Department Of Health Departmental Report 2007

Dated May 2007. On cover: Departmental report. The health and personal social services programmes

Dated May 2007

The Healthcare Commission is the independent watchdog for England. Its function is to assess and report on the quality and safety of services provide by the NHS and independent sector. This is the fifth and final annual 'State of Healthcare Report', as the Commission is to be replaced by the Care Quality Commission on 1 April 2009. The report is mainly about the findings for the financial year 2007-08, but it also reflects on the progress that has been made in healthcare over the past five years. The report presents six pictures of the state of healthcare: for mothers; for children and young people; for people with mental health needs; for people with a learning disability; for people needing urgent and hospital care; and of the support offered to enhance people's health and wellbeing in the community. The Commission highlights improvements, with better use and management of resources in the NHS, falling death rates from cancer and heart disease, progress in public health matters such as smoking, a greater attention to safety. Concerns remain, however: a variable picture of quality in maternity services, mental health services and urgent care; commissioning of healthcare; meeting the needs of the more vulnerable in society; children's services; care for older people. Further improvement is needed to ensure that patients really are at the centre of care, are able to make meaningful choices, be fully involved in decisions and have the information they need.

After a year in which prisons held a record number of prisoners, the prison system remains under pressure, and important lessons must be learnt if prisons are to be safe and effective. Despite sustained and chronic pressure, the report recognises progress over the past year. Overall, the Inspectorate's assessments of prisons inspected last year were more positive than those of prisons inspected the previous year, particularly in resettlement work. The number of self-inflicted deaths also decreased last year. The Chief Inspector identifies a number of warning signs, and new concerns: growing concerns about safety, particularly in dispersal prisons and young offender institutions, and rates of self-harm among women; unsuitable, cramped or unhygienic accommodation in some prisons; difficulties in complying with duties under the Disability Discrimination Act, and other equality duties; low activity levels in too many training prisons; the growing problem of alcohol misuse and the limited investment in this in prisons or the community; the potential effect of the recession on prisoners' employment and resettlement prospects. The report also refers to the inspection of immigration detention and the new inspection programme on police custody. Immigration removal centres were, on the whole, less safe and respectful than those inspected last year, though activity and welfare support had improved. The detention of children remains a major concern and is ripe for review. Inspections of police custody, jointly with the Inspectorate of Constabulary, have confirmed much good practice, but also revealed some deficiencies.

Some vols. include supplemental journals of "such proceedings of the sessions, as, during the time they were depending, were ordered to be kept secret, and respecting which the injunction of secrecy was afterwards taken off by the order of the House."

This is the 14th annual report of the Department of Health which describes its key objectives, policies and programmes and the progress made against spending review performance targets, as well as giving a detailed breakdown of how it has spent its resource allocation and setting out future spending plans up to 2007-08.