As the NHS turns 75, three leading health and care research
institutes have issued a stark warning thatcontinued quick
political fixes to address complex and long-standing issues -
from NHS buildings to social care - will risk the NHS not being
able to reach its centenary.
The Chief Executives of the Health Foundation, Nuffield Trust and
The King’s Fund have written to the leaders of the three largest
political parties in England, calling on them to make the
upcoming general election a decisive break point, by ending years
of short termism in NHS policy-making. They warn that the
alternative is “managed decline that gradually erodes the
guarantee of safety in place of fear it was designed to create”.
The letter, sent to , and , states “75 years after its creation, the National
Health Service is in critical condition. Pressures on services
are extreme and public satisfaction is at its lowest since it
first began to be tracked 40 years ago. Despite this, public
support for the NHS as an institution is rock solid.”
The think tanks state that recovering NHS services and reducing
waiting times for treatment should rightly be a key priority for
any government. But they warn that promising unachievable,
unrealistically fast improvements without a long-term plan to
address the underlying causes of the current crisis is a strategy
“doomed to failure”.
The joint letter highlights four key areas where long-term
policies coupled with considered investment would help chart a
path back to a stronger health service:
- Invest in the physical resources the NHS needs to do its job
including equipment, beds, buildings and new technology.
- Deliver long overdue reform of adult social care
- Commit to a cross-government strategy over the course of the
next parliament to improve the underlying social and economic
conditions that shape the health of the nation
- Build on the recently published NHS long term workforce plan
with sustained commitment toproviding the resources it needs to
succeed
The think tank chiefs write:
“For the public, the NHS remains the jewel in the country’s
crown, even if it is losing its shine. The next government will
face a choice between providing the investment and reform needed
to preserve the NHS for future generations or continuing with
short termism and managed decline that gradually erodes the
guarantee of safety in place of fear it was designed to create.
“Persisting with the current addiction to short-termism and
eye-catching initiatives will risk the health service being
unable to adapt to the huge challenges ahead and reach its
centenary. It is time to move away from quick fixes and
over-promising what the NHS can deliver and give it the tools it
needs to succeed.”
ENDS
Notes to editorsThe full letter text as
sent is attached. The letter is signed by Jennifer Dixon, Chief
Executive of the Health Foundation, Nigel Edwards, Chief
Executive of the Nuffield Trust and , Chief Executive of The
King’s Fund.
