DIAGNOSTICS
are also so many other ways we can work together to improve patient outcomes and, as we hopefully enter a period of recovery from COVID-19, we have a unique opportunity to take stock of how we can best do that.
A diagnostic sector fit for the future Historic lack of investment in diagnostics meant that when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the UK’s immediate ability to expand testing was hampered, despite having some of the best scientific experts and pathology laboratories in the world.
The UK rapidly set out to increase testing capacity to both monitor and suppress outbreaks of the virus and later to generate the data essential to opening up the economy safely and responsibly. The NHS now has the foundations of a new architecture that we can build on to increase pathology capacity and infrastructure in a way that will provide benefits across a raft of other disease areas. However, the issues facing the pathology workforce remain and workforce availability is one of the largest single barriers currently preventing the UK from developing a world- leading pathology sector.
It is therefore critical that we also work in
partnership with the Government, academia and others to support the development and expansion of careers in diagnostics and pathology. Technological innovation, such as digital pathology and workforce solutions, can help considerably but they can never replace the wealth of experience individual pathologists bring. In conclusion, we need to make testing quicker and easier for everyone. With the introduction of In Vitro Diagnostic Regulation (IVDR), the UK stands on the cusp of developing a world class regulatory system. By giving clinicians diagnostic tests that they know they can rely on to return accurate results swiftly, everyone benefits. There is no substitute for clinical expertise and experience, but by building an agile and sustainable diagnostics infrastructure we can give clinicians and other healthcare workers added confidence in their decision-making and free up their valuable time to apply their expertise where it can be of greatest benefit.
Now is the time to match ambition with
action, through long-term, sustainable investment and championing of the tests which can and will save NHS resources and, more importantly, lives.
References 1
https://www.bmj.com/content/364/bmj.l523 2
https://www.rcpath.org/discover-pathology/public- affairs/
the-pathology-workforce.html
3
https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/health- professional/our-research-into-the-impact-of- covid-19-on-cancer#info-gallery-id-4_slide-1
4 The Times, AI spots heart risk hidden on scans
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/ai-spots-heart- risk-hidden-on-scans-thl5f9p8p
5
https://rochereport.readz.com/home 6
https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from- the-bhf/news-archive/2021/march/government- action-to-avoid-12000-heart-stroke-deaths
7
https://www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from- the-bhf/news-archive/2020/july/around-190000- fewer-vital-heart-ultrasounds-in-england-during- lockdown
8 NICE, Chronic heart failure in adults: diagnosis and management (2018)
https://www.nice.org. uk/guidance/NG106; NICE, Acute heart failure: diagnosis and management (2014) https://www.
nice.org.uk/guidance/cg187
9 APPG on Heart Disease, Focus on Heart Failure: 10 recommendations to improve care and transform lives
https://www.bhf.org.uk/-/media/files/ campaigning/appg-on-heart-disease-focus-on-
About the author
Geoff Twist joined Roche Pharmaceuticals in Welwyn in 1996. His moves around the company, and around the globe, have seen him working in both pharmaceuticals and diagnostics in Europe and the US, heading both finance and senior management teams. In 2017 Geoff returned to the UK as managing director and head of Management Centre European Agents. He originally trained in accountancy and worked for a number of UK PLCs before joining Roche.
AUGUST 2021
WWW.CLINICALSERVICESJOURNAL.COM l 73
heart-failure-report.pdf CSJ
10 NHSGGC, New Research and Innovation study reduces diagnostic wait time for people with suspected heart failure
https://www.nhsggc.org. uk/about-us/media-centre/news/2021/03/new- research-and-innovation-study-reduces-diagnostic- wait-time-for-people-with-suspected-heart-failure
12
https://www.longtermplan.nhs.uk/wp-content/ uploads/2019/08/nhs-long-term-plan-version- 1.2.pdf
13 Blood test to spot pre-eclampsia adopted across Greater Manchester
https://www.med-technews. com/news/Medtech-Diagnostics-news/blood-test- to-spot-pre-eclampsia-adopted-across-greater- manc/
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