AM The Government of Healthcare and The Politics of Patient Empowerment - New Labour and the NHS Reform Agenda in England - Law and Policy.pdf (278.6 kB)
The government of health care and the politics of patient empowerment: New Labour and the NHS reform agenda in England
This article considers the issue of patient empowerment in the context of New Labour's proposed reforms to the National Health Service (NHS) in England. Through an exploration of some of the key measures in the government's white paper High Quality Care for All, the article argues for a conceptualization of patient empowerment as a political technique of governing. Patient empowerment, it is contended, can no longer be understood solely as a quantitative phenomenon to be balanced within the doctor-patient relationship. Rather, its deployment by the government as a way of governing health and health care more broadly demands that we consider what political functions-including, importantly, it is argued here, managing the problem of the increasing cost of illness and health care-patient empowerment may be involved in performing. In order to assist in this enquiry, the article draws on some of Michel Foucault's work on the art of governing. It is suggested that his understanding of the neoliberal mode of governing best captures the proposed changes to the NHS and the role patient empowerment plays in their implementation.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
Law and PolicyISSN
0265-8240Publisher
WileyExternal DOI
Issue
3Volume
32Page range
313-331Pages
19.0Department affiliated with
- Law Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2012-02-06First Open Access (FOA) Date
2018-08-29First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2018-08-29Usage metrics
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