A new report from the Health Foundation has revealed over the next five years the UK will spend £21billion on digitising our healthcare.
The report, which was published this morning, has claimed that while the sum is high, it could be vital for driving down waiting lists – a target that has remained a key part of Labour’s manifesto since the snap election last July.
To conduct the research, the Health Foundation commissioned PA Consulting ahead of the forthcoming government spending review, and publication of the 10-year health plan.
The news comes as the government have pledged to transition the health service from analogue to digital as part of its ‘three shifts’ for the NHS, which will likewise include moving care from hospitals to communities and preventing sickness early on to try and avoid hospital admissions.
In the report, which can be found in full here, experts estimate that £8billion of capital spending – of which £5billion will be earmarked for England – is needed for things like new software, electronic patient records and hardware.
As well as needing funds to implement new technologies, researchers have also claimed £3billion will be required for the UK to introduce initial education training for current healthcare staff members. What’s more, some £2billion recurring annual spending is required for software subscriptions, maintenance, improvement and optimisation.
‘Digitisation is going to be really critical for the NHS and social care to be sustainable and fit for the 21st Century,’ Tom Hardie, senior improvement fellow at the Health Foundation said. ‘When we talk about waiting times in particular, I think there are hopes that digitisation could help to address waiting times.’
‘Within this research, we haven’t set out to define our quantify the benefits of digitisation, but I think it’s possible to say that digitisation could theoretically help to reduce waiting times,’ Tom continued.
‘So, for example, making it easier and simpler for people to get appointments or to cancel and rebook appointments.
‘It could help to optimise theatre schedules, improve prevention of acute episodes of care through remote monitoring of people with health conditions, improved triage processes to help direct people to the right services first time, perhaps avoiding more resource-intensive services like A&E.’
While these benefits appear to be a no-brainer they come with a huge price tag. According to the Health Foundation, the government may be able to cover some of the costs, but it is highly likely they will need to commit additional funding.
A Department of Health and Social Care Spokeswoman added: ‘This government is bringing our analogue NHS into the digital age, to improve the productivity of the NHS, deliver better care for patients and better value for taxpayers.
‘We are already making significant progress by introducing cutting-edge AI and technology to support clinicians and improve care, reforming the NHS app to give patients more control, and centralising patient records to speed up diagnosis and treatment.’
‘This is only possible because of the increase in employers’ national insurance, which allowed us to invest an extra £26 billion for health and social care.’
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