By Arthur C. Brooks. Reproduced by permission of the Public Management and Policy Association. Nonprofit organizations have found many ways of motivating employees without pay incentives. The author argues that their experience translates directly across to public service workers where frequently a pay incentive is not an option. He describes approaches used to aid in employee motivation and in recruitment and retention.

Denise Platt has been appointed as Shadow Chair of the new Commission for Social Care Inspection. Health Secretary Alan Milburn said: “She will have a key role in establishing the new commission as a force for improvement in social services. This is a landmark for the users of those services.”The Inspectorate will be independent and report annually to Parliament and Ministers on the state of social services, their performance and the use to which social services resources have been put. It will be staffed mainly by people currently employed by the National Care Standards Commission, the Social Services Inspectorate and the Audit Commission. They will continue their existing work until the new body goes live in April 2004.

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The Department of Health wants views on the draft regulations for the Patient’s Forums, which are due to go live in September 2003. The Forums will replace the Community Health Councils which for some 25 years have protected the interests of health service patients. The Councils fulfilled a ‘watchdog’ role, but the Forums are designed to involve patients in policy and implementation from the very top of the NHS through the Modernisation Boards right through to the grass roots level. It is argued that this will give patients a stronger voice in how their local health service is run and allow them to play an active role in decision making.The wider role of the Forums will include making unannounced visits to premises including those of GPs, dentists and pharmacists. They will be able to ask for any information relevant to their functions. Forums will be given a general power to refer matters of concern to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee of the local council.

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