Auditing the auditors: audit in the National Health Service

This book focuses on the Audit Commission which, since 1991, has been charged with auditing the activities of health authorities and trusts, in addition to those of local government. The Audit Commission not only examines the financial accounts but also scrutinises the performance of the NHS: the way in which hospital beds are used, professional staff are deployed and services are organised.

But how effective is the Audit Commission in carrying out this task? How does it generate the criteria against which to assess performance in the NHS? How do its activities relate to those of the other actors in the increasingly crowded audit field, such as the National Audit Office and the Commission for Health Improvement? Is there a case for rationalising the multiplicity of audit agencies? This book addresses these and other questions: it is the first study to provide an audit of audit in the NHS. In doing so, it provides new insights into the NHS and into the larger world of inspection and accountability in the public sector.