Fiting the NHS for the future: what should the next government focus on?

Chris Hudson, director of access and innovation, Roche Diagnostics UK & Ireland, analyzes the Labor Party’s proposals for the NHS, and the role technology should play in the future of healthcare.

Sir Keir Starmer’s speech this week set out what the future Labor government’s vision for healthcare could look like. No matter who wins the next election, it presents a timely opportunity to reflect on what the next government should prioritise.

Firstly, there must be greater focus on earlier diagnosis, which is vital to future proofing our NHS as we seek to address the combined challenge of an aging population and financial pressures. We need to make sure the NHS really is a national Health service and not national Disease service, with earlier intervention to provide rapid and accurate diagnosis and ultimately, better outcomes and better quality of life for patients.

But to do this we need to remove existing barriers to adoption, encourage innovation and create an environment that supports and nurtures the life sciences sector. For example, we know that even after NICE approval many diagnostic tests can take years to be implemented across the NHS – as was the case with the PlGF test for women with suspected pre-eclampsia. Innovation is beneficial only when it reaches the patients who need it.

It is also important that patients can access this innovation, and therefore benefit from it when it is adopted. Sir Keir pledged to speed up patient access to clinical trials in his new plans, saying he wanted to enable people to book directly for routine checks and ensure that 99% of patients Do not wait more than six weeks from referral to clinical trial. This should be a goal for whoever is in government and would be welcomed by industry.

This brings me to my next point. Any future government needs to focus on tackling health inequalities and ensure access to vital tests and care is equal for all. There are examples in the UK of patients being offered simple blood tests for heart failure by their GPs, while their neighbors in the next postcode are referred directly to secondary care for more expensive echocardiograms, potentially incurring additional time and expense. It is interesting that Sir Keir specifically mentioned heart disease as a key priority, stating his aim to cut cases by 25% over a decade. Earlier, more effective diagnostics can help in this.

When we hear politicians talk about the future of healthcare, there’s always a fear that they’ll talk extremes and mention the ‘R’ word – reform. I’m not sure what the NHS needs right now is a wide-scale reform. I think it needs a range of practical interventions to help get back on its feet – and a better, more systematic approach to diagnosis should be one of those interventions.

Therefore, let’s continue to develop a holistic approach to care that is tailored across the entire patient pathway. We hear again and again that organizational and budgetary constraints mean patients are missing out on opportunities to access diagnostics that could prevent ill health or improve outcomes through earlier intervention. The ongoing development of integrated care systems offers a real opportunity to take a more holistic approach to health and care, and we would urge whoever wins the next election to continue the work in this area. There is nothing more frustrating than hearing that innovation is not being used because a different part of healthcare leads to cost savings and improved patient outcomes.

Ultimately, all of this must be a fully funded, long-term workforce strategy for our healthcare. Without enough doctors, nurses, pathologists and radiologists, the NHS cannot function, and we cannot address these wide-ranging challenges. Encouraging new recruits – and upskilling those we have so they are better equipped to work in new ways – will be critical. Sir Keir highlighted the revolutionary potential of embracing digital and artificial intelligence (AI), citing the example of lung cancer, which can be diagnosed early and the chances of misdiagnosis reduced by up to 60%. This is promising, but we need to bear in mind that for this type of innovation to get real results, the NHS workforce needs the right skills to deliver it.

The NHS is facing some huge challenges right now and the demand for services is only going to increase as people live longer with many complex conditions. Greater attention to early detection now could help build resilience into the health care system for the future, enable patients to better manage their symptoms and, in many cases, delay invasive and costly treatments. During the pandemic, we saw what can be achieved by keeping ego aside, play to your strengths and move in that direction. So why don’t we keep moving in that direction and work together to support the restoration of the NHS for those who need it now and to secure its future for generations to come?