Health Management and Policy Alert

UK mortality trends and international comparisons

The Health Foundation - 

This briefing compares trends in mortality within the UK and with 21 high-income countries, based on new research by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The findings are stark, underlining deep inequalities in health between different parts of the UK and a worrying decline in UK health compared with international peers. The briefing concludes by considering actions that the UK government could take to begin to address these challenges.

• Briefing

Digitising the NHS and adult social care: what could it cost?

Health Foundation -
A shift from analogue to digital is at the heart of the government’s ambitions for NHS reform in England. The forthcoming NHS 10-year plan and the 2025 Spending Review, as well as the Casey Commission into social care, offer an opportunity to achieve a step-change in digitisation, improving productivity, patient experience and outcomes, and staff experience. This research, written by PA Consulting, finds that significant investment will be needed in the UK over the next 5 years and beyond. It sets out three key actions for government and policy makers.

• Report
• Health Foundation - press release

Unlocking the power of proactive and preventative care services

TEC Services Association (TSA) - 

A new national commission – led by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) and the TSA – is calling for greater support for councils to invest in proactive and preventative digital care services. After engaging more than 50 social care leaders from local authorities across the UK, the commission found that a lack of evidence, guidance and best practice is holding councils back from scaling innovative, preventative approaches using technology enabled care (TEC). To address these challenges, ADASS and TSA have co-produced this practical guide to help councils plan, implement and scale digital preventative services. Free registration is required to download the document.

• Access the guide
• Executive summary

AI-enabled ambient scribing products in health and care settings

NHS England - 

This guidance outlines key considerations for NHS technology leaders implementing ambient scribing products across health and care settings in England. Ambient scribing products, when combined with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), can convert speech directly into structured medical documentation, such as notes and letters. The products are sometimes referred to as ambient scribes or AI scribes and include advanced ambient voice technologies (AVTs) used for clinical or patient documentation and workflow support.

• Guidance
• More detail

Digital vision for antimicrobial stewardship in England

NHS England - 

Tackling the challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) needs a coordinated approach across healthcare settings. Antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) is an important element of this work. This guidance outlines what clinical digital systems should do to support optimal antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) within their organisations. This document should be read alongside the Digital framework for antimicrobial stewardship: what good looks like, which sets out an organisational and system approach to ensuring good digital functionality for antimicrobial stewardship.

• Guidance
• More detail

The direction of AI innovation in the UK: insights from a new database and a roadmap for reform

Institute for Public Policy Research -
This report analyses the AI innovation landscape in the UK to determine which type of AI deployment is and is not currently taking place. It finds that health is the second largest sector for AI activity – with most specialised innovation focussed on diagnosis, drug improvement and treatment improvement. However, public health is a burgeoning field of AI innovation. The report highlights that, to be more mission-aligned, there will need to be an increased focus on prevention.

• Report
• Institute for Public Policy Research - publications

Electronic patient records: why the NHS urgently needs a strategy to reap the benefits

The Health Foundation - 

To explore the challenges in realising the benefits of electronic patient records (EPRs), The Health Foundation conducted interviews with leaders in five acute NHS trusts in England, and also looked at an example from a leading US medical centre. This analysis presents insights from these interviews and recommends next steps for unlocking the potential of EPRs.

• Analysis

A framework for the safe, efficient and effective implementation, use and maintenance of AI in health and care in London

One London -
This framework outlines the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) to the future of the NHS across the capital. Possible applications include improving diagnosis rates to faster automation of patient registrations and more accurate patient referral support tools. The framework aims to help the NHS to deliver safe and ethical pathways to use these tools effectively. It covers the agreed way of introducing, using and monitoring AI products across the NHS in London.

• Report
• One London - news

Global trends in R&D 2025: progress in recapturing momentum in biopharma innovation

IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science -
This annual trend report assesses the trends in R&D funding, clinical trial activity, and new drug approvals and launches. It also examines the efficiency and productivity of clinical development, using a refreshed Clinical Project Productivity Index, while also providing insights on contributing factors and enablers. The continued significance of emerging biopharma companies and of geographical shifts in clinical trial activity are revisited throughout.

• Report

Understanding the state of cyber security in adult social care

 

This research report is intended to equip adult social care providers and their suppliers with the evidence and data needed to understand the extent of the risks posed by cyber. It was commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care. The project was conducted by Ipsos UK in partnership with the Institute of Public Care at Oxford Brookes University between July 2023 and May 2024.

• Report
• More detail