Charles Kennedy, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, will today address an audience at the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) in Brighton. His speech will focus on how to improve healthcare provision, and he will emphasise the importance of local service delivery and preventative healthcare.
Mr Kennedy will begin by emphasising the need for a responsive and localised health service:
"Two things are required. First, liberating public service staff to get on with their jobs. And second, to make local services responsive to local priorities...Few doubt the quality of our health service staff. But chasing politically driven and centrally set targets has added significantly to their workload, and it distorts priorities that should be responsive to local needs.
"One of the key tests for reform will be how far the public services are responsive to local priorities. That means paying more than lip service to devolution and making the NHS accountable to local people through local elections. The responsibility for the commissioning of healthcare should be transferred to local authorities for planning in local communities."
He will talk about the need to restructure the NHS career pathways, saying:
"We need to restructure the professions so that they deliver an attractive package for recruitment, retention and career development. And in freeing our doctors and nurses, we need to restructure the professions so that they deliver an attractive package for recruitment, retention and career development. Last year, the NHS spent £1.4bn on temporary staff to plug chronic workforce shortages...We need to redesign the career and care pathways of both medical and non-medical staff - widening the role of nursing and therapeutic practitioners; improving workforce planning and reducing the work load itself."
Mr Kennedy will talk about the need to focus on preventative healthcare:
"It is best to prevent people falling ill in the first place. The health problems facing us in the future are more likely to be long-term conditions which require community support rather than acute illnesses which need one-off medical treatments. "
And he will make the case for a more holistic approach to healthcare:
"Health needs do not stop at the door of the doctor's surgery. Social care and the NHS are two sides of the same coin. That is why it makes sense to bring these services together at a local level. Patients deserve a seamless service. It makes sense to merge the NHS with social services for the local community. This would allow agencies to work together to fit the services to the needs of the individual."
He will emphasis the need for health MOTs:
"The time has come for targeted 'health MOTs' for individuals, delivered through our public services. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence should develop health MOTs, with appropriate screening tests based on a persons' age and risk factors. This could be delivered locally through partnerships with other organisations, providing outreach into the community, for example in pharmacies or supermarkets."
And he will conclude by saying:
"So with the health service, as with the Liberal Democrat's general approach to governance, it is about putting power into the hands of local people. Our brand - fairer taxation for investment; a commitment to the integrity of our public services; and a true commitment to localism - sets us apart from the other parties in the debate that will decide the outcome of the next election."
ENDS
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