Long live our NHS
IHAD the privilege of hearing Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS England Medical Director speak at a conference at the Madejski Stadium last week. He delivered an inspiring, optimistic and confident speech that made me acutely aware of him as an excellent clinical leader. I want to share some of his words.
In order to tackle all the difficult challenges that we face within healthcare we need to build up a sense of confidence about the NHS. Did you know that England made numerous great medical discoveries?
England performed the first successful blood transfusion, general anaesthetic was pioneered in England, the first hip replacement operation, development of IVF and cloning as well as Viagra.
We have an impressive record of technical innovations such as inventing the clinical thermometer as well as developing EEG and CT scans.
We have four of the top ten universities in the world to study medicine. We produce 6% of the world’s medical research papers and we have the second highest number of Nobel Peace prize winners for medicine, after United States of America.
We have an NHS and medical history to be proud of.
Whilst the NHS is gripped by increasing demand each year, rapidly increasing costs, increasing political and public expectations and a constrained financial environment, it is the intellectual capital that we must invest in, that is the frontline staff, the people that dedicate their working lives to looking after others.
Medicine is changing and two of the biggest game changers are mobile technology with people expecting to use their mobile phones for everything and Artificial Intelligence in medicine such as clinical based decision making.
Google is just years away from launching an algorithm that will be able to recognise patterns and read routine X rays which could contribute to speedier diagnoses and getting patients on the path to recovery much sooner.
Almost 70 years after its creation, the
National Health Service’s founding principles remain intact: it continues to be funded from general taxation and free at the point of use.
Sir Keogh asked the audience last week:
“What would Bevan do if he came back? How would he create universal care in today’s challenging conditions, along with economic pressures and a challenging political climate?”
Sir Keogh thought the answer lay in not having separate health and social care systems but a continuum or spectrum ranging from those that were elderly well and sprightly to those that require heavy medical intervention. Integrated, coordinated, community based, patient empowered, preventive, proactive, technologically supported care
A well-being system that has a shared set of values, shared ambitions and a shared budget.
How to contact us :
Facebook @healthwatchwokingham
Twitter @HWWokingham
Phone 0118 418 1 418
Website www.healthwatchwokingham.co.uk
E-Mail enquiries@healthwatchwokingham.co.uk Walk in via Citizens Advice at 2 Waterford House, Erfstadt Court, Denmark St, Wokingham RG40 2YF.
Nicola Strudley is manager for Healthwatch Wokingham Borough. Opinions are her own