Report

Designing a neighbourhood health service

This report from UK think tank Reform identifies examples of best practice from across the UK that should inform the Government’s approach.

The Government have been clear on the need to shift care decisively out of hospitals and into communities, facilitated by the creation of a new NHS – what they call a Neighbourhood Health Service.

At the heart of this vision, is the potential for a system which is far more accessible, proactive and patient-centred than the current model of primary care. However, this will only be realised by being honest about and directly addressing long-standing barriers to change, including fragmented datasets, a deficit of local leadership capacity, and an outdated workforce model and GP estate.

Drawing on interviews with senior experts from the health and care sector, ‘Designing a Neighbourhood Health Service’ identifies examples of best practice from across the UK that should inform the Government’s approach – and lessons that should be taken from each – based on granting greater autonomy and resources to local providers.

Government will not be able to dictate what Neighbourhood Health looks like in every patch. Instead, by creating the right conditions and setting out key design principles for services to be reconfigured in radically different ways, it can promote a system that works on behalf of citizens and tackles the root causes of ill health in communities.