More than 100,000 infants waited over six hours in A&E last year, according to an independent investigation from Lord Darzi.
Lord Darzi’s rapid review was commissioned shortly after the election, with the aim to identify failings in the health service. Declining national health, rising rates of poverty and NHS targets failing to be met were key factors contributing to the poor state of the health service.
‘All politicians say they are shocked too often, but I was honestly shocked,’ said Prime Minister Keir Starmer in a speech delivered last week at the King’s Fund. ‘Only fundamental reform and plan for the long-term can turn around the NHS and build a healthy society.’
The Prime Minister has said the answer lies in reform, not additional funding. His ‘three fundamental reforms’ are moving from an analogue to a digital NHS, shifting care from hospitals to the community, and focusing on prevention.
Responding to the Prime Minister’s pledges, chief executive of the King’s Fund Sarah Woolnough said:
‘… Both patients and those working in health and care services will take some hope from the Prime Minister’s promise of bold action.
‘Having set out the diagnosis, the government now needs to develop a detailed strategy for reform. That plan will need to model how greater investment to primary and community services will be implemented. It must also describe how ministers will embrace a truly cross-government approach to improving the nation’s health.’
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