NHS patients are set to benefit from an extra £8 billion investment in the NHS over the next twelve months - the biggest cash increase the service has ever seen.

NHS patients have a new representative to make sure that their views are at the centre of efforts to transform the service and cut waiting lists.

Reforms and investment in the NHS have cut waiting lists and saved hundreds of thousands of lives over the last ten years.

Just 30 minutes of activity a day can help to reduce the risk of heart disease - the UK's biggest killer.

The latest advances in surgery mean that as many as eight out of ten operations can now take place in local community hospitals, health centres or GP practices rather than in large hospitals.

Three new initiatives have been announced to help patients make choices about their healthcare:

Mothers-to-be will have a range of birthing choices from the NHS by 2009, according to a new framework published.

Your health, your care, your say: Citizens' hold the Government to account

England will be smokefree in one hundred days, ensuring that public places and workplaces are healthier environments to work and socialise in from 1 July.

A new Top Tips for Top Mums campaign is encouraging parents across the country to share tips and ideas about how to get children to eat more fruit and vegetables.

A series of television and radio advertisements has been launched to highlight the rewards of working in the social care sector.

A new NHS campaign will inform the public about the hidden dangers of secondhand smoke.

A new coughs and sneezes campaign has been launched to tackle the public's lack of knowledge about good hygiene practice.