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The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health
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Regulation, measurements and incentives. The experience in the US and UK: does context matter?

Richard Hamblin, BA

Head of Information Policy, Healthcare Commission, Finsbury Tower, 103-105 Bunhill Row, London, EC1Y 8TG, UK, Richard.Hamblin@ healthcarecommission .org.uk

Since the 1990s the US and UK healthcare systems have increasingly sought to measure the quality of services in order to stimulate improvement and publish the results. Despite the very different healthcare systems, there are some striking similarities in the results of these schemes. In both countries information that creates the threat of reputational damage and the possibility of gaining kudos is particularly effective in stimulating a response. However, these responses may be perverse: gaming, falsifying of data and measurement fixation have all been uncovered. In the UK context, information is closely aligned to the regulatory and performance management framework, and there should be a role for the new Care Quality Commission in the emerging `information landscape' of the NHS in England.

Key Words: regulation • performance measurement • quality improvement • incentives • comparison US and UK

The Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health, Vol. 128, No. 6, 291-298 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1466424008096617
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