Solution
Preeta answered on
Mar 26 2021
Task 1:
(a) Recent development in the legal environment of health and social care:
The Health and Social Care Act 2012 list the legal requirements which the social and health care organizations operating in UK need to follow. Health Service Safety Investigations Bill is set to be implemented soon. On December 19, 2019, the Queen, in her speech mentioned to pass a bill which will lead to the formation of a healthcare safety investigation body, which will be totally independent (Hempsons, 2020). The existing Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch will be replaced by the new body. The body will be given the responsibility to investigate the qualifying incidents which takes place throughout the application of NHS services or at the places where NHS services are being provided.
The main aim is to identify the risk to which the patients are exposed and then to mitigate such risks by
inging improvement and development in the whole system and to enhance the safety of the patients. The new investigation body will be provided with enough power as it suits them to ca
y out their investigation. It will be able to investigate, make copy, seize or remove any documents from the places of NHS services as per the requirements of their investigation.
Recent development in the financial environment of health and social care:
In the last four years, the spending in the health sector of UK has grown by almost 1.6% p.a (The Health Foundation 2019). Compared to the historical average growth rate, the spending is low. Also, compared to the other similar countries, the average and the capital investment are low.
Funding for NHS long term plan has been done till 2023/24, starting from the year 2019/20, with an average increase of 3.3% every year. But there are several issues in the health sector like shortage of workforce, deficit of hospitals as well as backlog in maintenance. All these issues might be the result of the inadequate investment in the prior periods.
There is lack of long term funding for education and training of the workforce, public health and capital. More funding are required for even maintaining the cu
ent standard of health care. Funding is necessary for primary and community services as well as mental health. Adult social care is also a great challenge.
Recent development in the regulatory environment of health and social care:
There are mainly two bodies which regulate the health and social care organizations in UK (The King’s Fund). First regulatory body is Care Quality Commission (CQC), which regulates the quality and safety of the care, provided by such organization. The second regulatory body is Department of Health, which regulates and monitors the market of health and social care.
There is an existence of mixed economy in the health sector where government has allowed several private bodies to offer NHS services but the regulation has been made stricter in the recent time to check if such private organizations are working only for the benefit of the patients.
(b) The usefulness of several alternative funding options in the health and social care sector of UK has been discussed below:
· Private Finance Initiative (PFI) – There are several private financial institutions and investment companies which provide fund for to the organizations, in the exchange of interest and the repayments are to be made over a long period of time. The organizations operating in the social and health care sector can opt for such funding with low rate of interest so that they can easily pay that off over a certain period of time. In fact in the past, PFI has helped fudning NHS (Pollock, Price and Liebe 2011).
· Resources – The health and social care organizations can maintain their own internal resource to fund themselves. Generally retained earnings are such resource which is made by keeping a part of profit over a long period of time. The organizations can use retained earnings for funding.
Certain factors relevant to the health and social care sector of UK have been discussed below:
· Financial aspect of agency partnerships – Health and social care organizations can make partnership with either local authorities or other such organizations. If separate organization combines together in a partnership then their expertise, power and resources are shared and so the rate of fincial gain also improves. The organizations entering into partnership can make a deed to avoid future conflicts. Generally through partnership the efficiency and the quality of the services are enhanced (Yescombe 2011).
· Competition – In the past decade, government policies were formed in such a way so that competition increases in the UK health sector to enhance the efficiency of the service provided and the outcomes from the UK health sector (Frakt 2015). So, cu
ently the competition is very high in the UK health and social sector containing both public and private organizations.
· Pricing – Department of Health has released an article and through it explanation has been given that the intention of the government is to provide better health and care at the best possible price. NHS Commissioning Board monitors the prices charged by several organizations offering NHS services so that a balance is maintained between the price charged by several organizations and the spending capacity of the average number of patients. A list of National Tariff is also maintained by the Board.
· Tendering – Every year NHS Trust spend around £9 billion to acquire necessary goods and services. Mostly the fund is spent on business organizations which give innovative solutions. The suppliers need to fill up the tender and submit to the Trust and then they are approved based on the cost charged by them in exchange of the innovative technology to be provided.
· Outsourcing – The Public Services International Research Unit (PSIRU) has released a research report which reveals that the health sector in UK is gradually moving towards outsourcing. Independent sector treatment centers (ISTCs) was created in 2000 by NHS to provide contract for several clinical services including high technology diagnostic services and pathology.
(c) Key Stakeholders within the social care sector and communicating ways with those stakeholders:
The key stakeholders in the health care industry are as follows:
· Patients – They receive the services of the healthcare sector and are the customers of the health care organization. They can be communicated by the organization through physicians and other staffs.
· Physicians – They provide the services for the health and social care of the patients. The organization can easily communicate with them directly. Physicians can be permanent employee as well as on contract basis with the organization.
· Staffs – Other staffs who are required beside physicians for the services like nursing, cleaning, cooking, etc which are provided to the patients of the organizations. They are the employees of the organization and direct communication can be made with them.
· Insurance companies – They provide insurance to several assts of the health care organizations and can be communicated directly by the organization.
· Pharmaceutical firms – They are the main suppliers of the medicines and other necessary goods in a health care organization and can be directly communicated.
· Government – Several laws and regulations are formed by government which the health and social care organizations need to abide to. Such organizations are also funded by government or are sometime owned by government. Communication can be established through several government agencies.
· Owners – There are some private health organizations. Some organizations have shareholders where as some are partnership or sole proprietary, but the owners are also an important stakeholder.
Agency Theory:
Agency theory establishes the relationship between the principal and the agents of an organization. For the health organizations, owners are the principles. The owners might vary from government, a private individual to a large number of private individuals. Other stakeholders can be considered to be the agents like physicians,...