Morning, Friday, 25th October 2024
Online
This conference will discuss next steps for elective care recovery and addressing waiting times for healthcare in England.
It will be an opportunity to assess the way forward for government proposals for increasing weekly appointments by 40,000, pooling local resources, and utilising independent sector capacity. It also comes as the Government plans to launch a Fit for the Future Fund, which would aim to double the number of CT and MRI scanners in the NHS over the next five years in an aim to drive earlier diagnosis.
Stakeholders and policymakers will assess practicalities of delivering increased appointments, including considerations for engagement with the workforce and implications of changes to working hours and practices, against the backdrop of industrial action and concerns including increased pressure on staff. Those attending will also consider enabling strategies such as the development of reliable booking systems and infrastructure for the NHS estate to support increased appointments, as well as taking forward high intensity theatre list models to the rest of the NHS.
The agenda looks at the role of the independent sector going forward in supporting elective recovery. Areas for discussion include overcoming barriers in local commissioning arrangements and challenges around public-private collaboration, awareness of a patient’s right to choose, ensuring independent sector capacity is being used effectively for conditions which help relieve NHS pressures, and addressing concerns around privatisation and variation in patient access.
Delegates will discuss practical considerations for pooling resources and creating shared regional waiting lists, looking at priorities for collaboration and the role of integrated care systems, utilising data and technology to manage waiting lists, and making sure changes aren’t a disincentive for organisations that have been performing well.
We also expect delegates to consider priorities for modernisation through the planned Fit for the Future Fund, including developing the requirements for infrastructure, technology and the workforce to deliver updated scanners and utilise AI, as well as opportunities for delivering improved diagnostics and detection of conditions closer to communities.
Further sessions will assess priorities for managing and supporting patients awaiting diagnosis and treatment, including approaches such as taught self-management and care. Delegates will discuss challenges within primary care, looking at discharging patients into social care and options for advancing integrated care across the full patient pathway before, during and after treatment through the National Perioperative Care Programme.
We are pleased to be able to include keynote sessions with: David Hare, Chief Executive, Independent Healthcare Providers Network; Professor Kariem El-Boghdadly, Clinical Lead, Research Lead and HIT Lists Co-Lead, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust; and Dr Ellen Welch, GP; Vice-Chair, Doctors’ Association UK; and Vice-Chair, North Cumbria Local Medical Committee.
