At midnight on 5th July 1948, the National Health Service was born with the founding principle to be free at the point of use and based on clinical need rather than on a person's ability to pay. Seventy years since its formation, these core principles still hold true, although the world we now live in is a very different place to the post war era in which it was formed, and the long term sustainability of the service in its current form is questionable. This book traces the history of our health service, from Victorian healthcare in the early 20th century, through a timeline of change to the current day, comparing the problems and illnesses of 1948 to those we face seventy years later. Politics, funding, and healthcare systems around the world are demystified and we present case studies, views and snapshots from history from people who have experienced our changing NHS.

Celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the NHS, award-winning comedian and activist Mark Thomas takes a look at our NHS, what state it's in, where it's going, and what we need to do to keep it. To create this show Mark Thomas conducted a series of public interviews with academics and practitioners, he spent a month in residency at the Imperial Healthcare Trust, and he spoke to a retired doctor about what could go wrong with his own health over the coming years. The result is this funny, raw and angry show about a service created, in its founder's words "in place of fear", which is now threatened by lack of funding. Through the interviews and hospital scenes recreated in the show, we see a service held together by dedicated staff, crippled by government policy which has created an internal market and indebted by PFI contracts from which private companies have made millions. This informative show toured venues throughout the UK in 2018, and is a strong wake-up call for those who want to see the NHS survive.

A beautifully illustrated history of Britain's most revered and valued institution: the NHS. In March 2020 the UK went into lockdown to help contain the spread of COVID-19 and protect the NHS from one of the greatest threats that it has faced in its 72-year history. Today more than ever, all eyes are on this beloved institution as it continues to innovate and adapt to meet the challenges of providing national healthcare in the modern world. In this fully illustrated introduction, Dr Susan Cohen traces the history of the NHS from its establishment after the Second World War, through seven decades of changing management and organisation, often in controversial political circumstances, right up to the current COVID-19 crisis. Including personal recollections from healthcare professionals on the frontline, as well as the patients in their care, this important and timely volume offers a comprehensive overview of one of the world's most remarkable healthcare systems.

Examines how commercial medicine operated before the foundation of the NHS, and how this could be compatible with a system based on charity. It challenges the assumptions of historians, politicians and the public.

1948 marked a turning point in British history, for it was the year that the National Health Service began. Inaugurated by the health minister, Aneurin 'Nye' Bevan, the new nationwide system was established to provide countrywide free healthcare for every citizen at the point of use, and, as Bevan believed, would 'lift the shadow from millions of homes.' No longer would people have to fear paying for their medical care and potentially being pushed into poverty. Every aspect of medical care began to change, gradually affecting the way that the profession, including doctors, nurses, district nurses, dentists, opticians, pharmacists and hospitals practised and operated. It also created new opportunities, enabling the scope of treatments available to grow. This beautifully illustrated book traces the origins of the NHS, from Florence Nightingale, to the NHS beginnings in 1948 and the subsequent decades and introduces readers to the people who worked for the NHS and to the men, women and children who benefited from the new universal system. Viewed through the prism of social history, and using personal recollections, this story takes account of the debates surrounding the evolving system, and looks at the way that innovation and science have transformed healthcare since the NHS began.

This book discusses the factors that contribute to the success of hospitals from a theoretical, practical and operational perspective to allow hospital managers both clinical and non-clinical at all levels to achieve success via a turnaround process where necessary. A robust performance management framework is detailed to make this success sustainable. Case studies where appropriate support the relevant chapters. Chapters can be read sequentially or as a stand-alone chapter. Hospital Transformation: From Failure to Success and Beyond enables readers to develop their hospital management skills. Issues of patient care, resource allocation, staff management, leadership, risk management, infection control, and financial sustainability are all covered. This book is relevant to hospital administrators, clinicians involved in hospital management, independent consultants, and healthcare providers responsible for day to day operations of healthcare facilities.