The recently published independent report into the state of the NHS has, in Lord Darzi's words, 'not held back' in terms of the extent to which the NHS is in 'serious trouble'.
We understand the themes and hear these from our clients across the health and social care sector, particularly in terms of the challenges associated with access to certain services and the impact of underinvestment in capital estate and technologies.
What, then, is the way forward?
Way forward
As well as an in-depth analysis of the many challenges the NHS currently faces, Lord Darzi's report identifies some major themes for the government's forthcoming 10-year health plan, which are the steps he believes are needed to turn the NHS around.
Lord Darzi does not see further re-structuring as the answer, with top-down reorganisation described as 'neither necessary nor desirable' (although there is more work to be done on making the current structure deliver). Instead, the focus is on expanding healthcare outside hospitals and driving productivity in hospitals, including through greater use of technology.
The steps outlined in Lord Darzi's report include:
- 'Lock-in' the shift of care closer to home - General practice, mental health and community services need to expand and adapt to the needs of those with long-term conditions and financial flows must irreversibly lock-in the shift of care closer to home or it will not happen. Linked with this, we need to embrace new multidisciplinary models of care that bring together primary, community and mental health services.
- Drive productivity in hospitals - Acute care providers need to bring down waiting lists by radically improving their productivity, which means fixing flow through better operational management, capital investment in modern buildings and equipment, and reengaging and empowering staff.
- Tilt towards technology - There must be a major 'tilt towards technology' to unlock productivity, with the report highlighting that 'hundreds of thousands of NHS staff working outside hospitals urgently need the benefits of digital systems' and underlining the 'enormous potential in AI to transform care'.
What next?
In response to Lord Darzi's report, the Health Secretary has said, it is 'over to us now to write the prescription'.
This 'prescription' will take the form of a 10-year plan for the health service, which the Prime Minister says the government is working on 'at pace'. This plan will be focused on 3 key areas, drawn from Lord Darzi's report:
- Moving from an analogue to a digital NHS
- Shifting care from hospitals to communities
- Greater focus on prevention
The 10-year plan is due to be published in the Spring, at which stage we can expect some clarity about operational delivery and timescales across those focus areas.
In the meantime, we will continue to monitor carefully what happens next at a national level while listening to reactions and concerns from our clients in the sector who will ultimately be tasked with delivering the medicine.
