This paper compares the introduction of policies to promote or strengthen patient choice in four Northern European countries – Denmark, England, the Netherlands and Sweden. The paper examines whether there has been convergence in choice policies across Northern Europe. Following Christopher...

Purpose: The health service response to COVID-19 provided a unique opportunity to build our understanding of the leadership styles in use in managing a crisis event. Existing literature emphasises command and control leadership; however, there has been less emphasis on relational approaches and...

The implementation of choice for patients over where and when they are seen by specialists in hospital outpatient clinics has been supported by electronic referral systems in England and the Netherlands. This paper compares the implementation of ‘Choose and Book’ in England and...

Set in the context of an expansion of scrutiny by local authorities of local service provision, this article explores the key challenges ahead for managers and politicians in this area of local governance. Drawing on an evaluation of the development of health scrutiny, it outlines the different...

Little is known about what distinguishes managerial thought and practice in successful councils, as opposed to poorly-performing or failing organizations. Managers in high-performing councils in England were interviewed about their improvement practices. Their responses highlighted the...

This paper explores the ways in which technological innovation becomes adopted and incorporated into healthcare practice. Drawing upon the notion of ‘field of practices’, we examine how adoption is subject to spatially and temporally distributed reconfigurations across a multi-level set of...