The NHS in England – Have your say
The UK Government are creating a 10-year plan for health services in England, and they want to hear your views.
Have your say on the NHS in England hereThey are asking for views about three big changes they plan to make (known as “shifts”) :
- Moving more care from hospitals to communities
- Making better use of technology in health care
- Focusing more on preventing illness not just treating it.
As well as views on these shifts, the UK Government also want to hear about your experiences of the NHS and healthcare in England.
How can you take part?
- You can fill out a survey to share your thoughts on the three shifts, and experiences of health services in England.
- You can write a longer response, sharing the experiences you have had with the health services in England either as a patient, family member or even as part of the NHS workforce.
- You can also submit an “idea” – something you think would help improve health services and patient experiences
Before taking part, you will be asked to make an account, using your email address and a password of your choice.
Why is this important for children and young people with cancer?
This consultation is important for everyone, because it is the first big opportunity to let the new UK Government know what you think matters most when it comes to our health services in England.
But we also know that children and young people with cancer have unique needs that don’t always fit with the three shifts. Their care tends to take place at specialist treatment centres that in many cases can’t be moved into community care. And cancer in young people also isn’t typically something that can be prevented by lifestyle changes, so focusing on prevention alone isn’t the answer for them.
We know a National Cancer Plan is going to be produced following on from the 10-Year Plan for Health, so this consultation is a chance to make sure the unique needs, views and experiences of children and young people with cancer are included so the UK Government can include them in their plans.
Young Lives vs Cancer will be submitting a response, and the voices of individuals like you are really important.
Together, we can shape an NHS that supports every child and young person facing cancer.
Share your views on the NHS in EnglandWe’ll be submitting a response as an organisation as part of our Policy and Influencing work. We’ll be letting the UK government and NHS England know about the unique needs of children and young people with cancer based on the evidence and insight we have from those that we support.
Here’s an overview of what we’ll be saying. If you want to let us know about something you think we should include, please get in touch on campaigns@younglivesvscancer.org.uk.
Moving more care from hospitals to communities
For children and young people with cancer, most of their treatment and care needs to be delivered in specialist hospitals and can’t be moved into community settings. These specialist hospitals are usually far away from home, and it can be expensive to get there.
As well as providing elements of care which can be provided closer to home, through new approaches like ambulatory care, it’s important to enable children and young people with cancer to get to the care they need further from home. We’re calling for a Young Cancer Patient Travel Fund to help with the cost of travelling to treatment.
Making better use of technology in health and care
There are many benefits to making better use of technology – it could help connect the dots between different healthcare providers and share information, reducing the burden on young cancer patients and their families, and help them keep connected with their networks to support their wellbeing. And hopefully it will also help provide better and more consistent data about children and young people with cancer, their experiences and the services they access.
Focusing on preventing sickness, not just treating it
Cancer in children and young people isn’t commonly caused by factors which can be prevented through things like lifestyle changes. So a big focus on prevention might overlook conditions like cancer in children and young people.
As well as focusing on prevention, there should be a focus on catching and diagnosing cancer in children and young people earlier and faster, and developing new ways of doing this like tests, screening and awareness programmes. More information about this can be found in our Children and Young People’s Cancer Plan.
Posted on Monday 18 November 2024