ImprovingCare
Our Purpose
Improving Care is a company committed to improving the lives of vulnerable and older people. Our aim is to help health and social care organisations develop excellent and sustainable services that enable people to become well, have independent lives, and live longer in their own homes.
Social Impact Bonds
Improving Care is at the forefront of developing Social Impact Bonds in the UK to improve the health and wellbeing of vulnerable and older people, reduce the use and costs of unnecessary institutional care, and create sustainable health care systems in ageing societies. We draw upon our unique experience in government and the Prime Minister's Performance Delivery Unit, to develop SIBs that combine best practice in integrated care closer to home with proven strategies for change management and leadership, and rigorous performance improvement methodology.
We believe the key is to focus on high risk patients with a small number of co-morbidities and conditions that are a driver of high NHS costs who are amenable to interventions that reduce their likelihood of an unplanned admission. We are working with Age UK and others to develop new services to improve the lives of older people in these circumstances, funded through social impact bonds that bring together the public and voluntary sector in new partnerships for whole system change. A pathfinder programme is currently underway with over 50 older service users in Cornwall.
The Directors of Improving Care are:
Phil Hope, Adjunct Professor, Global Health Institute, Imperial College, and former Minister of State for Care Services who also held Ministerial posts for the Third Sector, Skills, East Midlands and Local Government.
Kieran Brett who was appointed Special Adviser to Tony Blair in 2005 and Andy Burnham in 2009, and was a former senior member of the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit.
Sarah Bickerstaffe is senior Associate Director of Improving Care. She was a Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Health and her work in Government included managing the national programme of psychological therapy services and cross-Government liaison to deliver the 2010 National Care Service White Paper.
Global Report on Ageing and Health
Economies risk being downgraded if they fail to act on rising healthcare costs from ageing populations. Many countries are at a crossroads - create sustainable health care systems or encounter the problems of age based health care rationing or unaffordable costs. Other countries can head off this challenge if they act now.
The report 'Creating Sustainable Health and Care Systems in Ageing Societies' describes practical innovations from around the world that begin to answer this challenge within a strategic policy framework. We now intend to develop this framework into an Ageing and Health Sustainability Index that countries can use to assess how well they are doing, make comparisons, take action and share learning.
The report chaired by Phil Hope published by the Institute for Global Health Innovations at Imperial College and an accompanying article 'Averting a Third Global Financial Crisis' by Kieran Brett summarising the key arguments can be downloaded below:
Creating Sustainable Health and Care Systems in Ageing Societies - 1MB
Averting a Third Global Financial Crisis - 47k
Phil Hope and Kieran Brett
Performance improvement
Service redesign
Strategic analysis
Change management
Invest to save
Executive and Board training