By Centre for Mental Health (2012)
This paper argues that local councils and the new health and wellbeing boards can support the commissioning of recovery-oriented services, as well as promoting good mental health and wellbeing in communities. It outlines the ways in which health and wellbeing boards can influence commissioning to promote and protect mental wellbeing and support recovery.
By NICE (2012)
This guidance aims to help to strengthen home visiting and early education services, and recommends that health professionals are alert to any factors that may pose a risk to a child’s social and emotional wellbeing. It recommends that each health and wellbeing board should ensure that the social and emotional wellbeing of vulnerable children features in its health and wellbeing strategy, as one of the most effective ways of addressing health inequalities.
By Local Government Information Unit (October 2012)
This report argues that a culture of delivering care in 15 minute time slots is affecting the quality of life of older people and other recipients of social care services. It highlights the challenges and opportunities faced by commissioners and provides a commissioning checklist for domicilary care.
By Department of Health (2012)
These guidance documents are aimed at PCT and SHA transition directors, lead and governance leads. They cover the transfer of intellectual property currently held by PCTs and SHAs and also the preparation of transfer schemes under the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
Click here to view Transfer of intellectual property rights and related assets
Click here to view Transfer documentation: identifying legal title in assets and liabilities and completing transfer documentation
Gillam, S. et al. Annals of Family Medicine, 2012; 10(5): 461-468
Primary care practices in the United Kingdom have received substantial financial rewards for achieving standards set out in the Quality and Outcomes Framework since April 2004. This article reviews the growing evidence for the impact of the framework on the quality of primary medical care.
By Ofsted (October 2012)
This report documents the views of children living in care and asks why they ran away. As well as this, children in care were asked what they thought the dangers of running away were and what could be done to prevent them running.
By Department of Health (2012)
This document provides high-level guidance on the collection of data to inform prenatal pertussis public health actions, how a PCT might collect and collate data on the prenatal pertussis vaccination programme, and instruction on how to submit vaccine coverage data via the ImmForm website.
By Ofsted (October 2012)
This good practice report describes how Lewisham Council and its partners build upon existing, strong placement and procurement practice to make ‘intelligent’ use of available knowledge and information on individual young people and the placements available to them. Young people are offered placements in a safe and appropriate environment, where their needs are suitably met and their connections to the gang culture can be challenged and severed.
Click here to view this good practice
Peretz, PJ. et al. American Journal of Public Health, 2012; 102(8): 1443-1446
In 2005, local leaders in New York City developed the Washington Heights/Inwood Network for Asthma Program to address the burden of asthma in their community. Bilingual community health workers based in community organizations and the local hospital provided culturally appropriate education and support to families who needed help managing asthma. Families participating in the yearlong care coordination program
received comprehensive asthma education, home environmental assessments, trigger reduction strategies, and clinical and social referrals. Since 2006, 472 families have enrolled in the yearlong program. After 12 months, hospitalizations and emergency department visits decreased by more than 50%, and caregiver confidence in controlling the child’s asthma increased to nearly 100%. Key to the program’s success was the commitment and involvement of community partners from program inception to date.
Kirk, SF. et al. International Journal of Environmental Research & Public Health, 2012; 9(4): 1308-1318
Healthy public policy plays a central role in creating environments that are supportive of health. Breastfeeding, widely supported as the optimal mode for infant feeding, is a critical factor in promoting infant health. In 2005, the Canadian province of Nova Scotia introduced a provincial breastfeeding policy. This paper describes the process and outcomes of an evaluation into the implementation of the policy. This evaluation comprised focus groups held with members of provincial and district level breastfeeding committees who were tasked with promoting, protecting and supporting breastfeeding in their districts. Five key themes were identified, which were an unsupportive culture of breastfeeding; the need for strong leadership; the challenges in engaging physicians in dialogue around breastfeeding; lack of understanding around the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes; and breastfeeding as a way to address childhood obesity. Recommendations for other jurisdictions include the need for a policy, the value of leadership, the need to integrate policy with other initiatives across sectors and the importance of coordination and support at multiple levels. Finally, promotion of breastfeeding offers a population-based strategy for addressing the childhood obesity epidemic and should form a core component of any broader strategies or policies for childhood obesity prevention.