Wykes
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:23

Read more here.

A meta-analysis of how clinicians use decision aids

"Clinicians’ fidelity to usage instructions of point-of-care decision aids in randomized trials was suboptimal during their initial implementation in practice, which may have underestimated the potential efficacy of decision aids when used as intended."

Peering into the black box: a meta-analysis of how clinicians use decision aids during clinical encounters
KD Wyatt, ME Branda, RT Anderson, LJ Pencille, VM Montori, EP Hess, HH Ting, A LeBlanc
Implementation Science, 2014, 9:26

Read more here.

Report of the NHS England Never Events Taskforce

"This report presents the findings of the ‘surgical’ never events taskforce. Never events are serious, largely preventable, patient safety incidents that should not occur if the available preventative measures have been implemented by healthcare providers."

Commissioning the conditions for safer surgery: Report of the NHS England Never Events Taskforce
NHS England Patient Safety Domain

February 2014 

Read more here.

UK Strategy for Rare Diseases

"This document sets out how NHS England will play its part in delivering the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases in England. A more detailed plan will be built into the five year strategy, for specialised services, currently being developed by NHS England."

UK Strategy for Rare Diseases: NHS England Statement of Intent
NHS England
February 2014

Read more here.

Cost-effectiveness of a universal strategy of brief dietary intervention for primary prevention in primary care

"A healthy diet is associated with reduced risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer. The study aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a universal strategy to promote healthy diet through brief intervention in primary care."

Cost-effectiveness of a universal strategy of brief dietary intervention for primary prevention in primary care: population-based cohort study and Markov model
MC Gulliford, N Bhattarai, J Charlton, C Rudisill
Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation, 2014, 12:4

Read more here.

High-Impact Leadership

"There is solid evidence that leadership engagement and focus drives improvements in health care quality and reduces patient harm.  Leaders at all levels in care delivery organizations are struggling with how to focus their leadership efforts and achieve Triple Aim results for the populations they serve." 

High-Impact Leadership: Improve Care, Improve the Health of Populations, and Reduce Costs (IHI White Paper)

S Swensen, M Pugh, C McMullan, A Kabcenell
Cambridge, Massachusetts: Institute for Healthcare Improvement
2013

Read more here (you will need to login/freely register to access this report).