The role of self care was an important part of the debate about opportunities and priorities for modernising the National Health Service, said Ms Gisela Stuart (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health).
The health care provided by the NHS and health professionals was just the tip of the iceberg. Self care accounted for as much as 80-90 per cent of health care and support for self care could be one of the best investments for the future of the health system.
The rationale for promoting self care was not lack of NHS resources. It was about getting the balance right and ensuring that people got the most appropriate care. The Government had certainly not appreciated the role of pharmacists and had not used their expertise to the full. Last winter's colds and 'flu campaign had shown just what an important role pharmacists played.
NHS Direct had been a tremendous step forward. Its effectiveness was related to the fact that the advice was practical, widely understood and gave patients the confidence to know what to do next. However, there was a need to encourage its use among people who did not properly care for their health, such as young men.
NHS Direct on-line and the NHS Direct health care guide provided continuity and back-ups to the call centres, which people might in the future not need to telephone so much. The NHS walk-in centres were also important in that they provided access to health care for people who had no time to use the traditional structures.
It was important to remember that patient empowerment was being emphasised because the NHS was a public service with the patient at its heart. The NHS was not run for the benefit of health professionals.
Ms Stuart concluded with three challenges: first, for a vision for the development of self care that put the patient and carer at the centre and a fundamental change in the way health professionals were trained and health consultations managed; secondly, for the emergence of a range of ideas to help the public manage their own health; and thirdly, for ideas on how the Government should measure investment in self care to ensure that such investment made a serious contribution to health care.