Influence on public policy and services
Influence on public policy and services
By the start of 2007, LTCA was satisfied that health service policy gave sufficient recognition to the importance of long-term conditions. Hence, while some of our efforts still focus on developing and extending public policy, the Alliance is increasing the attention it gives to ensuring that the rhetoric of policy is converted into service improvements for people with long-term conditions, and carers.
With changes in both Government and opposition personnel and under the aegis of a new Policy & Public Affairs Director, LTCA is acting to ensure that long-term conditions retain their position as a dominant focus for public service reform. We organised an event with the Labour Party at which member organisations were able to give their users a chance to talk directly to the Party and Secretary of State about their concerns, and we plan similar events with the two opposition parties. We are pleased that LTCA’s policy priorities – as set out in the 17 million reasons manifesto – remain at the heart of service reforms, albeit rebadged under changed political leadership.
Specific policy activities in 2007
- Participated in the Darzi Review consultation events, culminating in the submission of an LTCA response to the Review
- Sat on a review group brought together by the Post-Medical Education and Training Board (PMETB) to investigate and report on how to involve patients and their experiences in the secondary education of clinicians
- Held a member event to profile the development of the Government’s Green Paper on Social Care (announced in the Chancellor’s autumn Pre-Budget Statement). Work is being planned to take this forward in 2008
- Took a seat on the Department of Health’s Information Prescriptions National Implementation Project Board, continuing our promotion of information prescriptions from the 17 million reasons campaign.
- LTCA has engaged with Department of Health officials involved in delivering on information prescriptions and the associated Accreditation scheme, to ensure that the needs of service users and service users’ organisations are reflected. We have also worked with the team developing the NHS information systems and the Electronic
- Patient Record.
We submitted a response to the Darzi Review team to ensure that the needs of patients are reflected in the review’s final proposals. We have also begun work in response to the Green Paper on Social Care, due to be published in 2008: and on developing a policy perspective on commissioning, with specific consideration to the opportunities and challenges that it will present for people living with long-term conditions.
During 2007, the Government launched a programme to extend its health service choice programme to include long-term conditions, publishing a framework for choice for people with long-term conditions developed by the National Choice Reference Group co-chaired by LTCA’s Chief Executive David Pink. Local public service commissioners are to decide how they provide choices to people with long-term conditions within this framework.
In support of our policy activities, the monthly update newsletter Notes & News has changed to a fortnightly email, 10 Things from LTCA, which has proved popular. Our quarterly journal Connect continues to cover and comment on the key health and social care issues (recent themes included a focus on information and examination of key elements of each political party’s health policies) and remains well received by member
organisations and policy-makers.
