A mixed methods evaluation of the impact of a cost-of-living policy and practice hub on integrated care strategies

Objectives: The cost-of-living crisis is a public health threat; however, the effects of the rising cost of living were not a policy priority for integrated care systems (ICSs) in early 2022. At the request of ICS leaders, the National Health Service (NHS) Confederation created an online cost-of-living hub in October 2022 to raise awareness of the consequences of the rising cost of living among ICS policymakers and support systems in mitigating these effects. This study aims to investigate the impact of this hub. Study design: Mixed methods. Methods: To quantify hub utilisation, the hub viewing figures collected by the NHS Confederation website were analysed. A thematic analysis was performed to characterise how cost-of-living features in integrated care strategies, and the results compared to information published on the hub. Results: The pages that comprise the hub were well engaged with, having between 2736 and 6161 views. Alongside this, the impacts of the rising cost of living feature extensively in integrated care strategies, being discussed in 32 out of 37 strategies across four contexts: health, communities, economic, and environmental. The signi ficant majority of subthemes re flect points made by the hub. Conclusion: These results suggest the hub may have raised awareness about the impacts of -and possible responses to -the cost-of-living crisis among ICS policymakers. This may act as an impetus and guide for future public health interventions using policy and practice hubs. Furthermore, the discussion of cost-ofliving across a range of contexts implies ICSs are engendering a collaborative, system-wide approach to tackling complex local issues. (c) 2024 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.