Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government has made a lot of noise about the perilous state of the NHS, insisting the institution must ‘reform or die’. But while the rhetoric is right, what does Labour actually plan to do about it? There are ‘three shifts’, health minister Stephen Kinnock told Isabel Hardman at The Spectator’s ‘How to fix a broken NHS’ audience today: a change of focus from hospital care to a more community-centred approach, a move from a paper-based, analogue-style practice to better use of AI and digital technology, and a transition from dealing with sickness to emphasising prevention.
But it’s not just the NHS that has to adapt and modernise: other facets of Britain’s healthcare system require change. Today’s conversation gave an insight into the ongoing challenges faced by the UK’s social care system – which, in not functioning effectively, adds to the issue of delayed hospital discharge. Kinnock described the social care crisis as ‘urgent’, adding that without improvements here ‘we can’t really fix the NHS’. Becks Fisher – GP and director of research at the Nuffield Trust – noted that in bettering care in the community, staffing issues must first be addressed. The sector is facing vacancies in the hundreds of thousands, and Kinnock insisted that the lack of staff is ‘dragging the sector down onto its knees’. However nodding to the importance of a pay deal for workers – one of Labour’s manifesto commitments – the Labour MP hinted that there will be movement on this in the near future.
A more efficient social care system will help reduce the backlogs faced in secondary healthcare settings – emergency departments and hospital wards – by speeding up the patient conveyor belt. But more staff and better pay requires more money. Where does the capital funding come from? ‘It’s about redressing the power imbalance between hospitals and the community sector,’ Kinnock told the crowd, discussing the need to figure out specifics on how the model of care should look before turning to the public purse. On money the health minister was quick to reference the Chancellor’s tight grip on the nation’s purse strings – much like Health Secretary Wes Streeting on Sunday, who laughed: ‘If you say money three times, Rachel Reeves appears up from the stage’ – a joke that’s starting to sound more pointed the more it’s made.
And there are challenges too on moving from dealing with sickness to focusing on prevention. As Richard Sloggett – founder of Future Health – pointed out, Sir Keir Starmer’s proposed smoking ban would only be the start of a move to make Britain healthier. How much would the state have to expand to make headway with Labour’s plans for reform, and how long would this take? ‘It’s a ten-year plan,’ Kinnock advised the crowd today. The party just needs to ensure it’s in government for that long.
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