The NHS continues to face increasing public criticism in terms of delivery, value for money and financial management. The impact of this criticism on patient care is a cause of great concern.

First, public confidence in the NHS is likely to be undermined. Second, vociferous public criticism from politicians and the media make it harder for NHS leaders to take the kind of difficult but necessary decisions that will sustain the NHS in the long term.

The Confederation is continuing its work throughout 2007 aimed at creating a more informed public debate on value for money and effectiveness of the NHS. We provide accurate and timely information for members, journalists, politicians, and others, to counter prevailing myths. We will also showcase the work of our members, highlighting examples of where the NHS is working well.

Campaign briefings

Management in the NHS: the facts The NHS is one of the largest organisations in the world - employing 1.3 million staff, with an annual budget of around £90 billion. The NHS treats over one million people every 36 hours. Any organisation on such a scale would be expected to value management, yet NHS managers often find themselves criticised for being faceless bureaucrats or pointless pen pushers. In the face of such public criticism, this briefing looks at why the NHS needs managers and dispels some of the myths that surround NHS management.

Lost in translation: why are patients more satisfied with the NHS than the public? Surveys of patients and the public on the NHS reveal a major divergence between what they think with patients rating the NHS much more positively than the general public. It seems that patients think they have been lucky and don’t believe that their positive experience is representative of the NHS as a whole. We look at why the divergence might be there and what we can do to improve the perception of the NHS as a whole.

What is productivity? The NHS has received unprecedented levels of money since 2002. Since then, there has been growing criticism that the NHS is becoming less productive and is not providing value for money. This briefing examines what productivity actually means and how it relates to how well the NHS is treating patients.

Why we need fewer hospital beds The first of five briefings on the most controversial issues facing the NHS, this briefing aims to explain why the NHS is doing more than ever before while the number of hospital beds has fallen by one third in the last twenty years. The briefing sets out seven scenarios in which the number of beds can be reduced.

Member reports

NHS ambulance services - more than just patient transport The ambulance service is changing not only in its configuration from 31 ambulance trusts to 12 larger organisations but, as this report shows, the ambulance service is also transforming to become a service that brings care closer to home for many patients by treating more people, where appropriate, at the scene or in the community. This is set to continue as the ambulance service adapts to the massive increase in the number of calls they receive - up 115 per cent in ten years. This report outlines ways in which the ambulance service is changing to become more than just patient transport.

Independent Providers - making a difference in the NHS As well as representing NHS organisations, the NHS Confederation hosts a group of independent sector members including voluntary, not-for-profit and commercial providers of care to NHS patients. Independent providers...making a difference in the NHS outlines key examples of the many ways the independent sector benefits NHS patients.

Primary care trusts: serving communities The role of PCTs can be hard to understand because of the breadth and depth of their work. This report brings alive their work by giving examples where PCTs are improving patient care and health. We invited our members to send in case studies and received over 200 submissions. The examples in the report give a snapshot across a range of PCTs from urban to rural and from the north east to the south west of England.