Search results

This article starts with a case study of organisational development consultancy with a primary care trust (PCT) in the Midlands which has used the generation of metaphorical organisational images as a key working method. It aims to draw out lessons for other localities and organisations facing the challenge of integrating a range of different interests into a coherent and effective whole. It suggests that the lack of ‘organisational literacy’ is a major barrier to progress in health and social care agencies which has to be confronted openly.

This article reports on the fourth in a series of annual Pavilion conferences, charting the gritty texture of real‐time organisational development set against the formal policy agenda. Those engaged in PCT development will find the messages instructive and reassuring.

Primary care groups need to address some uncomfortable issues if they are to become effective as organisations in their local networks. The paper examines PCGs' relationships with their health authorities, given the inherent contradictions in national policy, and recommends a devolved approach to ensure that a range of stakeholders can participate in their work.

This article begins with a case study of the Sandwell Telecare Project, an innovatory venture to pioneer the introduction of electronic aids to enable vulnerable people to live independently. The article concludes with an account of the evaluation, which was undertaken by an independent consultant.The publication of this article is particularly timely in view of the Department of Health's expressed intention to make a substantial national investment in assistive technology such as the Sandwell Telecare Project for the two years from 2006. The investment will be known as the Preventative Technology Grant.

This Case Study gives an account of the factors that led up to the joint commissioning unit (JCU) within the health and social services scene in Shropshire; analyses the concept of strategic joint commissioning; and describes the role of the JCU and how it works.