NHS England’s award-winning Future of Health Conference will be staged again later this year.

The conference, which recently won Best Event of the Year at the prestigious British Media Awards, will be held on 21 November in London.

As with last year’s event – which attracted 1,000 delegates – a People’s Panel made up of patients will sit alongside healthcare professionals to give their own immediate feedback to what is being presented and to hold speakers to account.

It was this unique approach of having people with long terms conditions reacting to the ideas being put forward at the 2013 conference which impressed the judges of the British Media Awards, who praised its innovation, immediacy and interactivity.

One of the key speakers at this year’s event will again be Dr Martin McShane, NHS England’s Director for Long Term Conditions.

He said: “I’m delighted this event is being held again this year. The conference is focussing on the people who use NHS services every day: people with long term conditions. They have a wealth of expertise to offer us and we are grateful that the People’s Panel will again be at the conference to give their unique viewpoint. We need to understand that they are experts in their own right.”

“The Future of Health is about making the health and care system better for people with long term conditions. We’re focussing on the things that people tell NHS England they want: to be in control of their care and support as they are able. And to get ‘joined up’ care in which health and social care understand and remember each individual and their needs, rather than having to ‘start again’ each time they use a new service.

“A key message from last year’s conference was that people with long term conditions want services personalised to them, but also want their voice heard in how those services are planned and organised at national and local levels. They want to become partners in building the House of Care.”

Dr McShane added: “People who attended last year seemed to find something genuinely different from other conferences – the People’s Panel and the focus on service users have resulted in calls for EVERY healthcare conference to have a People’s Panel. There’s little point in talking about health and social care without the viewpoint of those using the services.”

This year’s conference is set to be held at Kensington Olympia and is again being organised in partnership with UCLPartners and Dods.

The agenda concentrates on four themes:

• Personalisation and Empowerment – What are the barriers and enablers for people participating fully in their care to achieve their best outcomes?
• Innovation, Technology and Enablement – What is the role for developments in digital health in improving the quality of life for people with long term conditions?
• Equality and Parity in practice – What are the enablers and barriers for participation by people with mental health problems, learning disabilities, dementia, and other conditions and inequalities, which can put them at disadvantage in the healthcare system?
• Creating value: Think like a patient, act like a taxpayer – What are the system and financial levers enabling national and local organisations to co-design services which produce the best outcomes?

Delegates will also be able to have their own input to creating solutions and sharing their own solutions and innovations on a national platform, while also networking with up to 1,000 colleagues from all around the country who will be able to share best practice.

To register now for this year’s conference and claim your 25 per cent early bird discount, visit the Future of Health’s website.