Marie Curie's response to the Government’s Long Term Plan for the NHS

In response to the Government’s Long Term Plan for the NHS, Scott Sinclair, Head of Policy and Public Affairs for England, at Marie Curie, said:

The ambition set out in today’s report charts, on paper, a clear way forward for the NHS over the next 10 years and we welcome the targets on disease prevention, with the report vowing to save 500,000 more lives.

The direction of travel is positive but it would be reckless to neglect the needs of the 5.5 million people who will die over the course of the next 10 years that this plan is implemented – the majority of who will need palliative and end of life care.

Following the campaigning we undertook with our supporters, it’s encouraging to see that the Government has listened to our calls for more thorough and detailed plans on how we care for people at the end of their lives.

The country’s ageing population means that people will be living longer but needing more health and social care as a result. By acknowledging that care for dying patients needs to be personalised, that proactive care planning is vital, and that staff need to be supported and trained is a big step in the right direction.

The Government has also recognised that reducing avoidable hospital admissions and helping people die in their place of choice are important measures of success. The Government must now set out how it aims to deliver on these promises to ensure that dying patients, and their families, get the care they need when they need it most.

As the UK’s leading terminal illness charity, we are already making big strides in these areas and we are looking forward to working with NHS England to improve end of life care.