Personal Health Budgets – A Revolution in Personalisation

Gail Beer, Jon Paxman & Charlotte Morris

The personal health budget (PHB) is the most revolutionary expression of personalisation ever introduced to the NHS. It embodies and epitomises the Government’s vision of a patient-centred NHS, summed up by the often quoted edict ‘no decision about me, without me’. Yet it is impossible to ignore professional concern and disquiet around the implementation of PHBs. This report responds to some key fears and objections with learning and best practice emerging from the pilot programme.

This report was funded by an unrestricted educational grant from Denplan.

The aim of the research:

This research sought to clarify ambiguity and allay concerns surround PHBs.

Impact:

• Report launched by Health Minister Rt. Hon. Norman Lamb at which he gave a speech outlining two new objectives for Personal Health Budgets.
• Chris Skidmore MP says: “Good public services are shaped by their users rather than by civil servants in Whitehall. The Government should push forward the personal revolution: of liberating services from local authority control, and putting them in the hands of individuals, carers, patients and parents.”
• Roger Matthews, Chief Dental Officer of Denplan, the sponsors of this report, says: “Personal health budgets put decisions about healthcare management firmly into the hands of patients, with appropriate oversight and controls. It’s about putting the choice in patients’ hands. It opens the debate about alternative approaches to managing healthcare and the transformational impact that it can have.”
• The Department of Health claim that ‘if half of the people eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare chose to take the offer of a budget, this could imply a potential saving of around £90 million.’