Supply your own punchline

What's the difference between a target and an outcome? The list of 60 outcomes in the new outcomes framework announced today looks a lot like a set of targets by another name, some have suggested. Others have focused on the attention these indicators pay to GPs' performance. Best of all is the hierarchical formula at the end, though, that begins in Tolkein mode but then gets a bit carried away:

One framework defining how the NHS will be accountable for outcomes
Five domains articulating the responsibilities of the NHS
Twelve overarching indicators covering the broad aims of each domain
Twenty-seven improvement areas looking in more detail at key areas within each domain
Sixty indicators in total measuring overarching and improvement area outcomes

Integrate!

A quick summary of what integrated care could mean for the NHS has been published by the King's Fund. It summarises an earlier report by King's Fund Chief Executive Chris Ham. The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is seeking the collective wisdom of its membership on the matter of integration. In a consultation paper published last month, the College asks about system design, payment systems and effects on GP practice boundaries, amongst other issues. Responses are due in by 31 October 2011. Meanwhile a paper from the Nuffield Trust looks at the contribution commissioners can make in promoting integration.