The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has today published the Fit for the future: 10 Year Health Plan for England, outlining the Government’s priorities for the health service over the next decade. The plan sets out how the health service will deliver the three shifts from illness to prevention, hospital to community and analogue to digital.
BGS President, Professor Jugdeep Dhesi, said:
BGS warmly welcomes the publication today of the 10 Year Health Plan. This plan rightly acknowledges that the NHS must change to cater for the needs of an ageing population living with frailty and other long-term conditions. Older people are the population group who use health and care services the most and this plan, if implemented well, has the potential to make a real difference to their care and to the NHS.
We particularly welcome the shift to neighbourhood health and provision of care closer to where people live. The majority of older people’s interactions with healthcare are already in primary and community care rather than in hospital and BGS members have been providing care in these settings for many years. We know that co-produced neighbourhood services provide good outcomes for older people; support them to live well in their own homes and in care homes; are valued by patients and families; and can be delivered with efficiency. However, hospitals still play an essential role in providing emergency and planned care, and need to be reconfigured to address the needs of older people, especially as 66% of hospital beds are occupied by those aged over 65 years.
We urge the Government to be equally inclusive of older people in the other two shifts. Prevention of ill health is just as relevant to older people as it is to younger populations and by ignoring older people in this shift, the plan risks exacerbating existing inequalities. Ageing is universal and people should be supported to remain healthy, regardless of age. It is also crucial that the shift to digital incorporates the needs and wants of older people, particularly to ensure access and inclusion for all.
We are pleased to see the emphasis on quality and safety of care, and the commitment for the National Quality Board (NQB) to focus on dementia and frailty. The BGS is ready to work with the NQB and partner organisations to end corridor care and unacceptable long waits in emergency departments for older people, issues that contribute to hospital acquired complications and result in cost.
We were pleased to see the focus on increasing nurse consultant roles and specialty training posts. We need to enable staff to work at the top end of their competency, to provide quality care for older people across the community and hospital. Considering the increasingly complex needs of the rapidly ageing population, both the nursing roles and the specialist training posts are desperately needed in geriatric medicine. At the same time, all clinicians require education and training to provide high-quality care for older people living with frailty, dementia and other long-term conditions. We look forward to working with the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure that older people’s healthcare is adequately resourced and supported.
Along with implementation of the health plan, we urge the Government to work with social care leaders in prioritising reform of the social care sector. Without a functioning and sustainable social care system, it is hard to see how the priorities set out in the 10 Year Plan will succeed."
