Healthcare delivery
This is why we have worked with health leaders across our membership to identify the five most critical priorities for the next government that will set the NHS on a path to recovery and sustainability. “Yes, this is about government investment
– especially in capital and workforce – but it is also about the government resisting the temptation to waste time and energy on unnecessary reorganisation, about the government working differently to improve the nations’ health and about enabling our members to deliver on the long-delayed aspiration to move resources into prevention, primary and community-based care.” With the NHS facing increasing pressure from
a growing and ageing population, whichever party is elected at the next election must give health and care systems the support and tools to be more productive. NHS Confederation members have said that boosting capital investment is one of the best ways the next government can support health leaders and their teams to increase capacity. Nine out of 10 leaders said that capital underinvestment is undermining their ability to drive down waiting lists for routine treatments. Additionally, public polling that the NHS Confederation commissioned Ipsos Mori to carry out last year revealed that 69 percent of respondents do not think the NHS receives enough funding. The NHS Confederation has said the new
government needs to increase capital spending in England to at least £14.1 billion a year so the health service can carry out essential maintenance and repairs to its estates, update old kit and invest in cutting edge technology – particularly in digital, technology and AI. Doing this will help make the NHS even more productive and ensure that every healthcare pound is spent as effectively as possible. On the need for capital investment, Mr Taylor added: “Run-down and dilapidated building and obsolete equipment are some of the most obvious signs of underinvestment in the health service. From hospital buildings being held up with scaffolding to mental health patients being treated in outdated buildings, the NHS is crying out for capital. “Our members fear that a lack of capital funding is not only hampering their efforts to modernise their estates and equipment but also jeopardises the vital work of driving down waiting lists, including the elective backlog. “Without new capital investment, the NHS will be unable to maximise some of the fantastic medical breakthroughs in AI and digital technology to improve patient care, and we have seen the positive impact it can have on local
communities, including through the expansion of community diagnostic centres. However, put simply, a lack of capital funding can leave patients at risk.” Health and care leaders are prepared to work with patients to make tough choices on how local services are configured, what care should be prioritised, and how best to transform services. But, to do this, they need the next government to provide them with the tools, support and investment they need, and to move away from the short-term funding cycles that have impeded progress. Responding to the NHS Confederation
report, Mr Tim Mitchell, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, said: “The NHS Confederation is right to emphasise the increase in capital funding needed to get the NHS in England back on a stable footing. “Our members have told us that in addition
to continued support for establishing surgical hubs, the NHS needs more surgeons, anaesthetists, theatre staff, operating theatres and ringfenced beds for surgical patients to tackle waiting times - all of which cost money. “We would like to see all political parties
put forward long-term funding plans linked to reform and reduced waiting times.”
The Times Health Commission’s report The Times Health Commission recently published a report into the state of health and social care in Britain, which stated that “the NHS is cracking under the pressure of spiralling waiting lists, packed A&E departments, and overwhelmed GP surgeries. Staff are burnt out, patients are getting sicker, and hospitals are crumbling.”2
It called for “a radical rethink based not on irrational sentiment or ideological certainty,
but a hard-headed analysis about changing needs and the opportunities offered by new technology.” The adoption of personalised medicine,
precision gene therapies, robotic surgery, AI diagnostics, wearable health trackers and predictive data analytics could improve outcomes and boost productivity and efficiency, the Commission argued. The NHS must also move from a “reactive sickness service” into “a more proactive health service”, which means increasing investment in preventative health strategies. However, the Commission also said that it will take a national effort, “from business, individuals, health professionals and politicians” to create a healthier Britain. Mental illness and obesity are growing problems, the report points out, and the Commission believes that “people must take responsibility for their own health”. In addition, employers must “feel engaged in the wellbeing of their staff.” The report adds that “too many people end up in hospitals”, the most expensive place to treat patients, because of failings elsewhere in the system. Around 1 in 5 patients end up in A&E because they cannot get a GP appointment and between a quarter and a third of people who are in hospital would not need to be there if they had been diagnosed and treated earlier enough. The Commission does not support a new funding model for the NHS, but called for the implementation of a 10-point plan, which included: 1. Create digital health accounts for patients (patient passports), accessed through the NHS app, to book appointments, order prescriptions, view records, test results or referral letters and contact clinicians.
2. Tackle waiting lists by introducing a national programme of weekend high-intensity
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