Primary care services in the English NHS: are they a thorn in the side of integrated care systems? A qualitative analysis.

Background: As integrated care systems are embedded across England there are regions where the integration process has been evaluated and continues to evolve. Evaluation of these integrated systems contributes to our understanding of the challenges and facilitators to this ongoing process. This can support integrated care systems nationwide as they continue to develop.

Implementation, uptake and use of a digital COVID-19 symptom tracker in English care homes in the coronavirus pandemic: a mixed-methods, multi-locality case study.

Background: COVID-19 spread rapidly in UK care homes for older people in the early pandemic. National infection control recommendations included remote resident assessment. A region in North-West England introduced a digital COVID-19 symptom tracker for homes to identify early signs of resident deterioration to facilitate care responses.

Development of a resource allocation formula for substance misuse treatment services.

Background: Funding for substance misuse services comprises one-third of Public Health spend in England. The current allocation formula contains adjustments for actual activity, performance and need, proxied by the Standardized Mortality Ratio for under-75s (SMR < 75). Additional measures, such as deprivation, may better identify differential service need.

The effect of mental ill health on absence from work in different occupational classifications: analysis of routine data in the British Household Panel Survey.

Objective: To investigate relationship of mental ill health to absence from work in different occupational classifications.

Method: Examined sickness absence, mental health (GHQ-12), physical health, job characteristics, and personal characteristics in 18 waves of the British Household Panel Survey.

Results: Overall sickness absence rate was 1.

"A powerful intervention: general practitioners'; use of sickness certification in depression".

Background: Depression is frequently cited as the reason for sickness absence, and it is estimated that sickness certificates are issued in one third of consultations for depression. Previous research has considered GP views of sickness certification but not specifically in relation to depression. This study aimed to explore GPs views of sickness certification in relation to depression.

Predicting which people with psychosocial distress are at risk of becoming dependent on state benefits: analysis of routinely available data.

Objectives: To examine whether there was significant variation in levels of claiming incapacity benefit across general practices. To establish whether it is possible to identify people with mental health problems who are more at risk of becoming dependent on state benefits for long term health problems based on their general practice consulting behaviour.

Design: Interrogation of routinely available data in the Scottish Health Surveys and the British Household Panel Survey.