The Department of Health has published the Operating framework for the NHS in England 2009/10: High quality care for all. It sets out (in NHS-speak, sorry):
- The health and service priorities for 2009/10: Strengthening the focus on subsidiarity whilst maintaining the 5 national priorities and the Vital Signs agreed for the 3 year CSR period 2008/09 – 2010/11.
- A system designed to deliver quality: making quality the organising principle of the NHS.
- The financial regime: Maintaining a framework that supports quality and innovative improvements in services within available resources.
- The business processes: Ensuring that planning is based on locally led decision making and maintaining the emphasis on genuine partnership working at a local level with local government and other partners.
On alcohol, it says this:
Hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions are at a worrying level. When reviewing their local priorities, PCTs should consider the longer-term benefits of their activity as well as the direct impact they can have, for example, on alcohol services. The Government’s alcohol strategy, Safe, Sensible, Social: The next steps in the National Alcohol Strategy set out local and national action to reduce alcohol-related ill-health and crime. The recent consultation on possible further action will also be of interest to those PCTs who have included alcohol within their operational plan. PCTs who have not included alcohol within their plan should consider if developments in alcohol services could contribute to other identified priorities.
So PCTs should include alcohol in their own operational plans, and even if they don't see it as a priority, they should understand the impact of improving alcohol services upon other targets.
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