New NHS plan will ‘fundamentally rewire' health service
The 'status quo of hospital by default will end', according to the Government, with care shifted into neighbourhoods and people's homes.
By 2035, the intention is that the majority of outpatient care will happen outside of hospitals, with less need for hospital-based appointments for things like eye care, cardiology, respiratory medicine and mental health.
New neighbourhood health services will be rolled out across the country to bring tests, post-op care, nursing and mental health teams closer to people's homes.
The aim is to give people access to a full range of services, leaving hospitals to focus on the sickest, with neighbourhood health centres opening at evenings and weekends.
These will be staffed by teams including nurses, doctors, social care workers, pharmacists, health visitors, palliative care staff and paramedics.
New services will also include debt advice, employment support and stop smoking or obesity services – all of which affect people's health.
Community outreach, with people going door to door, could also reduce pressure on GPs and A&E, the Government said.
The plans also outline training for thousands more GPs, as the Government pledges to 'bring back the family doctor' and end the '8am scramble' to get an appointment.
Sir Keir said: 'The NHS should be there for everyone, whenever they need it.
'But we inherited a health system in crisis, addicted to a sticking plaster approach, and unable to face up to the challenges we face now, let alone in the future.
'That ends now. Because it's reform or die. Our 10-year health plan will fundamentally rewire and future-proof our NHS so that it puts care on people's doorsteps, harnesses game-changing tech and prevents illness in the first place.
'That means giving everyone access to GPs, nurses and wider support all under one roof in their neighbourhood – rebalancing our health system so that it fits around patients' lives, not the other way round.
'This is not an overnight fix, but our Plan for Change is already turning the tide on years of decline with over four million extra appointments, 1,900 more GPs, and waiting lists at their lowest level for two years.
'But there's more to come. This Government is giving patients easier, quicker and more convenient care, wherever they live.'
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said the plan would deliver 'one of the most fundamental changes in the way we receive our healthcare in history'.
He added: 'By shifting from hospital to community, we will finally bring down devastating hospital waiting lists and stop patients going from pillar to post to get treated.
'This Government's Plan for Change is creating an NHS truly fit for the future, keeping patients healthy and out of hospital, with care closer to home and in the home.'
In a bid to free up time, GPs will be encouraged to use artificial intelligence to take notes, while technology will be used to speed up the answering of calls to surgeries.
Dental therapists, who tend to carry out some of the straightforward work of dentists, could undertake check-ups, treatment and referrals, according to the plan.
And there will be a new requirement for newly-qualified dentists to practise in the NHS for a minimum period, intended to be three years, according to the Government.
Ministers also want to improve access to dental care for children, such as by allowing dental nurses to give fluoride varnish to children in between check-ups.
Royal College of Nursing (RCN) general secretary, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: ''A neighbourhood health service is a bold vision and it needs nursing staff in the driving seat.
'The Prime Minister must back up his plan with a clear one to turn around the shortage of nurses in all local communities.
'Moving care away from overcrowded hospitals is urgent and necessary but it will prove impossible whilst this part of the healthcare workforce is so depleted and undervalued.
'Crucial teams of district nursing and health visiting staff, who keep patients well and safe at home, have fallen by thousands in the last decade or more.'
Thea Stein, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust, said: 'Top quality community services, like district nursing, end of life care and rehabilitation, are, in pockets of the country, already working around the clock to fit care around patients' needs, working closely with GPs, charities and council staff.
'This approach is essential if we want to end the disjointed ways of working that too often leave patients to do the time-consuming and often bewildering job of joining up their own care.'
She said, however, that a lack of detail on how it will all work 'casts doubt on whether it will stick'.
She added: 'What's more, care closer to home doesn't mean care on the cheap.
'While ministers are always keen to cite examples of community services saving money, often this kind of care costs more, not less… let's be under no illusion, this is not a money-saving measure.'
Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King's Fund, said: 'As the Government publishes its 10-year plan for health today, what patients, the public and those working in the NHS will want to know is, why it will be different this time, and how soon it will lead to improvements?
'When will it mean people can see a GP more easily, or get mental health support for their child, or not wait hours in A&E?
'There is plenty to welcome in the details we've seen so far, with the biggest changes outlined being about how people access NHS services, with the rollout of new neighbourhood health centres and a much greater role for the NHS app.
'At the King's Fund our call for a fundamental shift of care from hospital to community and a more people-first approach has been echoed by successive governments, so, whilst welcome, the vision itself is not new, the radical change would be delivering the vision.'
The Government's political opponents were sceptical about the plan, with Conservative shadow health secretary Edward Argar insisting that it must provide reform and 'that reform must be real, it needs to be deliverable, and crucially it must deliver results for patients'.
He added: 'But after the collapse of their Welfare Bill, the government's tough talk seems meaningless. This Government has proven they cannot stand up to their own MPs or take tough decisions in the national interest.'
Liberal Democrat Leader Sir Ed Davey said the plan 'will be a castle built on sand until ministers finally tackle the crisis in social care'.
He added: 'Years of Conservative neglect pushed the NHS to breaking point, with overcrowded A&Es, people waiting weeks to see a GP and parents unable to find a dentist for their children.
'But the current Government's failure to fix social care is leading to more of the same, as vulnerable people are stuck in hospital beds while their families are left in anguish.'
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The Sun
16 minutes ago
- The Sun
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31 minutes ago
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The David Miliband acolyte behind Labour's plan to spy on your shopping
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'New Labour b------t' Nesta – or the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts – was created in 1998 under Tony Blair with a mission to foster 'innovation', and was backed with £250m in National Lottery funding. Labour peer Lord Puttnam was its first chairman. In its early days, the quango investigated a broad range of initiatives, including an app designed to connect MPs with their constituents. However, it was frequently derided by critics who accused it of being slow-moving and myopic. '[Nesta] was set up in the late 1990s as an 'innovation centre' when there was all this optimistic, early New Labour b------t about how we're going to go for the growth by making Britain the innovation capital of the world and so on,' says Christopher Snowdon, of the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), a free market think tank. In 2012, Nesta transitioned into an independent charity, but its most crucial recent change came when Gurumurthy joined as its chief executive in December 2019. Gurumurthy has been credited with helping build Nesta's influence in the corridors of power, helping it become more than just a talking shop. In January, he met Streeting to discuss the 10-year health plan, and Gurumurthy also sits on the newly established Food Strategy Advisory Board, alongside Simon Roberts, the Sainsbury's chief executive; Chris Whitty, the former chief medical officer; and Daniel Zeichner, the food security minister. Gurumurthy shrugs off claims that he masterminded the plans. He insists that all Nesta does is 'try to bring some really rigorous evidence, without all the sort of partisan ideology, and assemble that for policymakers'. The charity 'gave the Government options to focus entirely on GLP-1s [weight-loss jabs] or entirely on taxes, and what they are going for is a combined package – one that has some individual action, some action through GLP-1s, and some action from business,' he said. 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The group announced a new 10-year strategy focusing on policies that could help tackle issues such as poverty, obesity and the environment. 'Back in 2020 obesity was getting more and more prominence,' he says. 'Everyone was realising we just can't go on as we are now, with obesity doubling over 30 years, given the cost to the NHS.' The approach to obesity has been to develop policies 'where you don't ask people to eat a healthy diet. You just say, 'can you make it a slightly healthier diet?' and critically not lecture people to do that'. A Westminster source familiar with the group says: 'When Ravi came in, they almost pivoted, they refocused the whole organisation ... It was more interventionist.' Over the years, Nesta has worked with the May, Johnson, Sunak and Starmer administrations and the organisation's influence has grown. In May last year, Gurumurthy was among those rumoured to be in the frame to join Sir Keir Starmer's policy team. His influence has been helped by Nesta's 2021 acquisition of the behavioural insights team – known as the 'nudge unit'– an organisation with deep links to government. It originated within Whitehall and played a key role in designing and implementing the sugar tax, which came into effect in 2018. The team was founded during the Cameron-led coalition government before being spun out into an independent consultancy. Obesity crisis 'What's very striking from both this Government and actually people like William Hague and Sajid Javid and all the previous Conservative secretaries of state, is this idea that they agree that you can't treat your way out of the ill health problem we've got,' Gurumurthy says. 'We can't put up taxes enough to deal with the level of ill health that an ageing society and an obese society have. So we have to get serious about reducing demand.' Last week, the Government took a major step in this direction, suggesting supermarkets must play a key role in tackling obesity. Ministers are also expected to look at fast food in the coming months, with Nesta also working on research around takeaways and calorie-control steps. Gurumurthy suggests that it is not Nesta's job to consult with industry and says they are not being shut out. 'What has happened is the Government has set out a framework and an intention to cover the whole system with a fair health standard,' he says. 'What happens now is defining the actual level and working with industry on how to get to that.' Be that as it may, Nesta's growing influence in Westminster has put noses out of joint. Supermarkets feel like they are stuck on the outside – and it is now up to Labour to repair the relationship.
Scottish Sun
an hour ago
- Scottish Sun
I was spending £400-a-month on takeaways – now weight-loss jabs are helping me reach a big goal
JAB JOURNEY I was spending £400-a-month on takeaways – now weight-loss jabs are helping me reach a big goal Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) A SCOT has told how he went from spending hundreds of pounds on takeaways every month to using fat-busting jabs to improve his health. Michael Monaghan, 40, gained weight during the Covid lockdowns gained over three stone while shielding during the pandemic. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Michael Monaghan told how he spend hundreds each month of takeaways Credit: YouTube: Edinburgh and Beyond 3 He went onto Mounjaro when nothing else helped him lose weight Credit: Alamy The Edinburgh man tried to shed the pounds but said nothing was working. He decided to try Mounjaro jabs and said it will be helping him achieve a goal. Michael booked a trip to Florida and wants to shed 18 stone by the time he steps off the plane in the Sunshine State. He told Edinburgh Live: "The deciding factor was health. I was shielding during Covid and I gained a lot of weight. "I think it was 3.5 stone I gained, and then I kept putting on weight because I kept eating. What can I say, I enjoy food. And I basically just decided to start Mounjaro because everything else failed. 'I was waiting for weight management for a year and a half on the NHS, I couldn't believe it.' And he revealed he is actually saving cash after getting the jabs privately. NHS patients in England are able to get fat-busting jabs like Mounjaro but it hasn't been rolled out in Scotland. So Michael decided to take the cash he was spending on fast food and use it on the injections. He added: "England have started doing Mounjaro on the NHS but it's not up here yet, they haven't decided how that's going to happen. I've lost nearly 6 stone in 9 months on fat jabs - trolls call me 'lazy' & say it's the 'easy way out' but I don't care 'So I decided to pay for it privately out of my own pocket, I was spending £400 a month on takeaways. Just Eat, Uber Eats, whatever. "If I take that money and put it into the jag, which is about £140 a month, I'm actually saving money. So that really changed my mindset." And he has already seen some success from his weight loss journey, having shed two stone in just four weeks. He is documenting his weight loss on a YouTube channel where he said he has been inundated with positive comments and support. Michael has set a goal for his trip to the States, where he plans to visit Disneyworld in Orlando, and it comes with a big motivation. He said: "I'm a big Disney fan, I'm an annual pass holder for Paris. I love the rides, and if I don't lose weight then I won't be able to do them all - it's a target. "I've got asthma and sleep apnea, and I've been told if I lose a bit of weight I might be able to get rid of that. 'It was getting uncomfortable, and this was the time to make a change and that's exactly what we've done." Mounjaro works as an appetite suppressant by helping the body produce more insulin. The jabs were initially developed to treat people with diabetes but have been marketed by the weight loss industry. The jabs also reduce the amount of sugar produced by the liver. It also slows down the rate food is digested. Mounjaro jabs were approved for the NHS in December. They are available for patients needing to be treated for obesity. They can get the jabs if approved by their GP. Some patients in Scotland can get them, but the criteria is different.
