The Politics of Health

It is the very Tory-ness of Labour’s policies that continues to give Tory front-benchers nothing to actually disagree with Labour over and keeps the all-important middle England voter on-side. So, how have Labour performed in terms of “saving the NHS”, since coming to power, and what are their plans for health under a third Labour term? Let’s start by reminding ourselves just what a demanding child the health portfolio is Table 1: NHS Activity 2004 Every day in the NHS:

In June, John Reid, the third SoS for Health since Labour first came to power, reported in “The NHS Improvement Plan”3, progress made since the original NHS Plan and the priorities that those in the NHS need to focus on over the next five years. Like the NHS Plan before it, this document sets out Labour’s marketing plan for health going forward and so is a “must read” , if you want to stay abreast of Labour’s planned English market environment changes. The NHS Improvement Plan is described by Reid “as an extension of the ten year NHS Plan, not something completely new”. And the word “Improvement” is not in there by accident, but by design, to make Gordon Brown feel assured that the 7.2% real increase given to health in the recent spending review, will generate tangible improvements that the electorate can feel as the election looms large. Reid’s stock take on performance in health includes: Table 2: NHS Achievements under Labour Since 1997:

But Reid is not letting those who work in health sit back and relax with the £250 billion spend on health alone over the next 3 years. Hot on the heels of the NHS Improvement Plan, July saw the release of “National Standards, Local Action”4, the new round of performance targets that our customers will be expected to deliver on between 2005-08. Sensitive to two major planks of opposition attack – “over bureaucracy” and “targets that have grown like weeds”5 - in one deft blow, Labour have removed some of the opposition’s best platforms, by reducing the number of civil servants by 76,000 (720 in health, with 1,120 “relocations”) and national health targets that have already been slimmed down from over 200 post NHS Plan, to just 20. The target headlines in the new round of Performance Planning Framework (PPF) suggest no let up on driving down the big four killers:-

• CHD and stroke to be reduced by at least 40% in people under 75 by 2010
• cancer reduced by at least 20% in people under 75
• Suicide reduced by 20%

And obesity now gets a raised profile in the great scheme of planned public health improvements-ten years too late many would argue. Following the Healthcare Commission’s (formerly CHI) annual report to Parliament6 that local variations are “still rife” in the NHS, (citing issues such as twice the rate of compulsory admissions for people from black Caribbean backgrounds compared with the rest of the population and uptake of flu vaccinations in older people varying from 78% to 49% across PCTs), Labour have put renewed emphasis (and targets) behind improving the health of the most vulnerable in our society in the new PPF. Next Month: Part II References/Further Reading Mori Opinion Poll; The Independent on Sunday. 1 August 2004 The Daily Telegraph. 2 August 2004 The NHS Improvement Plan: Putting People at the Heart of Public Services. June 2004 National standards, Local Action: Health and Social Care Planning Framework 2005-2008 New Statesman, 16 February 2004 The Healthcare Commission: State of Healthcare Report. July 2004

HealthGain Solutions aligns the goals of pharmaceutical companies to the needs of primary care organisations (PCO). HealthGain achieves this through the outsourced management of sales, nurse and pharmacist teams who implement jointworking initiatives that help PCOs and their constituent GP practices realise their strategic targets. HealthGain works with an expanding network of PCOs – currently standing at 150 – adding service value that makes a difference to patients, doctors and NHS managers, thereby enhancing the reputation of its client customers with the NHS. For more information contact HealthGain Solutions Telephone: 01635 277200 Email: headoffice@healthgain.co.uk www.healthgain.co.uk The copyright of this article is owned by HealthGain Solutions Ltd © HealthGain Solutions 2002