Focus is on supporting workforce and what matters most to patients, says England’s health secretary

England’s health and social care secretary, Steve Barclay, has said that supporting the healthcare workforce will be a key priority in the coming months as the service grapples with “one of toughest winters in the history of the NHS.”In a speech at the NHS Providers conference in Liverpool—his first speech since returning to the health secretary role last month—Barclay acknowledged the huge pressures from flu, covid, and the elective backlog, as well as “the wider cost of living challenges faced by our workforce.”Pledging to focus on “the areas that matter most” to patients and the workforce, he outlined five key priorities for the months ahead and beyond:Supporting the workforce, including extra staff for NHS 111 and 999;Focusing on recovery plans across elective, urgent, and emergency care;Tackling delayed hospital discharges, backed by a £500m fund for integrated care boards and local authorities;Improving access to primary care; andMaintaining momentum on the government’s…
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