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🩺Revolutionising the NHS 🩺 Today the Government launched the consultation that will allow the public to share their ideas and experiences to help shape the 10 Year Health Plan for England. The ambition is to modernise and revolutionise the NHS to ensure it is fit for purpose in the 21st century. While this consultation has taken a form not dissimilar to a gossip forum and spurred some rather outrageous responses (see below), there is clearly a general consensus that things need to change. From the 1814 responses (so far) there are some key themes emerging: 1. Investment in Infrastructure 🏥 many suggestions touch on the need for investment into key infrastructure whether this be the hospitals themselves, convelscent homes or technological infrastructure. 2. Restructuring 🥼 a slimmed down, centralised business structure has received support. Alongside this there appears to be support for a diversification of portfolio into ventures such as pharmaceuticals. 3. Budget Overhaul and Supply Chain Efficiencies 💊 The perception certainly seems to be a mismanagement of expenses which would be rectified by better budgeting, updated procurement practises and changes to staffing choices (i.e no outsourcing and increased reliance on volunteering). While none of these ideas are new, or particularly radical, it is interesting to see a consensus forming in this forum. There’s still time to have your say 👇🏻 https://lnkd.in/e8DFfRU2 #nhs #10yearhealthplan #healthcare

"The National Health Service is in serious trouble." The Darzi Review is pretty stark. It does not, by design, include any solutions but fairly openly discusses the big issues the NHS faces (which will be familiar to those working in and around the NHS). The Review has been extensively covered, but some points that jumped out from an initial read: 1. The NHS is central not only to the nation's health but also to economic performance and national prosperity. 2. Money is “not being spent where it should be” and the NHS has not achieved the shifts to preventative, out of hospital, digitised care that have been long-standing policy commitments. 3. Investment is critical to transformation, productivity and performance -- so capital needs to be much more central to strategy and planning. (This is not the same as needing more money.) 4. England is "missing billions" of investment: the NHS invests a relatively low proportion of healthcare spend on capital (an estimated gap of ~£37bn since 2011 vs. peers) driven by both allocation choices and ability to spend capital. (I will pass over references to "byzantine" capital approvals.) 5. This translates into a less efficient healthcare system, overburdened workforce, sluggish digital adoption, and poor facilities. This review is basically the Government's baseline and case for change for the NHS. It tees up some big decisions for both a ten-year plan and Government reform agenda -- such as those shifts to community/out of hospital, prevention and digital. Onwards... https://lnkd.in/dYNGtsSe #healthcare #healthinvestment #capital #cdel #transformation #productivity #nhs #nhsinvestment Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham OM KBE PC FRS

💡 Striking a balance: "As public servants, we’ve got to take responsibility for delivering productivity and effectiveness", says Caroline Walker, Interim Chief Executive of The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust and Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust. "Currently, the focus is on the financial position of Integrated Care Systems and the increased deficit of the NHS, and particularly on workforce growth. It’s more important than ever to come up with a plan that’s realistic, achievable and maintains patient quality and safety of care, but is also mindful that we must deliver that with good value for money for the taxpayer and within the financial constraints of the NHS. "Big decisions aren’t being made because of the here and now financial problems, but we still want to transform and improve our services and fight hard for our new hospitals and digital solutions. We’ve got big capital needs in the NHS and this focus on revenue deficits and pressure on the current year is delaying decisions on future big strategic projects. "There is still plenty of productivity and efficiencies to be had in the NHS, which we can’t ignore. "Workforce growth has been significant for the last few years, but it needs to be slowed down for the next few years. We’ve made some massive quality and safety improvements, opened more beds and facilities, but that continued workforce growth isn’t affordable. "When you talk about job reductions and financial constraints, everybody thinks you’re going to cut services, but that’s not needed. We’ve got to refocus our efforts on transforming – getting productivity and efficiency where it needs to be. There’s lots of benchmarking to tell us how we compare to other places and where we can focus. It’s going to be a challenge, but one we can meet. " Caroline Walker is one of our regular voices of FORTIS magazine. To access the magazine for free (digital or print), visit www.fortismagazine.co.uk. The Magazine from Health Spaces FORTIS | Connecting Voices in Healthcare FORTIS is a free forum to connect thought-leadership in healthcare – supported by events and publications – for the NHS to share ideas, innovations and insight in one central place: fortismagazine.co.uk. #fortis #fortismagazine #NHS

📝 The good, the tough and the urgent: Key takeaways from Lord Darzi's report on the NHS 🏥 The Independent Investigation of the NHS in England by Lord Darzi is a mix of hope and hard truths. As someone working closely with and passionate about our healthcare systems, I found it a sobering yet motivating read. What struck me most wasn't just the call for "quality of care" or "data-driven decisions" (though these are essential) — it was the recognition that real change comes with listening to the people who live and breathe healthcare every day: our staff. Some of my key takeaways: 🌟 The good: • Frontline staff as change agents: It’s clear—the people working at the coalface of healthcare are the key to improvement. The report recognises the need for staff to be more engaged in decision-making. • Data-driven insights: Technology and real-time data are set to play a massive role in reshaping the NHS. 🚨 The tough: • Quality of care is suffering: Quality of care needs to be re-established as the NHS's organising principle. Staff burnout, long waiting times, and inconsistent patient experiences show that there's a long way to go. This isn't a quick fix, but it's the necessary focus. • Workforce pressures: With staff shortages and morale at an all-time low, the NHS faces an uphill battle. Engaging staff in meaningful ways has never been more crucial. 🔍 The Urgent: • Sustainable funding & long-term planning: The report makes it clear—without sustainable funding and strategic resource management, short-term fixes won’t cut it. Innovation and investment must go hand in hand to ensure the NHS isn’t just surviving but thriving. There’s no denying the enormity of the task ahead, but with frontline-driven change, data-led decisions, and a focus on quality, there’s a path forward. At ImproveWell, we’re excited to continue playing our part in supporting healthcare teams as they tackle these challenges head-on. https://lnkd.in/eDrp9Q9v #NHSReform #EmpoweredHealthcare #ImproveWell #HealthcareChallenges #FrontlineInnovation #DarziReport

The Affordable Care Act aimed to increase healthcare accessibility and affordability. While it succeeded in the former, the latter remains a challenge. Hospital pricing directly impacts affordability, and the recent Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 focuses on price transparency to address this issue. With 70% compliance so far, progress is evident, with 900 warning letters sent and fines imposed on non-compliant hospitals. Interestingly, in a capitalist system, high-cost providers are cutting rates more than low-cost providers, highlighting market dynamics. Acknowledging the efforts of providers and consultants in this process, it's crucial to navigate these changes effectively. At Cambridge, we take pride in securing the best and most affordable healthcare plans for our client partners while ensuring compliance. Kudos to all involved in this crucial work! #healthcare #employeebenefits #ACA #CAA #Affordability #CFO #HR

Among the requests made by NHS Confederation CEO Matthew Taylor for the new government are no major restructure, more capital funding, and a focus on long-term workforce planning. Taylor stresses the importance of a proactive healthcare model that is preventive and collaborative. Notably, 40% of the NHS budget is allocated to treating preventable diseases, highlighting the urgency for a shift. The current reactive health approach tends to perpetuate inequalities by responding to demand rather than need, neglecting key determinants like housing and employment. It's highlighted that every pound invested in primary care translates to £14 in the local economy, underscoring the broader economic impact of healthcare spending. The NHS Ap, now with 34 million registered users, holds the potential to drive change in personal healthcare attitudes towards a more holistic, preventative, and empowering approach. This underscores the necessity for a new social contract with the public on engaging with healthcare. #NHSConfedExpo

Most of the money that flows to the UK's National Health Service now goes through Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) designed to simplify, integrate and localise the management of key healthcare services. This short paper looks at the introduction of ICSs and how they can be made to work better. One of NHS England's roles is to take some of the management of the NHS out of the Department of Health and Social Care. Since 2022 it has done this with the help of Integrated Care Systems – but talk to senior officials in these bodies and the complaints about various forms of micromanagement are almost as loud as ever. If Integrated Care Systems are to fulfil their potential, what is needed is a change in behaviour and a mechanism to achieve that. An incoming government has the chance to recast a whole set of relationships. Between the Treasury, the Cabinet Office and DHSC; between the department and NHS England; and thus between NHS England and ICSs. The case for the Treasury reducing its micro-management of spending, delegating more to departments applies across government, not just in health and social care.

'The NHS budget is not being spent where it should be—too great a share is being spent in hospitals, too little in the community, and productivity is too low.' This is one of the key findings of Lord Darzi's Independent Investigation of the National Health Service in England, which was published today. It paints a honest and stark picture of the troubled state of the NHS, yet finds hope through the underlying fundamentals being strong despite overall challenges. Lord Darzi doesn't set out to make recommendations regarding next steps - he highlights the lack of capital funding, the work needed to improve outcomes and reduce inequalities through access to timely care. He also highlights the need to improve uptake of targeted screening programmes and a need to shift care into the community, moving from 'diagnose and treat' to 'predict and prevent'. These are noble ambitions but the challenges are huge, made more difficult by changing demographics, growing demand, growing cost pressures and a widening workforce gap. So what next? The work starts now on developing the 10-year health plan, which should be published early next year. This will require an associated funding plan and we may have more clarity around funding as part of the Budget on October 30th. In the meantime, systems should consider how they can drive productivity and get the most 'bang for their buck' as additional funding may not be readily available in the short term. There is an associated call to action for all healthcare providers, professional bodies and suppliers - now is a time for partnership and collaboration to address the reform needed to develop new ways of working and models of care.....and help save a broken NHS. https://lnkd.in/ehZapjse

RAND Europe report: #NHS is crying out for systems change and funding: “these issues cannot be resolved simply by incentivising staff with carrots, threatening them, or preaching to them”

THE NHS IN CRISIS - REFORM OR DIE The findings of this independent review of the NHS is unlikely to surprise many people in the UK, but it does pave the way for the radical reforms that are needed. The big question is, will those tasked with addressing the hugely complex systemic problems faced by the NHS have the systems thinking and practice capabilities to design and implement the necessary reforms. The answer is almost certainly no. That is not really their fault. Leaders in most industries and sectors have massive "systems thinking capabilities gaps," as I have been calling them for some time. The Enlightened Enterprise Academy developed programmes in Critical Systems Thinking and the Management of Complexity with Dr Mike C Jackson OBE to try and address this problem. And we are currently running a deep dive programme to focused on Critical Systems Thinking and Practice related to Health systems generally, not only in the UK. We will be offering further Introductory, Exploratory, and Deep Dive versions of our programmes again from 2025, online for a global audience. Some can also be offered bespoke for private clients. For details: paul@enlightenedenterprise.ac To conclude, the NHS is in a crisis due to the systems thinking capabilities gaps in the NHS and in successive governments. It does need radical reform. But radical reform without the required systems thinking and practice capabilities is very likely to lead to another round of failure and even greater despair amongst the great people who struggle to do the best they can in a systems that needs intensive care itself. Download the Independent Review: https://lnkd.in/eC4_8n2U Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham OM KBE PC FRS #lorddarzi #DarziReview #DarziReport #NHS #UKGovernment #Health #Care #Healthcare #NationalHealth #NationalHealthSystem