Speaking Truth to Power

The Human Rights Act is now in force. Any NHS body that acts in a way that is incompatible with the rights set out in the European Convention on Human Rights may be acting unlawfully. This workbook is a personal perspective based on the authors' experience of health service management and the law. It explains the impact of the Act, raises issues surrounding its implementation, and asks questions about its implications for the future. It has practical exercises to help readers respond to the challenges of the Act, individually or in team sessions. The Human Rights Act and The European Convention on Human Rights are reproduced in full. There is a great deal in the Act that will have subtle implications for how and when health care is provided and for many of the assumptions that are taken for granted.

Determining the NHS budget. Alternative funding mechanisms. Planning human resources. How efficient is the NHS? "Doing the right thing". Measuring and managing performance. Discovering the patient. Organisational change. Learning from ourselves: policy and programme evaluation. Learning from others; International comparisons. Concluding reflections.