Anjali

THE BIG CONVERSATION ON OUR NHS

Last month, Just Treatment launched our “Big conversations” campaign where we began speaking to someone in every constituency in the UK about their experience of Coronavirus and the NHS. These conversations will directly feed into the creation of a New Deal for the NHS. This is a people powered campaign and collectively, we can ensure we learn the lessons from Coronavirus, and work together to build a better, stronger future for the NHS and for patients.

What has your experience of Coronavirus been?

I have seen a lot of confusion, anxiety and poor handling by authorities. To me, it seemed too many people had opinions but very little facts or evidence. My work has been affected as I could not interact the way I needed to. I was not eligible for any support and many like me have been left without much guidance.

What long term changes for the NHS do you believe are required?

There needs to be a shift in focus from pharmaceutical based approach to a holistic patient centric path. One which allows the patient the choice of different therapies and that there would be equal importance for all of them. The pharma companies should not be allowed to control the doctors choices or the making of the literature or be the main funding of studies of effective treatment. They should also be held accountable for failures of their products.

Why do you think building a New Deal for the NHS is so important?

Our health care approach needs a serious overhaul as seen in this pandemic. Clearly the usual pharmaceutical approach to try to kill a pathogen without care for consequences to the health of the individual does not work. A SHIFT in the approach will reduce the monopoly of profit seeking pharma companies. A patient centric model where more holistic therapies are on offer will reduce the load on the emergency services and allow for patients to be more involved in their own healing without just being a number that's shunted from one department to another. I feel, this way more ethnic minority communities will have a chance to be heard and treated with the therapies of their choice. We need more accountability for all the decisions made by bureaucrats so that there are more jobs for the actual workers and less needless paper pushers.