Each year, community health services have about 100 million patient contacts and account for around £10 billion of the NHS budget and one-fifth of the total NHS workforce. This diverse sector covers a wide range of services, from those targeted at people living with complex health and care needs – such as district nursing and palliative care – to health promotion services – such as school nursing and health visiting. Community services play a key role in keeping people well, treating and managing acute illness and long-term conditions, and supporting people to live independently in their own homes. This article by The Kings Fund provides a useful summary.
