Services across the capital are already leading the way in delivering the 10 Year Health Plan, set out by the Prime Minister last week – strengthening the health of the NHS for generations to come.

In a pivotal moment in the history of the NHS, the government unveiled its ambitious plan with a launch event in east London where over 40 NHS staff from across the capital joined the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves and the NHS Chief Executive, Jim Mackey.

Dame Caroline Clarke, Regional Director of the NHS in London, said: “The 10 Year Health Plan is an optimistic and practical strategy to get the NHS back on its feet, and make it fit for the future. The three big shifts described in the plan will change how the NHS works, enabling us to deliver better care for all patients.

“I’m proud that London is home to exemplary services that are already shifting their care focus from hospitals to communities, from analogue to digital, and from sickness to prevention. In doing so, we are personalising care, giving more power to patients, and ensuring that the best of the NHS is available to everyone.”

London’s NHS services are already making progress in delivering the 10 Year Plan’s vision, with innovative initiatives in place across the capital for all three of the shifts:

Hospital to community

By shifting care to communities, overstrained hospitals can focus on delivering only the best, personalised care for those who need it most. Meanwhile, care for patients in the community can conveniently fit around their everyday lives.

The London Ambulance Service (LAS) Hear and Treat initiative is already delivering this shift from acute to community care, providing clinical assessment over the phone so crews can get to the most urgent cases, faster.

Dr. Fenella Wrigley MBE, Chief Medical Officer at London Ambulance Service, said: “Thanks to the innovative work of our colleagues at the Hear and Treat service, we are driving down the time it takes to get to our most seriously ill patients and reduce A&E admissions when other forms of care would be more suitable.”

Analogue to digital

At Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), innovative clinicians are trialing the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve the quality of face-to-face time between patients and clinicians. Thanks to automated note taking, clinicians can give their full attention to their patients without risking the quality of their notes or letters.

Dr Maaike Kusters, Paediatric Immunology Consultant, who took part in the trial at GOSH said: “The patients I see in my clinics have very complex medical conditions and it’s so important to make sure I capture what we discuss in our appointments accurately, but often this means I am typing rather than looking directly at my patient and their family.

“Using the AI tool meant I could sit closer to them face-to-face and really focus on what they were sharing with me, without compromising on the quality of documentation.”

The new 10 Year Health Plan will encourage this kind of digital liberation for staff across the NHS, enabling technology to boost clinical productivity.

Sickness to prevention

The NHS has renewed its focus on the prevention of illness and addressing the causes of poor health, before issues worsen.

At West London NHS Trust, the Rough Sleeping and Mental Health Programme Team (RAMHP) work across Ealing, Hounslow, Hammersmith and Fulham supports people who are homeless to improve their health.

Steve Kirwin, Community Mental Health Nurse at West London, said: “The people we encounter can often be distrustful of services, as they have felt let down in the past. We check in to see how they are doing and if we can offer support. This ranges from a hot meal and a drink, to helping them to find a hostel or reminding them of appointments. For me, it’s important for them to know help is available.”

The Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England has been shaped by the experiences and expectations of members of the public, patients, partners and the health and care workforce across the country, reflecting the changes that people wanted to see.

ENDS

Note to editors

Other examples of work taking place across the captial include:

Hospital to community

• Tower Hamlets Women’s Hub (case study in plan): The co-location of services into a Neighbourhood Health Centre will be transformative for people who have faced systematic challenges around the coordination of their care. For example, we know that women have faced particular difficulty with NHS fragmentation in the past and we are committed to women’s health never again being ignored. In Tower Hamlets, women’s health hubs have proven effective by providing women referred by their GP with a single point of access, triage and direction to the right care, in the right place.
• Croydon Integrated Neighbourhood Teams – Croydon has been working in this way for some time, first as integrated community networks and more recently in neighbourhoods.By working closely both the council and the local voluntary sector, local people can keep well.
• Community health and wellbeing workers (“Chewies”) (case study in plan): Inspired by Brazil’s successful family health strategy, community health workers visit residents in their homes on a monthly basis. They build personal relationships, rather than delivering transactional care – allowing the service to identify health and social needs early and personalise support. Their impact has been significant.
• The North Central London Community Single Point of Access (NCL Community SPoA) facilitates community health partnership working, providing timely and efficient patient care, while reducing treatment waiting lists. By delivering coordinated care with local partners, NCL Community SPoA can provide London Ambulance Service (LAS) with immediate advice, and give their patients access to a range of services within just two hours.
• South East London’s Multi-Morbidity Model of Care (MMMoC): The Multi-Morbidity Model of Care (MMMoC) is a new way of supporting people who have several long-term health conditions. It focuses on treating the whole person, not just their illnesses, by bringing together all parts of the healthcare system to work more closely. Francine’s story follows a patient through her care journey, including what a point-of-care clinic looks like.

Analogue to digital

• Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust (BHRUT) have installed two new robot dispensers to help patients get their medicines from their pharmacy quicker and more efficiently. Later this year the team are also introducing electronic prescribing, meaning the pharmacy team can request medication from anywhere in the hospital, rather than going to collect paper prescriptions on our wards.
• Experts at King’s College Hospital and King’s College London are using robot radiotherapy to improve patients’ experience while also reducing cost
• At the Royal Free they have added a new surgical robot to their ranks to help better treat patients with pancreatic cancer
• GSTT drones transporting samples between Guy’s Hospital and St Thomas’ Hospital for patients who need urgent blood tests.

Sickness to prevention

• South East London: In Bexley, older residents are offered Functional Fitness MOTs to prevent frailty and support healthy ageing. In Bromley, the new One Bromley Health and Wellbeing Hub is tackling the top five causes of poor health, offering services like smoking cessation, cost-of-living advice, and support for carers. In Lewisham, the Waldron Health and Wellbeing Hub provides access to both clinical services and social support in one community space.

Read the full plan here.