Bright future for NHS in Wales!

During the last few days of the referendum debates in Scotland, the subject of NHS funding inevitably and inexorably made it's way to the top of the agenda. It seems there are few subjects which can scare people more effectively than the NHS. In January, the Health Minister in the Welsh Assembly made a very important speech which was not afforded anything like the coverage it deserved. That is a great shame because for once, a senior Minister in the UK made a speech the content of which should be mandatory reading for everyone.

In seeking to promote a new era of "Prudent Health Care", Mark Drakeford reminded his audience that "each of us has a duty to look after our own health - we must all become custodians of our own health". This is no less than the reality. Access to the NHS has to have some strings attached before the whole system just collapses under the strain. 

"The NHS is free from charge but not free from obligation". If we all want it to remain free at the point of access true to the founding principles of Bevan, we have no choice but to recognise and accept our own obligations. It was a refreshing appraisal of the status quo. 

In his speech, Prof. Drakeford looked at health care both from the perspective of the individual and the whole population. He correctly proposes more of a joint effort between the patient and the healthcare professional. This will serve to promote a more concordant approach which is well known to yield more effective outcomes for the patient. It also has the added advantage of reducing waste with respect to both time and resources. When we go to our dentist, we sit there and the dentist tells us what we need to be doing better to have more healthy teeth. For reasons which are not always obvious, our visit to the doctor tends to begin with the doctor asking us what the problem is. The new approach being espoused by the Minister for Health urges us as patients and healthcare professionals to be more collaborative in seeking more effective solutions.  

The population has to play it's part by everyone accepting their responsibility for their own health. Prof. Drakeford is absolutely right even if achieving this is going to take time. Nothing will ever be achieved unless everyone knows where the goalposts are. It is going to take cultural change and that sort of change can take generations to achieve.

He is also right to point out that this strategy is not another case of "the Nanny State". By employing a more preventative approach and seeking to make healthcare interventions with the greatest chance of long term benefit, this approach simply seeks to avoid the higher, long term costs associated with avoidable ill health. 

Avoidable. That is the crucial word. He isn't talking about the unfortunate members of our society with problems beyond their control. He is just referring to the large numbers of people taking daily decisions which are known to exert negatively on their health - avoidable. This is why, among other things, he proposes a minimum 50p per unit charge for alcohol. This will exert a great benefit in a number of ways.

A minimum price for alcohol will reduce the existing chasm between supermarket and pub prices. The reason so many pubs have gone by the wayside is that they have been forced out of business by the loss leader strategies of the supermarkets. The reason this matters is that pubs were, and still should be, community hubs. The reason this is important is that the aspirations of the Health Minister will be dependent on a renewed community spirit. The effect of a 50p minimum price will be a bottle of wine for about £6.00 and a 4 pack of beer cans for £4.00. In other words, it wouldn't be dramatically different from the prices now but it would make the current playing field more level. More importantly, it would also serve to address the growing problem of alcohol addiction which continues to blight our society in Wales. It is admittedly very difficult to address those currently addicted but it is surely the least we can do to try and deter the next generation. 

The content of this speech needs to go viral like one of those funny videos we see on social media. If it does, there is every chance that our NHS will be able to continue true to the founding principles of Bevan. As the Minister said, "We must all become custodians of our own health".