Journal of health services research & policy
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J Health Serv Res Policy · Oct 2015
Under-representation of women on governing bodies: women general practitioners on Clinical Commissioning Groups in England.
Recently formed Clinical Commissioning Groups in the English National Health Service have important responsibility for commissioning local health and care services. Women are under-represented on the governing bodies of these significant primary care based organizations despite the fact that they constitute almost half of the general practitioner workforce in England. This essay examines some of the reasons for this under-representation including the predominance of women in the salaried and part-time sector of general practice and gendered management styles within the National Health Service. It is argued that the under-representation of women on Clinical Commissioning Group governing bodies matters in terms of social justice, representation of the broader community and role models.
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J Health Serv Res Policy · Apr 2015
Comparative StudyImpact of case-mix on comparisons of patient-reported experience in NHS acute hospital trusts in England.
To examine the impact of patient-mix on National Health Service (NHS) acute hospital trust scores in two national NHS patient surveys. ⋯ More comprehensive case-mix adjustment of patient survey data than the current limited adjustment reduces performance variation between NHS acute hospital trusts and alters the comparative performance bands of some trusts. Given the use of these data for high-impact purposes such as performance assessment, regulation, commissioning, quality improvement and patient choice, a review of the long-standing method for analysing patient survey data would be timely, and could improve rigour and comparability across the NHS. Performance comparisons need to be perceived as fair and scientifically robust to maintain confidence in publicly reported data, and to support their use by both the public and the NHS.
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J Health Serv Res Policy · Jan 2015
Overseeing oversight: governance of quality and safety by hospital boards in the English NHS.
To contribute towards an understanding of hospital board composition and to explore board oversight of patient safety and health care quality in the English NHS. ⋯ English NHS boards largely hold a wide range of attitudes and behaviours that might be expected to benefit patient safety and quality. However, there is significant scope for improvement as regards formal training for board members on quality and safety, routine morbidity reporting at boards and attention to the interpersonal dynamics within boards. Directors with clinical backgrounds remain a minority on most boards despite policies to increase their representation. A better understanding of board composition, actions and attitudes should help refine policy recommendations around boards.
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J Health Serv Res Policy · Jan 2015
Multicenter StudyDeveloping effective feedback on quality of anaesthetic care: what are its most valuable characteristics from a clinical perspective?
Research suggests that better feedback from quality and safety indicators leads to enhanced capability of clinicians and departments to improve care and change behaviour. The aim of the current study was to investigate the characteristics of feedback perceived by clinicians to be of most value. ⋯ For clinicians to engage with effective quality monitoring and feedback, the perceived local relevance of indicators and trust in the credibility of the resulting data are paramount.