Mixed results for UK in international health survey
pharmafile | November 25, 2011 | News story | Sales and Marketing | NHS, OECD, healthcare
The NHS in England does not perform well on some patient outcomes for cancer, stroke and respiratory diseases given the money it spends, according to a new report.
Published every two years, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s latest Health at a Glance study makes its international comparisons using data from 2009.
The report is far from being all bad news: it shows that the NHS is doing well in some aspects of mental health care, vaccinations and preventative care – such as the number of unplanned admissions for people with diabetes.
The figures from 2009 show the UK spending on healthcare exceeded the OECD average spend (by share of GDP) for the very first time. Spending per person is also now slightly above the OECD average.
The government says the report also “reiterates the increasing pressures on the NHS due to obesity and other lifestyle-related diseases and long-term conditions”.
Health secretary Andrew Lansley has seized on the findings to justify the radical reforms set out in his Health and Social Care Bill.
“This report is further evidence of the need to modernise our health service,” Lansley says. “It clearly shows that although the NHS is doing well in some areas, it is still lagging behind other countries in some key areas of patient care.”
The Department of Health took a similar stance earlier this month on another study by an international body – the Commonwealth Fund’s annual survey – which had praised the NHS record on patient access, safety and doctor-patient relationships.
The government was lukewarm on this research, saying that it did not show that “there are still problems in the NHS that need to be addressed”.
But its findings on oncology will strike a chord with those who believe there is much more to do in this therapy area.
Macmillan cancer charity’s recent study showed that, despite improvement in survival for most cancers over the past 40 years, pancreatic cancer continues to have one of the worst mortality rates.
Adam Hill
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