Special Hospitals Service Authority
Encyclopedia
The Special Hospitals Service Authority was a special health authority
of the National Health Service
in England
from 1989 to 1996. It had responsibility for managing the three high security "special" psychiatric hospitals in England: Ashworth
, Broadmoor and Rampton
.
The SHSA was established to distance the hospitals from the direct control of the Department of Health
. Its Operational Brief set out six principle objectives:
This document also stated that the Authority should be "constituted as a small organisation, operating flexibly and maximising delegation of operational responsibility to hospital level, rather than acting as a centralised interventionist body". To this end, a Unit General Manager was appointed to oversee the work of each of the three Hospitals.
The Authority was abolished in 1996 when its commissioning functions passed to the High Security Psychiatric Services Commissioning Board, while each of the Hospitals became independently managed as a Special Health Authority in its own right.
NHS Special Health Authority
A special health authority is a type of NHS trust which provide services on behalf of the National Health Service in England. Unlike other types of Trust, they operate nationally rather than serve a specific geographical area....
of the National Health Service
National Health Service (England)
The National Health Service or NHS is the publicly funded healthcare system in England. It is both the largest and oldest single-payer healthcare system in the world. It is able to function in the way that it does because it is primarily funded through the general taxation system, similar to how...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
from 1989 to 1996. It had responsibility for managing the three high security "special" psychiatric hospitals in England: Ashworth
Ashworth Hospital
Ashworth Hospital is a high security psychiatric hospital at Maghull in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England.Ashworth is one of only three high-security specialist psychiatric hospitals in England and Wales, along with Rampton and Broadmoor, that exist to work with people who...
, Broadmoor and Rampton
Rampton Secure Hospital
Rampton Secure Hospital is a high security psychiatric hospital near the village of Woodbeck between Retford and Rampton in the Bassetlaw District of Nottinghamshire, England...
.
The SHSA was established to distance the hospitals from the direct control of the Department of Health
Department of Health (United Kingdom)
The Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
. Its Operational Brief set out six principle objectives:
- ensure the continuing safety of the public;
- ensure the provision of appropriate treatment for patients;
- ensure a good quality of life for both patients and staff;
- develop the hospitals as centres of excellence for the training of staff in all disciplines in forensic and other branches of psychiatry, psychiatric care and treatment;
- develop closer working relationships with local and regional NHS psychiatric services;
- promote research into fields related to forensic psychiatry.
This document also stated that the Authority should be "constituted as a small organisation, operating flexibly and maximising delegation of operational responsibility to hospital level, rather than acting as a centralised interventionist body". To this end, a Unit General Manager was appointed to oversee the work of each of the three Hospitals.
The Authority was abolished in 1996 when its commissioning functions passed to the High Security Psychiatric Services Commissioning Board, while each of the Hospitals became independently managed as a Special Health Authority in its own right.