Healthcare Roundup

Seven days in the NHS and health IT

NHS winter crisis bites as government attempts to avoid responsibility

The NHS came under severe pressure over the Christmas and New Year break, with ambulance and emergency services reporting unprecedented demand, driven in part by high levels of Covid-19, flu, and RSV. Numerous trusts declared critical incidents, used social media to urge the public to avoid 999 and A&E unless they had a life-threatening emergency, and put out appeals for any qualified staff to take-up shifts. As the 2023 return to work and school got underway, the UK Health Security Agency urged people to stay home if they were sick and to wear masks if they had to go out to stem the spread of infections.

Right-wing columnists blamed NHS managers for the crisis (Alison Pearson, the Telegraph) and started to beat the drum for privatisation (The Telegraph), while more informed commentators pointed out that years of austerity policies weakened the service before Covid-19 hit (Layla McKay, NHS Confederation), so the government can choose to support the NHS by addressing under-funding, staff shortages and collapsing morale. Alastair McLellan, the long-serving editor of the Health Service Journal, argued the “endless clamour for reform” would be a “great distraction” from the “hard slog” of getting back on track in 2023.

Against this background, prime minister Rishi Sunak used what was billed as a major policy speech to promise that waiting lists “will fall” and “people will get the care they need more quickly” (BBC News). But, as he failed to address the immediate problems or set-out any specifics, the Royal College of Nursing described his intervention as “detached from reality” (Sky News). Health and social care secretary Steve Barclay seemed determined to stay well clear of the crisis, which he put down to short term illness rather than long term political choices (The Mirror). The British Medical Association suggested he should “get a grip.”

NHS England issues annual ‘to do’ list with digital priorities

NHS England issued its 2023-4 Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance at what has become the traditional time of 5pm on the last working day before the Christmas break. The guidance sets out three tasks for the coming year: to “recover our core services and productivity”; to make progress on the NHS Long Term Plan; and to “continue transforming the NHS for the future.” Within each task, it outlines a number of priorities and explains how it expects systems to deliver on them within a funding envelope that will be “flat in real terms” with some funding for additional capacity.

On the health tech front, the guidance says that to support progress on the NHS LTP, “NHS England will continue to work with systems to level up digital infrastructure and drive greater connectivity” – including “a digital first option for the public and further development of the NHS App.” It also makes reference to some specific policies that will require health tech investment, such as the roll-out of virtual wards, a reduction in traditional outpatient appointments, improved access to primary care, driving productivity from pathology and imaging networks and new models of care, and implementing the Core20Plus5 approach to tackling inequalities.

Digitalhealth.net publishes industry predictions for the year ahead

Digitalhealth.net has published industry predictions for the year ahead. Brian Murray, UKI regional sales director for Orion Health, told the website that he was expecting to see a shift from reactive to proactive care and population health management as integrated care boards find their feet. Tom Scott, commercial director at Alcidion, argued 2023 will be about Frontline Digitisation, and trusts will need to work out how to make the most of the new drive for electronic patient records while deriving value from their existing investments. While Jane Rendall, managing director at Sectra, argued that debates about genomics will gather pace as digital pathology systems are rolled out.

Communicating in a crisis: health tech in 2023

Highland Marketing Blog

2022 has thrown up three big trends that will continue into 2023. These are: the ongoing crisis in the NHS, changes in IT policy and leadership, and a mutating media landscape. Highland Marketing co-founders Mark and Susan Venables consider what they mean for marketing, PR and communications in the year ahead.