The Department of Health and the Information Centre could not demonstrate to the National Audit Office’s satisfaction that they had achieved value for money in establishing Dr Foster Intelligence, a joint venture between the Information Centre and a private sector company Dr Foster LLP. This is primarily because they did not go out to tender […]
Without clearer leadership from Departments there is a risk that the Government’s target to halt the rise in obesity in children under 11 will not be met. This is a key finding of a joint report published today by the Audit Commission, the Healthcare Commission and the National Audit Office. The report investigates the strength […]
This report examines government’s progress in securing potential vaccines and determining how they will be deployed to the public.
This investigation builds on our previous work on NHS Property Services Limited and examines the progress the Service has made.
This investigation looks at the 2017-18 increase in NHS spending on certain generic medicines, possible causes of the price increases in the market for generic medicines, and how the Department of Health and Social Care responded to the price increases.
This report establishes the facts on how the government has provided accommodation for rough sleepers during COVID-19.
The Department of Health has made progress towards its target that, by December 2005, each NHS patient referred by a GP for non-emergency hospital treatment will be offered a choice of four or five healthcare providers. However, according to the National Audit Office, there remain significant risks for the Department to manage, especially that of […]
The new contract for general practice has contributed to improved recruitment and retention of GPs, with numbers increasing from 26,833 to 30,931 since 2003. However, according to a report out today by the National Audit Office, the contract has cost the Department £1.76 billion more than it originally budgeted for. Today’s report found that, in […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that cancer patients are increasingly surviving the disease as a result of the new initiatives launched by the Department of Health and the NHS over the last decade. But the NHS needs to continue to do more to ensure all patients are treated swiftly […]
Although the Commission has improved as an organisation, it needs to overcome some persistent issues with the timeliness of some of its regulation activities if it is to sustain further improvement.
NHS trusts have achieved a large and sustained reduction in the length of time patients spend in accident and emergency (A&E) departments, largely through improved working practices. This reduction has followed a strongly increased focus, since 2002, by the Department of Health on trusts ensuring that patients spend no more than four hours in A&E. […]
A memorandum on the provision of out-of-hours GP services in Cornwall found whistleblowers played a significant role in highlighting concerns about the service.
Carillion going into liquidation left two new hospitals unfinished. The projects will now be completed with public finance.
Since its creation in 2001, the Public Guardianship Office has improved the quality of information it receives on the stewardship of the financial affairs of people who lose mental capacity. It has begun to target its scrutiny, reducing the regulatory burden on some receivers deemed to be a lower risk, and in some cases where […]
The Better Care Fund has not achieved the expected value for money, in terms of savings, outcomes for patients or hospital activity.
This investigation sets out facts about penalty charge notices and how the NHS supports vulnerable people to navigate the system.
NHS Direct, the national telephone healthcare advice service operated by nurses, has achieved a high level of customer satisfaction since its introduction. The service, which has been fully available throughout England and Wales since November 2000, has a good safety record. Evidence at the local level suggests that it can help reduce demand on healthcare […]
The National Audit Office has published the results of its examination into the inappropriate adjustment of waiting lists at a number of NHS trusts. In July of this year the NAO published its report Inpatient and outpatient waiting in the NHS looking at the accuracy and management of NHS waiting lists. In that report it […]
This report examines whether the NHS is well placed to get value for money from its investment in developing new care models through vanguards.
There has been notable progress at trust level in putting systems and processes in place and strengthening infection control teams to improve the prevention and control of hospital acquired infection, but the NHS still does not have enough information on the extent and cost of hospital acquired infection. These are the principal findings of a […]