Social Policy: The NHS

Question 1

What is the basis for Thatchers social policies ?

Answer 1

Believed professionals should not be protected from change and instead brought in line with good business practice

Question 2

What did Thatcher believe in regards to the NHS ?

Answer 2

• making the NHS run more like a business by applying similar principles to its administration would make it more efficient considering it was a major employer

Question 3

What did Thatcher do to the NHS?

Answer 3

• Hospitals became self governing NHS trusts in control of their own budgets
• NHS services were expected to compete with one another to provide the most efficient and cost effective service to GPs
• GPs became fund holders with their own budgets

Question 4

How might this policy be defended ?

Answer 4

The changes injected much needed financial discipline into the NHS

Question 5

How might this policy be criticised ?

Answer 5

• First stage in the privatisation of the NHS in which profit motive would take priory over patient care
• Thatcher did however stress it would not become privatised in her speech in the 13 October 1989 in the Conservative Party conference

Question 6

How was there opposition to these reforms at the time ?

Answer 6

August 1989
- BMA ran a campaign against the proposed reforms and heavily impacted the electorate leaving many fearful that business principles would lead to a loss of the ‘free at point of use’ principle from the NHS