Consensus on quality

"At the end of 2014, Solutions for Public Health (SPH) was commissioned to conduct a study to gather consensus from a range of stakeholder groups on what they felt was important to measure in order to understand the quality of healthcare. This study used a Delphi-style consultation approach to interrogate 73 statements that describe the measurable aspects of the quality of healthcare."

Consensus on quality
H Dorning
The Health Foundation, Nuffield Trust
December 2015

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Sustainability and financial performance of acute hospital trusts

"The Department, NHS England, Monitor and the NHS TDA need to take a more holistic, coordinated approach to tackling trusts’ persistent financial problems and move beyond quick fixes to cut trusts’ spending. Until there is a clear pathway for trusts to get back to financial stability, we cannot be confident that value for money, defined as financial and service sustainability, will be achieved."

Sustainability and financial performance of acute hospital trusts
National Audit Office
December 2015

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NHS Safety Thermometer: Patient Harms and Harm Free Care

"The NHS Safety Thermometer is the measurement tool for a programme of work to support patient safety improvement. It is used to record patient harms at the frontline, and to provide immediate information and analyses for frontline teams to monitor their performance in delivering harm free care."

NHS Safety Thermometer: Patient Harms and Harm Free Care England November 2014 November 2015, official statistics 
Clinical Audit Support Unit
Health & Social Care Information Centre

December 2015

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A practical guide to self-management support

"The guide explains what self-management support is and why it is important. It then looks at various aspects of putting it into practice, including planning and commissioning, building knowledge, skills and confidence, and measurement and evaluation"

A practical guide to self-management support: Key components for successful implementation
A de Iongh, P Fagan, J Fenner, L Kidd
The Health Foundation
December 2015

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What do patients say about emergency departments in online reviews?

"Consumer rating websites allow patients to provide rapid and public feedback on their experience of medical care. Web-based platforms may offer a novel strategy for assessing patient-centred quality in emergency care."

What do patients say about emergency departments in online reviews? A qualitative study
AS Kilaru, ZF Meisel, B Paciotti, YP Ha, RJ Smith, BL Ranard, RM Merchant
BMJ Quality and Safety 2016;25:14-24 doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2015-004035

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Improving the Quality of Orthotics Services in England

"This document sets out a case for action to tackle the rising demand and variation in access and quality of services experienced by children and adults requiring orthotic care in England. It explains why it is important to improve the commissioning of services in terms of clinical and cost benefits and discusses some of the key issues affecting services currently, along with the experiences that patients and their families have had in using those services "

Improving the Quality of Orthotics Services in England
NHS England

November 2015

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The effectiveness of interventions to improve laboratory requesting patterns among primary care physicians

"Interventions such as educational strategies, feedback and changing test order forms may improve the efficient use of laboratory tests in primary care; however, the level of evidence is quite low and the quality is poor." 

The effectiveness of interventions to improve laboratory requesting patterns among primary care physicians: a systematic review

SL Cadogan, John P. Browne1, Colin P. Bradley2 and Mary R. Cahill3
Implementation Science 2015, 10:167  doi:10.1186/s13012-015-0356-4

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