Details have emerged of plans to cut NHS services as part of a major reorganisation of care across England.
Proposals to close hospital wards, shut or downgrade emergency departments, and reduce hospital bed numbers were included in draft “sustainability and transformation plans” (STPs) drawn up by leaders in the NHS, local government, and other local healthcare services.
The details of the plans, which are subject to consultation and sign off from NHS England, were disclosed by the campaign group 38 Degrees,1 which commissioned the healthcare consultancy firm Incisive Health to collate and analyse the proposals.2
The draft plans were drawn up after NHS England, in December 2015, instructed local leaders to work together to establish 44 STP “footprints” covering the whole of England. These footprints must meet the triple aims of improving health outcomes, improving …
For full article see BMJ 26 Aug 2016