An international report published today by Royal Philips reveals that UK patients want better access to healthcare when needed, but don’t see a role in helping to ease the burden on the NHS by living healthily.
Despite the pressure lifestyle-related conditions are placing on the NHS - the number of hospital visits by heart failure patients increased by 36% between 2004/5 and 2014/15 and the cost of Type 2 diabetes to the NHS is £8.8billion - one in five people aren’t actively managing their own health.
This could explain why healthcare professionals want a greater focus on healthy living and prevention. 78% say patients have access to the information and resources need to live healthily, but there needs to be a bigger drive for people to look after themselves. Nearly half say their patients are uninterested in actively managing their health and 51% say their patients think they know a lot about healthy living, but actually don’t.
There needs to be a radical rethink of how we provide and manage healthcare in the UK and how we, as individuals, manage our own health
“Those of us who live in the UK are so fortunate to be able to rely on the NHS in times of need. We pay for it with our taxes, but it is there for us when we get sick. However, sometimes we forget how lucky we are, and we can take it for granted.
To keep the NHS truly sustainable in the long-run patients need to take more responsibility for their own health and preventing ill health. This means knowing when to go to the GP or self manage, knowing how to reduce their chances of getting long-term conditions such as heart disease by healthy living, but also learning how best to manage long-term conditions such as diabetes – to stop the acute emergencies that we see far too often in A&E,” said A&E consultant, Dr Rob Galloway.
According to the Philips Future Health Index report, published this week, patients want the Government to prioritise making sure people have access to healthcare services when they need them – 53%. However, the index does show that, overall, the UK rates access to care more highly than many of its counterparts in the other 12 countries included in the survey. Where the UK should improve is in the adoption of integrated healthcare – the perceived state of functional integration and interoperability between systems. This contrasts with the UK results which show the importance healthcare professionals place on integration and how it is key to improving the health of the population:
- 77% of healthcare professionals strongly agree that integrated healthcare can improve the health of the population when they use it for preventing medical conditions from forming
- 90% of healthcare professionals say it is important to them that the health system in the UK is integrated
The medical technology industry is working to help the NHS speed adoption and integration, but we need people to realise that everyone has a role to play in helping to relieve the enormous burden facing the NHS
“There needs to be a radical rethink of how we provide and manage healthcare in the UK and how we, as individuals, manage our own health. This is one of the most-exciting times in healthcare history – we can bring together proven medical practice and emerging technologies to address the most-pressing health challenges. This is happening in pockets around the UK but, overall, the UK is lagging behind.
“The medical technology industry is working to help the NHS speed adoption and integration, but we need people to realise that everyone has a role to play in helping to relieve the enormous burden facing the NHS,” said Neil Mesher, chief executive at Philips UK and Ireland.
To read the report in its entirety, and to access local market data in-depth, click here.
Case study
A three-year study, implemented by Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group in partnership with Royal Philips, helped patients with chronic conditions to use technology to manage their conditions at home. The study provides evidence that healthcare technology and better integration could significantly reduce pressure on acute care if rolled out nationally.
In Liverpool, over half of adults are obese and 30% of the population are currently living with one or more long-term conditions, and are at a higher risk of repeat emergency admissions to hospital – sometimes in situations that could have been avoided.
The large-scale supported self-care programme was rolled out across the city among 1,808 people living with long-term conditions, including diabetes, heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
It sought to improve patient independence and emotional wellbeing using innovative telemonitoring equipment alongside the support of a clinical hub and a structured programme of case management – monitoring, education and coaching for people living with varying levels of chronic conditions.
The programme led to a reduction in emergency admissions by 22-32% for patients with above-average risk, and 90% of the study patients reported feeling more in control of their condition and that they had gained confidence and/or felt better able to cope – demonstrating what is possible when people are empowered to manage their own health.
