Saving money in the NHS: a qualitative investigation of disinvestment practices, and barriers to change.
The Lancet, Volume 382,supplement 3, Page S18, 29 November 2013.Meeting Abstract.
- Extracts:
- Using an ethnographic approach two NHS decision-making groups were followed up for 14 months through observations of routine meetings (n=8), and semistructured interviews with group members and front-line clinicians whose practice had been affected by disinvestment (n=28).
- Meetings revealed few examples of active disinvestment decision making, with agendas dominated by requests for new health-care provision. Interviews revealed challenges in identifying opportunities for disinvestment, with previous approaches being unsystematic and unsustainable. A lack of capacity, methods, and training were key.
- Conclusion: Our findings support the urgent need for sustainable methods to guide local disinvestment practices.
