News Elective care | Inequalities | Policy | Strategy Development
Helping ICSs to reduce inequalities in access to planned care
Are there inequalities in access to planned care? If so, what are they? Which groups ‘gain’ and which groups suffer? And what could be done to address any inequalities? In pursuing their objective of reducing inequalities, what could Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) do? What strategies and approaches are likely to be successful?
Blog post Emergency care | Policy | Primary, community and social care services | Public health and prevention
Infant-feeding problems during the pandemic
Emergency department attendances fell dramatically and systematically during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. This effect was almost universal, affecting people from all parts of society and for all health conditions. But in our recent paper we highlight one notable exception to this rule -presentations at Emergency Departments for infant-feeding problems increased during the pandemic.
News Complex Modelling | Elective care | Inequalities
Inequalities in access to healthcare - what’s our next move?
Our research, published in the Lancet Regional Health Europe, highlights substantial inequities in access to elective hip replacement surgery. We found no evidence that these inequities reduced between 2006 and 2016.
Blog post Emergency care
Urgent Community Response – What Works?
The Strategy Unit, with our partners Ipsos, has been commissioned by NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSEI) to provide a long-term national evaluation of the Urgent Community Response programme rolled-out across England. The programme aims to shift resources to home and community-based services as part of the NHS commitment to providing the right care, to the right people, at the right time. And there are a range of outputs from the early work that provide learning for local systems as they develop their services.
News Elective care | Inequalities
Strategies to reduce inequalities in access to planned hospital procedures
UPDATE 10th August: Now including briefing note for Integrated Care Boards on legal duties in respect of reducing inequalities. This report guides ICBs through the process.
Blog post Primary, community and social care services
Securing the future of domiciliary care
The Strategy Unit is embarking on an exciting project with WM ADASS, the Association of Directors of Adult Social Care Services in the West Midlands to explore the challenges facing domiciliary care and the opportunities that exist to transform and improve the service.
News Better use of analysis | Comparative Analysis | Elective care | Finance and payments | Problem Structuring
Strategy Unit devises a new method for classifying outpatient appointments
The number of outpatient attendances in England is now approaching 100 million each year.
Blog post Comparative Analysis | Emergency care | Problem Structuring
Infant feeding problems, lockdown and attendance at Emergency Departments: what’s going on?
From our previous work, with Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation, we know that lockdown had a significant effect on attendance at Emergency Departments (ED). We also know that this effect was very unevenly distributed: some demographic groups stayed away far more than others.
Blog post Comparative Analysis | Elective care | Emergency care
Decisions to admit patients are not solely determined by clinical risk
Whether or not to admit a patient is one of the most routine yet important decisions a doctor in an Emergency Department
Blog post Better use of analysis | Comparative Analysis | End of life | Learning and development
How can analysis help clinicians improve services? Interview with Dr Anna Lock
Dr Anna Lock, Justine Wiltshire and Lucy Hawkins reflect on the Strategy Unit's innovative end of life care analysis. How can this work help clinicians to improve services?
News Elective care | Evaluation and impact assessment | Primary, community and social care services
Some positive news for integrating GP practices with hospital trusts
The drive for greater integration of health and care services has been the central theme of UK health policy for most of
Blog post Complex Modelling | Emergency care | Inequalities
Strategy Unit analysis published showing changes in use of emergency departments under lockdown
We know that patterns of access to healthcare have changed during the pandemic.
Blog post
Is ‘Integrating Care’ bold enough?
In this blog, Fraser Battye leaves the Strategy Unit’s usual careful and empirical view of the world. He reflects on NHS England and Improvement’s ‘Integrating Care’ paper from the perspective of wider ideological and societal trends. In doing so, he suggests that there is scope for bolder reform – and that localism is the way to go.
Blog post
What might ‘Integrating Care’ mean for analysts?
In this blog, Fraser Battye looks at NHS England/Improvement’s ‘Integrating Care’ paper. While not looking forward to another NHS re-organisation, he sees a lot that analysts will like. Fraser also notes the potential advantage that the Decision Support Unit model gives systems in the Midlands. What can analysts do to seize these opportunities?
News Elective care | Emergency care | Evaluation and impact assessment | Mental health | Primary, community and social care services
Evaluating Artificial Intelligence: a significant new win
The Strategy Unit, the Health Economics Unit and Leicester Clinical Trials Unit have been announced as evaluation partners to support success in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Health and Care Awards.
Blog post Comparative Analysis | End of life
Why are deaths set to rise?
In our recent analysis of healthcare use in the last 2 years of life, we point out an important change that’s taking place to life and death in the UK.
Blog post Evaluation and impact assessment | Learning and development | Policy | Primary, community and social care services
Brief reflections on Dudley's journey as a Vanguard
With the end of the New Care Models programme there is an opportunity to reflect on what has been learnt at local level.
Blog post
Integrating health and care services - what works? It’s complicated…
Coinciding nicely with the NHS 70th Birthday celebrations and the parallel discussions of ‘where next and how to do it better’ for the NHS, last we
Blog post
Do you like to integrate horizontally or vertically? NHS positions examined
Our latest research paper explores the impact of the different options for integration implemented as a result of the Transforming Community Services policy in 2010. This accompanying commentary reflects on potential implications for the current policy drive towards Integrated Care Systems.