NHS trusts — The NHS improvement plan

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The next five-year programme for the NHS was announced by the DH in summer 2004 — its vision for the next phase of the NHS Plan. The NHS improvement plan: putting people at the heart of public services sets out plans for a more responsive, convenient, higher quality and personalised health service by 2008.

The new strategies formally shift the emphasis from cutting waiting lists for acute illnesses to improvements in long-term care for chronic diseases, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, arthritis, diabetes and some cancers. Patients will have more choice through NHS walk-in centres, nurse-led clinics, and more medicines will be sold over the counter in community pharmacists.

The NHS improvement plan is an important document for NHS influencers to study and build into their 2005 plans. There is the usual health warning as some of it is quite woolly. Chapter three on chronic disease management is important to have a look at and so is much of section three, ‘Making it happen’ (from p.51onwards). Interestingly one finds reference to Pfizer Health Solutions (p.53), a greater push on care trusts and a nice summary chart of the main ‘thrust’ area for 2004-08. Chapter eight: ‘Aligning incentives with patients and professionals’ is particularly useful, as here is the latest on the new financial flows system (payment by results and the national tariff). NHS influencers should also examine National standards, local action: health and social care standards and planning framework 2005/06-2007/08. which translates the NHS improvement plan into targets and standards.