Our healthcare system cannot improve unless we know how patients are treated, and if that treatment has worked. However, the only way this can happen is if we keep measuring healthcare processes and outcomes. Although healthcare professionals know what best practice is, they do not always know how to improve their own practice.
Case studies
-
Reducing health inequalities in Tower Hamlets
Tower Hamlets ranks as one of the most deprived communities in the UK. Encompassing all the GP practices in the borough, this project aims to reduce inequalities in how healthcare is delivered and ultimately in the health of the population.
-
Quality improvement in chronic kidney disease
Patients with chronic kidney disease cannot remove waste products from their blood and can be prone to anaemia, cardiovascular disease, renal failure and ultimately death. This project aims to help GPs in southwest London and Surrey better identify and manage patients with the condition.
-
Developing resources for people with insomnia
Around one in ten people suffer chronic insomnia, which occurs on a regular basis or over a long period of time. This project aims to improve treatment for people with insomnia by promoting a range of treatment options beyond sleeping pills, which carry the risk of side effects and addiction.
Publications
-
Necessary measures
All clinicians want to provide patients with the best possible care. However, the only way clinicians can be certain about the quality of care they provide is by measuring what actually happens and comparing this to established best practice.
-
The Commonwealth Fund 2006 IHP Survey: Analysis of the UK data
The Commonwealth Fund 2006 International Health Policy Survey of Primary Care Physicians in Seven Countries was conducted between February and August 2006. The Health Foundation funded this expansion of the UK sample.
-
Healthcare professionals’ views on clinician engagement in quality improvement
It is widely accepted that the active involvement of staff is an essential requirement for quality improvement, yet such initiatives in the NHS have not generally secured the full engagement of clinicians. This literature review seeks to clarify what is already known about the views of UK healthcare professionals in this area.
Featured data
Current activities
-
Closing the Gap through Clinical Communities
Closing the Gap through Clinical Communities awards will aim to improve the quality of care delivered to patients by bridging the gap between known best practice and the routine delivery of care.
-
Engaging with Quality Initiative
The Engaging with Quality Initiative aims to help healthcare professionals close the gap between current and best practice across clinical services.
-
Engaging with Quality in Primary Care
This scheme is funding nine projects to engage primary care clinicians in quality improvement projects and, by doing so, increase capacity for improvements in clinical quality in primary care in the UK.
Features
-
Hate something, change something, make healthcare better
Stephen Thornton, Chief Executive of The Health Foundation, argues that without meaningful information and good clinical measurement we cannot improve healthcare.
Latest news
-
COPD treatment fails quality standards despite five-year improvement
The Royal College of Physicians has reported that NHS services for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have improved over the past five years but the quality of services offered varies considerably and often falls short of national quality standards.
-
Health Foundation project featured in the Nursing Standard
A Health Foundation sponsored project on providing training to help school nurses spot signs of mental illness in children has been featured in The Nursing Standard.
-
Health Foundation supports regulation plans
The Health Foundation has supported the Government’s plans for the regulation of the NHS and healthcare professionals, as outlined in the recent Queen’s speech.