Professor Ian Philp has been appointed as National Director of Older People’s Services, with a remit to stamp out ageism in the NHS.The concern here is with ageism in allocation of care rather than with the NHS as a large and important employer.
The professor’s role is part of an initiative that includes a new National Service Framework (NSF) for Older People - which will be published later this year and will set, for the first time, national standards of care for older people. 

New measures to ensure public sector efficiency are set out in a new white paper - ‘Service Delivery Agreements 2001- 2004′.The performance targets - Public Service Agreements (PSAs) were set in July. The latest guide explains how these targets will be met in Service Delivery Agreements (SDAs). 

Martin Buxton, Steve Hanney, Tim Packwood, Simon Roberts and Penny Youl.Public services in the UK are increasingly expected to account for their outputs and performance. This article describes a retrospective evaluation of the benefits from the research and development funded by a regional office of the NHS Executive.