Government is to introduce new laws making NHS patient health records available across all NHS trusts, GP surgeries and ambulance services in England.
The plans come as government sets about engaging the entire population to share their experiences of the NHS and help shape the government’s 10 Year Health Plan.
Members of the public, as well as NHS staff and experts will be invited to share their experiences views and ideas for fixing the NHS via the online platform, change.nhs.uk, which will be live by the start of next year, and available via the NHS App.
The public engagement exercise will help shape the government’s 10 Year Health Plan which will be published in spring 2025 and will be underlined by three big shifts in healthcare:
- Hospital to community
- Analogue to digital
- Sickness to prevention.
As part of the first shift “from hospital to community”, the government added it wants to deliver plans for new neighbourhood health centres, which will be closer to homes and communities.
Patients will be able to see family doctors, district nurses, care workers, physiotherapists, health visitors, or mental health specialists, all under the same roof.
A more modern NHS
And within its drive to move the NHS from analogue to digital, government said it will create a more modern NHS by bringing together a single patient record, summarising patient health information, test results, and letters in one place, through the NHS App.
It added it will put patients in control of their own medical history, meaning they will not have to repeat it at every appointment, and that staff have the full picture of patients’ health.
New regulation will also be introduced to make NHS patient health records available across all NHS trusts, GP surgeries and ambulance services in England – speeding up patient care, reducing repeat medical tests, and minimising medication errors.
Systems will be able to share data more easily, which government said will save NHS staff an estimated 140,000 hours of NHS staffs’ time every year, as staff will have quicker access to patient data, saving time that can then be spent face-to-face with patients who need it most and potentially saving lives.
By moving from sickness to prevention, government said it wants to shorten the amount of time people spend in-ill health and prevent illnesses before they happen.
As an example, the 10 Year Health Plan will explore the opportunities smart watches and other wearable tech may offer patients with diabetes or high blood pressure, so they can monitor their own health from the comfort of their own home.
Time to roll up sleeves
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “My mum worked for the NHS, my sister worked for the NHS and my wife still works for the NHS – so I know first-hand how difficult it has been for staff, and for patients battling against a broken system for over a decade.
“But it’s time to roll up our sleeves and fix it.
“We have a clear plan to fix the health service, but it’s only right that we hear from the people who rely on the NHS every day to have their say and shape our plan as we deliver it.
“Together we can build a healthcare system that puts patients first and delivers the care that everyone deserves.
“We have a huge opportunity to put the NHS back on its feet. So, let’s be the generation that took the NHS from the worst crisis in its history and made it fit for the future.
Broken but not beaten
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting (pictured) said: “When I was diagnosed with kidney cancer, the NHS saved my life, as it has for so many people across our country.
“We all owe the NHS a debt of gratitude for a moment in our lives when it was there for us, when we needed it. Now we have a chance to repay that debt.
“Today the NHS is going through the worst crisis in its history. But while the NHS is broken, it’s not beaten. Together, we can fix it.
“Whether you use the NHS or work in it, you see first-hand what’s great, but also what isn’t working. We need your ideas to help turn the NHS around.
“In order to save the things we love about the NHS, we need to change it. Our 10 Year Health Plan will transform the NHS to make it fit for the future, and it will have patients’ and staff’s fingerprints all over it.
“I urge everyone to go to Change.NHS.uk today and help us build a health service fit for the future.
“Investment alone won’t be enough to tackle the problems facing the NHS, which is why it must go hand in hand with fundamental reform.
“The three big shifts will be our key principles for reform and will revolutionise the way people manage their health and access care. Our reforms will also shift the NHS away from late diagnosis and treatment to a model where more services are delivered in local communities and illnesses are prevented in the first place.
“It is vital the government hears from patients, experts and the NHS workforce to make sure we get this right and preserve the things people value about the health service.
Unprecedented challenges
NHS England CEO Amanda Pritchard said: “NHS staff are facing an unprecedented number of challenges – with record demand for care, alongside growing pressures from an ageing population, rising levels of multiple long-term illnesses and patients with more complex needs.
“And they are often hampered by working in crumbling buildings with outdated tech, meaning too many patients are waiting too long for care they need.
“So, it is vital the health service innovates and adapts – as it has always done throughout its 76-year history – to design and deliver an NHS fit for the future.
“The 10 Year Health Plan is a chance to make the best practice, normal practice across the country.
“So, we will be carrying out the largest ever staff engagement exercise in NHS history and leaving no stone unturned as we seek to harness frontline views, alongside those of patients and the public, to ensure this happens.
“It is your experiences – good, bad, and sometimes frustrating – that we need to help shape this once in a generation opportunity, so please get involved.”