WIREDGOV

'As the government publishes its 10-year plan for health, what patients, the public and those working in the NHS will want to know is: why it will be different this time, and how soon it will lead to improvements. When will it mean people can see a GP more easily, or get mental health support for their child, or not wait hours in A&E?

‘There is plenty to welcome in the details we’ve seen so far, with the biggest changes outlined being about how people access NHS services, through the rollout of new Neighbourhood Health Centres and a much greater role for the NHS app. At The King’s Fund our call for a fundamental shift of care from hospital to community and a more people-first approach has been echoed by successive governments – so, while welcome, the vision itself is not new; the radical change would be delivering the vision.

‘An NHS that is more responsive and convenient, focused on helping people manage their health close to home where possible, will strongly resonate with the public. This much better fits the needs of our population today – people living for longer, but increasingly with long term conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and dementia.

‘However, history has shown us that you can’t simply co-locate different health professionals in a building and expect a neighbourhood health service to flourish. In order to ultimately offer a more personalised service to the public, health and social care professionals will need to work differently to join up patient care. It is critical that general practice is at the heart of these new centres, and capital investment will also be needed to ensure they are in genuinely accessible community locations and able to make use of the latest technology.

‘While a neighbourhood health service and expanded use of digital technologies are critical for re-imagining our health service in 2025, the plan will ultimately fail if it doesn’t also do enough to tackle the factors that lead to poor health and demand for health care in the first place.

‘We believe that the shift from sickness to prevention is pivotal to improving the nation’s health, and while we are encouraged by some of the measures outlined to improve health – to work with businesses to support healthier eating, and to provide easier access to weight management services and obesity treatments – taken together this does not feel sufficiently radical to provide the sea change that’s required. We can’t duck the reality that we are an international outlier with stagnating life expectancy and with millions living many years of life in poor health.

‘The clarity from the government about its priorities is welcome, and while the plan tells us what we will get, it is not explicit about what we may not get as a result. Unlike previous plans, this plan will not come with promises of significantly more funding or staff to deliver the improvements patients need. The government will need to be honest with the public and those working in health and care about the tough choices that will have to be made as a result.

‘People’s faith in the founding principles of the NHS remains strong, but their belief that the NHS will be there for them in times of need has fractured in recent years. The test for this plan is whether the public believe it will be different this time, and whether people’s satisfaction with services can be restored relatively quickly. Now the government has published its health plan, everything rests on how the government will work with all parts of the health and care system to deliver on its commitments.

‘We won’t necessarily feel the changes tomorrow or even next year, but if the NHS and its staff are given the support, resources and political cover to deliver the changes the plan proposes, in five to ten years’ time the health system could feel very different.'

Notes to editors