Restructuring family planning in the health service: the case of young people's clinics.

Abstract

Recent initiatives for young people have been fuelled by the new contracting arrangements within the NHS and the shifting pattern of family planning provision. Both are part of a restructuring of services for sexual health whose features include an expanded role for GPs, the subsequent vulnerability of clinics and family planning doctors, and the targeting of resources. Using case studies of Liverpool and Bristol, the article examines discourses within the health authorities and the agendas directing change alongside transitions in professional status and relations within medicine and health. The article also illustrates wider policy issues, including the implications of competition at various levels and of professional and other interests for the development of appropriate services.