- Meetings held to discuss healthcare workforce recruitment,
cutting waiting times and how member states are using innovation
and tech
- End of summit agreement signed on Sunday to help tackle
global health issues including antimicrobial resistance,
dementia, and pandemic preparedness
Health and Social Care Secretary concluded a visit to Japan
today (Monday 15 May) for the G7 Health Ministers’ meeting, where
he led discussions with international counterparts on how
technology can be used to improve patient care, reduce pressure
on health and social care staff, and cut waiting times for
patients.
During his first international summit, the Secretary of State
visited Silver Wing care home in Tokyo. It uses technology such
as bed sensors, robotic mobility and walking aids, and
interactive entertainment to reduce pressure on staff while
providing better care for residents.
He saw some of the tech in action, including the mobility aids
staff use to lift and move residents to and from their beds,
which staff say has reduced pain in their lower backs while
respecting residents’ privacy.
The Secretary of State also held one-to-one meetings with health
ministers from G7 countries to discuss shared opportunities on
using tech and innovation, workforce recruitment as well as
cutting waiting times.
Talks between the Secretary of State and his counterparts also
focussed on pandemic preparedness, tackling antimicrobial
resistance (AMR) – which costs around 1.27millon lives a year
globally – and how member states are working to develop vaccines
within 100 days of a pandemic threat being identified.
Speaking from Japan, the Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care said:
Japan is pioneering the use of the latest technology and
innovation in health and social care, so my visit to Nagasaki has
been a great opportunity to see at first hand how this innovation
helps both staff and people in care.
New technology including artificial intelligence has a big role
to play in the NHS’s future, helping to deliver one of the
government’s five priorities to cut waiting lists so patients get
the care they need quicker.
We’re already seeing the benefits – the NHS App is being used to
order more than 500,000 repeat prescriptions every week, while
our £123 million investment in AI technologies is helping staff
tackle issues like stroke diagnosis, cancer screening, and
cardiovascular monitoring.
The summit was also a vital opportunity to get round the table
with health ministers from other G7 countries and commit to
action to ensure we’re ready to respond to a possible future
pandemic, both at home in the UK and globally with our
international partners.
The Secretary of State delivered a speech at the summit in which
he said new innovations will help tackle global health issues –
including ageing populations and AMR. He cited as an example the
UK’s world-first antibiotic subscription model – which
incentivises drug companies to produce new antibiotics – which
other G7 countries are looking to as something they could
implement domestically.
The UK government is already taking action to implement
technology across the NHS and social care. In March, the
government announced nearly £16 million investment into
pioneering artificial intelligence research through the AI in
Health and Care Awards.
This brings the total investment to £123 million in 86 AI
technologies, which stand to benefit over 300,000 patients and
support the treatment of conditions including cancer, heart
disease, diabetes mental health, and neurological disorders.
The two-day G7 Health Ministers’ meeting finished on Sunday with
member states signing an agreement on tackling shared global
health challenges, including:
- Better surveillance, data and information sharing to protect
the world against another pandemic.
- Incentivising the development of new antibiotics to tackle
the rising threat of AMR across the G7
- Member states investing in research into dementia and future
treatments
The Secretary of State also spoke at a side event on dementia in
which he recognised the need for global, as well as domestic,
solutions which improve knowledge and understanding of dementia,
helping to drive the production of innovative treatments and
medicines.
The government will soon launch a call for evidence for our Major
Conditions Strategy which will cover six conditions – cancer,
mental ill health, cardiovascular diseases, musculoskeletal
disorders, chronic respiratory diseases and dementia.
The G7 Health Ministers’ meeting took place in Nagasaki Japan
from Saturday 13 May – Sunday 14 May. The G7 leaders summit will
take place in Hiroshima from 19 – 21 May.
