Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Pathway

The Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Pathway defines the core components of an optimal service for people with COPD.

The NHS RightCare Pathway for COPD provides a national case for change and a set of resources to support local health economies to concentrate their improvement efforts where there is greatest opportunity to address variation and improve population health.

Working with other health and care partners – a suggested checklist for LPCs

This PSNC Briefing, which is aimed at Local Pharmaceutical Committee (LPC) Chief Officers and members, provides a suggested checklist for developing relationships with other health and care partners including Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships (STPs) / aspirant Accountable Care Systems (ACSs) and Accountable Care Organisations (ACOs), Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) staff and members and GPs. This Briefing is an updated version of one previously published in 2013 and it draws upon recent feedback and advice from LPC Chief Officers collated by PSNC.

Reconfiguration of NHS services (England)

House of Commons Library briefing on reconfiguration of NHS services, including recent policy developments, information on consultation and scrutiny powers, and drivers of major service changes.

Hospital-community partnerships to build a culture of health: a compendium of case studies

This compendium, published by the American Hospital Association, brings together case studies from across the U.S. that describe how community partnerships have made improvements in addressing priority health needs within the local area.

Stocktake of local mental health prevention planning arrangements

This report provides a high-level summary of how local areas are currently incorporating mental health promotion and prevention of mental ill-health in their planning processes. The stocktake was undertaken by the Kings Fund on commission from Public Health England.

The findings are based primarily on a content analysis of key planning documents in 35 local areas. This included a random sample of 16 areas across England and 19 areas selected as possible examples of transferable effective practice.

The findings from this review were used in the development of the ‘Prevention Concordat for Better Mental Health Prevention Planning Resource’.

Long-stay rehabilitation services

This briefing reviews evidence from Care Quality Commission inspection reports of inpatient rehabilitation services in England. It finds that while many people receive high quality care close to home from rehabilitation services, a minority spend periods of many months and sometimes years in hospital. Some are placed far from home in locked wards and become isolated from their families and dislocated from their local health and care services. It calls on the government and the NHS to provide clear direction for the development and improvement of local community and hospital services for people with complex mental health needs. It also calls on NHS providers and CCGs to ensure they offer local services to people requiring rehabilitation support and that they maintain contact with people admitted to hospitals out of their local area.

• Report

Local growth and the NHS: Building the foundations of a healthy economy

By influencing local strategic economic planning, the NHS can improve its service to the community, have a much greater say in devolved strategic discussions and secure long-term, additional funding into the health service.

This briefing explores the context within which local growth is increasingly shaping local economic planning and the NHS’ role in contributing to this agenda.

It will be of interest to sustainability and transformation plan leads, NHS chairs, chief executives and non-executive directors, as well as directors of finance, strategy, HR, transformation and public health.

Social care and the mental health forward view: ending out of area placements

This is the first in a series of briefings focusing on mental health and social care and it focuses on the human and operation costs of out of area placements. Using perspectives and experiences from Bradford Metropolitan District Council, it highlights how out of area placements and use of local private sector hospitals can be reduced.

• Briefing

2017 Child Health Profiles

Public Health England has published the 2017 Child Health Profiles.  They are a valuable tool for local government and health services in helping them to understand their communities’ needs, so that they can work to improve the health and wellbeing of children and young people and reduce health inequalities.

Pioneering venture launched to help solve 'capital finance conundrum'

The Local Growth Academy, an exciting cross-sectoral venture, has been launched to help NHS organisations understand how to access the new and emerging finance mechanisms determining local infrastructure planning.

With capital finance severely constrained yet critical to realising the ambitions of local plans, the Local Growth Academy aims to build NHS organisations’ capacity to maximise their contribution and involvement in local developments.

Understanding Devolution: A Critical Appraisal Of The Greater Manchester Devolution Deal

This paper from the New Economics Foundation presents an assessment of the devolution process in Greater Manchester so far and highlights key issues for consideration for future devolved local areas.

Devo-health: Where next?

A comprehensive overview, from IPPR, of the devolution of health policy to date, and the directions it could take in future, this report presents the evidence for how 'devo-health' may could allow integration within and beyond the NHS, and act as a catalyst to much-needed reform

Local Alcohol Profiles for England

Public Health England (PHE) has published an update to Local Alcohol Profiles for England (LAPE).

The LAPE interactive tool presents a range of alcohol-related indicators and allows users to view and analyse data in a user-friendly format. The LAPE website also provides links to further supporting and relevant information to aid understanding of alcohol-related harm in a local population.
View the Local Alcohol Profiles for England data tool

This latest data release includes new data on alcohol consumption and alcohol sales.

Local support for people with a learning disability

This  report examines how the NHS in England and local authorities seek to improve the lives of the 129,000 people aged 18 to 64 who use local authority learning disability support services. It finds that good progress has been made by the Department of Health and NHS England in setting up a programme to close hospital beds for people with a learning disability, but the programme is not yet on track to achieve value for money.

Sustainability and transformation plans (STPs): How do you know if STPs are making a positive impact?

This ‘Must Know' for lead members focuses on the role for elected members in the STP process and what plans may mean for lead members and local communities at the time of publication.

Warning signs: challenges to delivering the Cancer Strategy for England by 2020

Macmillan Cancer Support -
This report lays out the challenges an under-pressure health service in England faces in areas such as workforce as it seeks to transform cancer services so it can meet increased demand in the coming decades. It finds that 64 per cent of people recently diagnosed with cancer in England have experienced mental health problems such as anxiety and depression while waiting for their treatment to start. It also finds that confidence in delivering the cancer strategy is mixed amongst NHS leaders and GPs and that greater clarity is needed on who is responsible for redesigning cancer services at a local and regional level.

Safer, faster, better - transforming urgent and emergency

A guide for local health and social care communities, which details how to redesign models of care through a fundamental shift in the way urgent and emergency care services are provided.

Adopt the tried and tested principles and implement good practice in delivering urgent and emergency care.

Defining And Measuring Unmet Need To Guide Healthcare Funding: Identifying And Filling The Gaps

Budget allocations to CCGs include adjustments for meeting unmet health care needs and tackling health inequalities. This literature review from the Centre for Health Economics aims to identify and understand the available evidence regarding unmet health need. The study found that whilst there was evidence to support identifying unmet health need, there was a gap in the evidence on how budget allocations are best used to reduce unmet need.

Expressions of interest to support partnership working

NHS England is inviting expressions of interest from local health and care economies to receive in-depth, facilitated development work in order to foster local partnership working across CCGs, local authorities, and health and social care providers.

The offer will be provided by Capita with STO Healthcare who have been researching care sector forums across the country and identifying good practice. Using forum structures already in place, the support will aim to build enduring relationships between partners so that local systems are more sustainable, resilient and effective. The deadline for expressions of interest is 25 January 2017.

Swimming Together Or Sinking Alone: Health, Care And The Art Of Systems Leadership

This report from the Institute of Healthcare Management is based on interviews with senior leaders in health and local government on what is happening as managers grapple with the Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) process. It aims to help leaders understand the values, culture and skills they need to survive and thrive as the NHS tries to change from organisations working in silos to local health and care networks focussed on the needs of patients.