Health secretary attends G7 meeting in Japan to see how tech is improving patient care
Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay has concluded a visit to the G7 health ministers’ meeting on behalf of the UK Government where he led discussions with international counterparts on how technology can be used to improve patient care.
During his meeting from 13 May to 14 May 2023 in Nagasaki, Japan, the Secretary of State for the Department of Health and Social Care also held one-to-one meetings with health ministers from G7 countries to discuss shared opportunities on using tech and innovation to reduce pressure on health and social care staff, recruit more staff, and cut waiting times.
Steve Barclay also visited the Silver Wing care home in Tokyo to find out more about how 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.
Speaking from Japan, Steve Barclay commented: “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 5 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, w
hile our £123 million investment in AI technologies is helping staff tackle issues like stroke diagnosis, cancer screening and cardiovascular monitoring.”
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.
He cited as an example the UK’s world-first antibiotic subscription model that incentivises drug companies to produce new antibiotics which other G7 countries are looking to as something they could implement domestically.
The UK Government has started to take 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 concluded 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.
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 of its Major Conditions Strategy which will cover six conditions: cancer, mental ill health, cardiovascular diseases, musculoskeletal disorders, chronic respiratory diseases and dementia.
The Autumn Statement announced £7.5 billion for the social care sector over the next two years, aimed at creating an additional 200,000 new care packages, supporting the discharge of people from hospital to ease NHS backlog, whilst also being split across adult and child services.
