National Service Framework
Encyclopedia
National Service Frameworks (NSFs) are policies set by the National Health Service
(NHS) in the United Kingdom
to define standards of care for major medical issues such as cancer, coronary heart disease, mental health and diabetes. NSFs are also defined for some key patient groups including children and older people.
The two main roles of NSFs are:
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
(NHS) in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to define standards of care for major medical issues such as cancer, coronary heart disease, mental health and diabetes. NSFs are also defined for some key patient groups including children and older people.
The two main roles of NSFs are:
- Set clear quality requirements for care based on the best available evidence of what treatments and services work most effectively for patients.
- Offer strategies and support to help organisations achieve these.
Sources
- Department of Health: National Service Framework
- NHS: National Service Framework (text used with permission)