UK Government calls for more evidence on how to prevent and manage major conditions
The UK Government has launched a call for evidence on how best to prevent, early diagnose, treat and manage the six major groups of conditions which drive ill health and contribute to pressure on the NHS.
The six major health conditions, cancer, cardiovascular diseases including stroke and diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, dementia, mental ill health and musculoskeletal disorders, affect millions of people in England with data showing that one in four suffer from two or more of these major long-term conditions.
Recognising the pressure these conditions are putting on the NHS, the government is seeking views on a new strategy to tackle them that will focus not only on treatment but also on prevention.
The major conditions strategy call for evidence will inform a landmark major conditions strategy and will help the country’s ageing population to stay in better health for longer.
The Government is interested in hearing from those who have long-term conditions, care for or provide treatment to people with multiple long-term conditions. This is to ensure the major conditions strategy is one that will better prevent, diagnose, manage and treat these conditions.
Contributions are also encouraged from those working in NHS bodies, local government, the voluntary and community sector, and wider industry, on how best to tackle suffering from one or more of these major conditions.
The call is particularly seeking perspectives on how government and the NHS can work better together with different organisations and sectors to improve the nation’s health.
The major conditions strategy signals the Government’s intention to improve care and outcomes for those living with multiple conditions and an increasing complexity of need.
For example, the UK Government says people with diabetes are twice as likely to have depression, nine in 10 dementia patients have another long-term condition and half of people with a heart or lung condition have musculoskeletal disorders such as back pain.
It will seek to reduce care and treatment that are too narrowly focused on specific diseases or organs in the body and consider how to treat people as a whole.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay, who recently concluded a visit to the G7 health ministers’ meeting, said: “Patients often live with more than one major condition, so it’s vital that we do all we can to understand how best to manage their care.
“I encourage patients, carers and healthcare professionals to contribute to our call for evidence so we can ensure our major conditions strategy is as targeted and patient-focused as possible.”
Sources gathered by WHO state that assistive technology can have a positive impact on the health and well-being of a person and their family, as well as broader socioeconomic benefits, such as manual wheelchairs increasing access to education and employment while reducing healthcare costs due to a reduction in the risk of pressure sores and contractures, and assistive technology can enable older people to continue to live at home and delay or prevent the need for long-term care.
Additionally, therapeutic footwear for diabetes reduces the incidence of foot ulcers, preventing lower limb amputations and the associated burden on health systems.
Minister of State for Care, Helen Whately, added: “We want to hear from as many people as possible affected by these conditions in our call for evidence. It’ll help us join up care across the NHS and mean better treatment for millions of people.
“It’s also really important that we hear from professionals working in areas like dementia or cancer too. Their frontline experience will be invaluable to make sure our strategy includes plans which will really work in practice.”
This call for evidence complements and builds on the 2 calls for evidence undertaken last year on mental health and cancer, the summaries of which have been published today and incorporates previous work looking at health disparities and dementia.
Submissions to these previous calls for evidence will directly inform the development of the major conditions strategy, which will also examine health inequalities across England, exploring how the government can assist integrated care systems to ensure they are tackling disparities in their local areas, addressing variations in health and care.
Looking beyond the immediate pressures on the NHS, the strategy will focus on what can be delivered now as well as over the coming years to improve outcomes.
The strategy will also build on work already done to tackle waiting lists for planned NHS treatments through the NHS elective recovery plan.
The call for evidence is open for six weeks and will close on 27 June 2023.
