Chris Whitehouse, a political consultant and expert on medical technology policy and regulation at Whitehouse Communications, an advisor to MedTech suppliers, chair of the Urology Trade Association, and governor of the Anscombe Bioethics Centre, reports on early announcements of the new NHS 10 Year Plan.
To great fanfare, at least that’s what the Government PR machine is trying to crank up, the long-awaited 10 Year Plan for the National Health Service in England is being launched today by the Prime Minister and the Health Secretary. The full documentation is not yet published, but there is a 14-page media release already available.
Despite the length of the media release and its hyperbolic claims of delivering “new eras” for the NHS, and “seismic shifts” in its approach, there is little of surprise in terms of the direction of travel. The release largely repeats commitments and objectives that have already been announced over the period since the Labour Government took office a year ago.
The three big shifts that the detail of the Plan is intended to deliver in the coming years are those previously announced by Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, namely, a shift in the approach from hospital to community, from analogue to digital and from sickness to prevention.
The launch of a new Neighbourhood Health Service, also previously announced, is intended to be one of the main mechanisms for delivering care closer to and in home; an idea promoted, but never delivered, by the previous Labour Prime Minister, Tony Blair, whilst in office.
The full 10 Year Plan is expected to be published later today, and the team at MedTech Insights are also waiting for the Life Sciences Sector Plan to emerge as part of the Government’s Modern Industrial Strategy published recently. We will update you as more information becomes available.
The Author used AI in preparing this article, comments upon or questions about which can be addressed to chris.whitehouse@whitehousecomms.com.
