Threats to the English Cancer Networks: Are we in jeopardy of losing all that we have gained?

摘要

The National Health Service (NHS) in England is currently in the middle of the largest reorganisation since its inception in 1948. The 2012 Health and Social Care Act set out plans for a radical transformation of how healthcare will be configured, commissioned and provided to 53 million people living in England in order to meet strategic and at times, competing health priorities. Existing organisations such as Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities which have been responsible for planning and commissioning healthcare on a regional basis will be abolished this year to be replaced by a central commissioning body called the NHS Commissioning Board (NHSCB) with smaller commissioning picked up through the creation of local Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) made up primarily of family physicians (or general practitioners). The premise is that general practitioners working in primary settings will be able to commission care more responsively on the basis of the relationships they have with their patients and local healthcare providers to improve outcomes in a cost-effective manner.