The Royal College of Physicians attended the Labour party conference in Liverpool and raised key issues including workforce, health inequalities – particularly air quality, digital and AI, and social care.
Dr Mumtaz Patel, president of the Royal College of Physicians said “The RCP has been in Liverpool engaging with key political stakeholders in government and parliament, hosting panel events and attending convened roundtables to advocate on behalf of our members and their patients.
“I was delighted to take part in our panel event Impatient for Change: Action On Social Care Ahead of the Casey Commission co-hosted alongside The King's Fund, Alzheimer's Society and Care Minister Stephen Kinnock MP. It sought to explore what can be done in the short term to alleviate the pressures caused by inadequate access to social care. The RCP has a unique voice in this space – with so many of our members often seeing delays in the discharge of our patients in hospital due to issues in social care. I made clear we ready to work collaboratively to ensure that social care pathways operate in the most effective way possible to limit the too often frustrating impact on clinicians delivering care in hospitals.
“In addition the RCP and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) hosted an event on air quality and the steps we need to take to reduce this increasingly dangerous threat to public health. Professor Sir Stephen Holgate, our special adviser on air quality, joined the RCPCH’s adviser Dr Mike McKean, Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe (Leader, Bradford Metropolitan District Council) and Rosamund Kissi-Debrah, Chief Executive (Ella Roberta Foundation). Each panellist spoke passionately about the current challenges but were equally hopeful and set out what needs to be done at a local and national level to deliver real change.
“Our academic vice president, Professor Tom Solomon, spoke at an event hosted by Re: State titled Solving the NHS productivity puzzle: how to unlock real productivity gains. He discussed the roles of AI and digital in unlocking productivity gains and spoke with key political stakeholders on a range of other RCP priorities.
“I was encouraged by conversations I had with a number of Labour MPs on the importance of clinical engagement on the upcoming 10 Year Workforce Plan. I welcome the government’s decision to consult on this plan, following our calls earlier this month, and we will be contributing to that process in the coming weeks. If the government is to deliver its 10 Year Health Plan and associated three shifts, a well-resourced workforce will be critical.
“The Prime Minister announced NHS Online during his speech – the first online NHS hospital to deliver online access to clinicians and an ambition to deliver and extra 8.5 million appointments. This is an ambitious idea, but if implemented well, this concept could scale up good practice across England, reduce variation in care and improve access for more patients. We support giving patients more control and choice over their health, but it’s crucial that we maintain high standards. I look forward to working with the government to best identify how this policy can be delivered in the interests of patients and clinicians.
“It was positive to see the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, commit to defending the NHS as free at the point of use, while also setting out practical reforms like expanded access to GPs, digital services, and wider availability of weight-loss treatments based on clinical need.
“The RCP will continue to engage with key stakeholders in government to ensure that decisive action is taken in the best interests of patients and physicians. We also look forward to participating in the national conversation to shape the delivery of the government’s proposed three shifts.”