State of the South West 2008

NHS Structure and Performance

8.64

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Source: Department of Health

• Department of Health:The aim of the Department of Health is to improve the health and well being of the people in England.
• Strategic Health Authorities are responsible for managing and setting the strategic direction of the NHS locally.
• Primary Care Trusts are now at the centre of the NHS and control 80 per cent of the total NHS budget.  Because they are local organisations, they are in the best position to understand the needs of their communities.
• NHS Walk in Centres give quick and easy access to health advice and treatment for minor illnesses and injuries.
• NHS Direct is a 24-hour confidential nurse-led health service over the phone. It is a trusted first point of contact for patients seeking medical help both inside and outside normal GP surgery hours. 
• Mental Health Trusts. About two in every thousand people need specialist care for conditions such as severe anxiety problems or psychotic illness.  This level of care is normally provided by NHS Mental Health Trusts, working in partnership with local council services departments.
• NHS Trusts make sure that hospitals provide high quality health care and that they spend their money efficiently.
• Ambulance Trusts are local organisations responsible for responding to 999 calls; transporting patients; and increasingly providing out-of-hours care.

Further details on NHS structure can be found at: NHS Trusts

NHS Performance Ratings - The Healthcare Commission (HC) is responsible for assessing and reporting on performance of both NHS and independent healthcare organisations. The HC has developed a new system of assessment for NHS organisations – the annual health check. The annual health check assesses whether general standards in areas such as safety, patient focus and clinical effectiveness, are being met on behalf of patients across the NHS.

8.65 The annual health check consists of several components which are assessed and reported on separately. These components are bought together to produce an annual rating of performance for each trust which can be rated as ‘Excellent’, ‘Good’, ‘Fair’ or ‘Weak’  for 'quality of services' and for 'use of resources'.

8.66 The 'quality of services' ratings for Acute, Primary Care, Ambulance and Mental Health trusts in the South West for 2005/06 were as follows: 3 out of 60 were rated as ‘Excellent’, 12 out of 60 were rated as ‘Good’, 33 out of 60 were rated as ‘Fair’ and 12 out of 60 were rated as ‘Weak’.

8.67 The 'use of resources' ratings for Acute, Primary Care, Ambulance and Mental Health trusts in the South West for 2005/06 were as follows: 3 out of 60 were rated as ‘Excellent’, 6 out of 60 were rated as ‘Good’, 29 out of 60 were rated as ‘Fair’ and 22 out of 60 were rated as ‘Weak’.