A quarterly report.

The Quarter is the name given to a report released by the NHS under the name of the deputy chief executive David Florey. It provides a ‘definitive account of how the NHS is performing at national level against the requirements and indicators set out in the NHS Operating Framework 2011/12.1 The December release covers the July–September 2011 (Q2) quarter, the second period in the 2011/2012 performance year’.1 The report says that ‘in spite of the significant challenge of beginning to deliver on local quality, innovation, productivity and prevention (QIPP) plans, standards of safety and quality have been maintained or improved’. It's dry, dreary and turgid stuff to read. It is 64 pages long and covers many facets of the NHS. Here are a few messages, some of which are relevant to this journal: