75th anniversary of the NHS “a day to reflect with pride on all it has achieved”
Celebrating the 75th anniversary of the founding of the NHS, Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation said:
“The NHS has seen much change, evolving significantly since it began seeing patients on 5th July 1948, but its founding principle that poverty should not be a barrier to a healthy life survives to this day.
“And this is day to reflect with pride on all it has achieved in its 75 years, on how integral it has become to life in the UK, on how we rely on it, on the lives it’s saved and the lives it’s helped welcome, on what it says about us as a nation, and on its people and how thankful we are to them.
“In 2021/22 it delivered over 318 million GP appointments, 95.2 million patient contacts within community services and 95.5 million outpatient attendances. And while levels of performance might not yet be where anyone would like them to be, it should be remembered that while still managing the fallout of covid, 18-month waits are down, record numbers of diagnostics checks are being delivered, and the 2-year waiting list for elective care has been ‘virtually cleared’.
“These are significant achievements given where we are, and leaders remain hugely proud to work in the NHS, with its talented and committed staff, and for its patients.
“While they will be reflecting on the past with pride, they’ll also be considering the lessons they’ve learned, eagerly thinking about the how they can help the NHS continue to deliver for patients and the country over the next 75 years.
“There is much to be positive about, and leaders are keen to innovate, seize the opportunities modern and improving technology brings, deliver on the transformation promise of Integrated Care Systems, and crucially bring patients with them on the journey as they seek to improve care.
“But this will need wider long-term support. While the NHS has been given a wonderful (if long overdue) anniversary gift in the form of a long-term workforce plan, we hope that long before the time it turns 80, we will have seen it receive the capital investment it so desperately needs, along with a similar gift of a workforce plan given to its sister service, social care.
“Our own research shows that the public agree with this and, pleasingly after 75 years, they still support the NHS’s founding principles. Leaders and staff will hope that agreement and support extends across government, to allow them to keep on delivering for the next 75 years.”
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