Government must win over doctors to changes to NHS

Urgent action is needed now to prepare for the slowdown of NHS funding from next year, says a report from the healthcare think tank the King's Fund. And doctors must be better engaged with the reforms of the NHS if the slowdown is not to damage care of patients, it says.

The report argues that good forward planning will help NHS organisations to cope when funding for the health service changes during the next spending cycle, stretching from 2008-9 up to 2011-12.

The chancellor of the exchequer, Gordon Brown, is expected to announce real term cash increases …