I want to start by congratulating Damian [Green] and the whole APPG on the brilliant work youve done to get this issue onto the agenda.
Today is a day for detailed discussion about the proposals in your new Strategy.
But before we get to the policy I want to say a few words about the (small-p) politics.
Among policymakers especially in government our ageing society has traditionally been framed as a problem, a liability.
A source of pressure on public services. An unwelcome modern trend, like cybercrime or falling bee numbers.
But this is looking at things through the wrong end of the telescope.
Because of course its great news were all living longer.
And language matters. The words we use colour perception.
So lets hear less about our ageing society, and more about healthy longevity.
Less about the burden and the pressure and more about the reward of getting this right.
Because our final years should be an act of enjoyment. Not a task of endurance.
That positive framing is important because too often as a society we sweep these issues under the carpet.
We dont like to think about getting older. We dont like to think about our bodies failing. So we dont give healthy ageing the attention it deserves.
Which brings me to the policy question.
For most of the 70 years the NHS has been in existence weve focused on life span.
This has seen extraordinary successes.
Mass-vaccination. The collapse in the adult smoking rate from 45% in the 1970s to 14% today.
But as the NHS enters its eighth decade, it needs to focus more on health span: the number of years a person can expect to live healthily and independently.
In our manifesto we committed to an extra 5 healthy years by 2035. This is the primary long-term clinical goal weve set the NHS.
Both parts are important: extra years and healthy years. Adding years to life, and life to years.
The next question is how do we get there?
Today I want to touch on 3 things.
The first is place and its relationship to people.
Because however you choose to measure the evidence is clear: your chance of a healthy old age is closely tied to where you live.
A man born in Blackpool can expect only 53 years of healthy life, while a man born in Buckingham gets 68.
Thats wrong.
Tackling this postcode inequality matters to this government. Its what we mean when we talk about levelling up.
The underlying factors are a complex interaction between demography and economy.
But because healthcare inequalities are geographically concentrated, it means we can take a targeted approach.
This starts with improving access to healthcare.
50 million more GP appointments. 50,000 more nurses. 40 new hospitals. Its what those flagship commitments are all about.
And we can boost access even further: by using more of our brilliant community pharmacists as a first port of call for people seeking primary care, by using technology to reduce the burden on clinicians, by having everyone in every part of the NHS operating right at the top of their licence.
But having the right NHS services is just one part of building healthier places.
Its about warm, properly insulated homes, low-crime neighbourhoods, and action on the environment like our cross-government work on air quality.
Its the kind of urban design that supports healthy living, more opportunities for walking and cycling bearing down on the 40% of car journeys that are less than 2 miles.
This is something that the Prime Minister is strongly personally committed to, and our announcement yesterday of 250 miles of new cycling routes is another milestone on that journey.
One of the biggest health impacts a place can have is whether it supports good local jobs.
By good jobs I mean jobs that are purposeful and rewarding, not just well paid. Where employers invest in things like mental health or muscular-skeletal support as part and parcel of being a good employer.
And this absolutely includes jobs in the NHS.
As one of the countrys biggest employers, the NHS can have an outsized impact on the opportunities available to local communities.
For example, Im proud of the work were doing with the Princes Trust to get 10,000 school leavers job-ready for roles in the NHS and social care.
The second part of this agenda and closely linked to place is a recognition that healthy longevity is not just the NHS.
Only around a quarter of what leads to longer, healthier lives is the result of what goes on in hospitals.
The rest is down to genetics, the environment, and the lifestyle choices we make.
Yes, we can and we should use the infrastructure of the NHS to help support healthier choices. Measures like dedicated alcohol care teams in hospitals, or targeted anti-smoking interventions aimed at CVD patients.
But increasingly we understand that there are effective, non-clinical approaches to healthier living and ageing.
Look at the use of homeshares to tackle loneliness. Bringing together people with spare rooms and people who are happy to chat and lend a hand around the house in return for affordable accommodation.
Or take the social prescribing revolution.
A growing body of evidence suggests that activities like joining a book group or singing in a choir or learning to play an instrument can have huge health and wellbeing benefits.
Benefits that include everything from sleep quality to reduced anxiety to improved memory.
Over the next few years we want to bring these kinds of treatments to almost a million people.
Weve set up a National Academy for Social Prescribing to aimed at making the NHS a world-leader in this field.
Third, and this wont be a surprise coming from me, is better technology.
More proactive, preventative healthcare depends on a strong data infrastructure. On being able to link disparate datasets from different parts of the system to create a complete narrative about a persons care.
Lets take an example.
We know that atrial fibrillation irregular heartbeat is a common cause of stroke, but the risk varies from person to person.
By analysing lots of different data points for atrial fibrillation patients age, frailty, previous bleeding and so on you can create an individualised risk score.
In turn, this allows GPs to take pre-emptive action, for example prescribing anticoagulants.
In the past assembling all the information needed to produce that score was so time-consuming as to be impractical. It was held on different databases in different formats, often as free text rather than machine-readable code.
But now we can do it with AI.
In fact, a team right here at Kings Dr Dan Bean and Dr Paul Scott have built an AI tool thats able to replicate the analysis of human experts in a fraction of the time.
Adult social care is increasingly a site of healthtech innovation.
Internet-linked devices can help people live at home for longer and stay connected to family and friends.
They can also help providers deliver smarter, more responsive care.
For example, theres a provider up in Warwickshire WCS Care doing great things with acoustic monitoring.
The tech lets the staff hear crying or breathing problems, sending an alert to a monitoring station staffed by a night manager.
It means that staff arent knocking on residents doors every hour and disturbing people.
Everyone sleeps better, and staff estimate that night-time falls have reduced by 34%.
Interestingly, when they analysed the data they found that lots of people were staying awake late into the night.
This led the care home to set up a wide awake club to support night owls and get them back into a healthier rhythm.
I want to spread this kind of innovation far and wide, and Ive set up a dedicated adult social care unit in NHSX.
This will focus on setting technical standards, improving data sharing, enhancing skills and fixing the digital infrastructure.
Like longevity itself, better tech is an opportunity we wholeheartedly embrace.
Ill end where I began, and this is the message I want to leave you with.
Longer life is not a problem to be tackled but a goal to be pursued.
And not just for government, or even the NHS, but for each and every one of us.
Theres a huge prize ahead if we get this right: 5 more years of healthy life. More enjoyment out of life. More time for the things that matter most in life.
Im looking forward to working with you all to make it happen.
More:
Adding years to life and life to years: our plan to increase healthy longevity - GOV.UK
- How dogs are paving the way for human longevity drugs - Longevity.Technology - April 12th, 2024 [April 12th, 2024]
- Innovative Approaches to Improving Human Longevity - Securities.io - April 12th, 2024 [April 12th, 2024]
- Top 5 Companies Offering Solutions to Increased Human Longevity - Securities.io - April 12th, 2024 [April 12th, 2024]
- Morning Medical Update: Gut bacteria and longevity; People with ... - Medical Economics - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Artificial Intelligence and the Aging Process: A Match Made for ... - Down to Game - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Saint Bernard Lifespan: How Long Do Saint Bernards Live? - AZ Animals - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- 'Human Resources' Was Poised to Be Netflix's Longest-Running ... - PRIMETIMER - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Early Life Adversity Doesn't Affect Gorillas Like Other Species - The Good Men Project - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Wellness luminaries, experts to meet in KK - The Borneo Post - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- I grew up with hazardous smoke from forest fires in Asia. Here's what ... - Morningstar - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Workplace Networks Are More Important than Promotions to Engage ... - GlobeNewswire - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Accenture staff working at Google training AI move to unionise - The Australian Financial Review - June 12th, 2023 [June 12th, 2023]
- Hair Wigs and Extension Market Size to Grow by USD 5.26 billion from 2021 to 2026, Growth Driven by Technologi - Black Enterprise - April 10th, 2023 [April 10th, 2023]
- Want to age like a fine wine? Here are some tips for longevity and feeling younger - The Indian Express - February 18th, 2023 [February 18th, 2023]
- Human body | Organs, Systems, Structure, Diagram, & Facts - January 27th, 2023 [January 27th, 2023]
- Human | Avatar Wiki | Fandom - January 27th, 2023 [January 27th, 2023]
- Calorie Restriction and Fasting Diets: What Do We Know? - January 4th, 2023 [January 4th, 2023]
- Emma Thompson On Longevity Of Holiday Fave Love Actually But It Is SEX Actually That Is Earning Her Awards Buzz In Leo Grande - Deadline - December 26th, 2022 [December 26th, 2022]
- Heads or tails: What statistical models tell us about the probability of living beyond 110 - The Conversation - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- LinkedIn founder and VC Reid Hoffman says human amplification via A.I. will revolutionize large enterprises in the next five years - Fortune - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- Human hibernation is possible and could boost longevity | New Scientist - December 2nd, 2022 [December 2nd, 2022]
- Home - Human Longevity Institute - October 23rd, 2022 [October 23rd, 2022]
- Exercise: 7 benefits of regular physical activity - Mayo Clinic - October 23rd, 2022 [October 23rd, 2022]
- Life expectancy - Wikipedia - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Life Expectancy - Our World in Data - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- The Longevity Investors Conference Gstaad brought together longevity experts and deep-pocketed investors - Cointelegraph - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- The Search for a Pill That Can Help Dogsand HumansLive Longer - WIRED - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Aging of the Heart Correlates With a Poor Gut Microbiome - Lifespan.io News - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Aditxt, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADTX) Announces Development and Publication of a Mathematical Model for Predicting Longevity and Variations of Immune Response... - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- FOXO Technologies Announces First Distribution Partner and Begins Product Rollout in California; Expands Executive Team With Insurance Industry Talent... - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- A conversation with Holocaust scholar Dr. Irving Berkowitz - South Florida Sun Sentinel - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Nine postdoctoral fellowships in aging research awarded by the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research and AFAR - EurekAlert - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- The 5 Wellness Habits That Slow Down Aging, Science Reveals Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Winning Federal Contracts on the Top 20 Contract Vehicles - Bloomberg Government - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Lawrence Austin promoted to rank of colonel - Winona Times - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- The longevity dividend: Work in an era of 100-year lives - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Retirement Savings Calculator - Northwestern Mutual - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Clues to Human Longevity Unearthed in Largescale Mouse Genetic Study - Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Can we find ways to live beyond 100? Millionaires are betting on it. - MIT Technology Review - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Restrict Calories to Boost Immune Function - The Epoch Times - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- The Black Progress Index: Examining the social factors that influence Black well-being - Brookings Institution - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Kevin Williamson on Scream 6 and Franchise Longevity - Bleeding Cool News - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- 507-Year-Old Clam May Be the World's Oldest Living Being - History of Yesterday - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- I should look forward to early retirement, but I think I'm dreading it - CBC.ca - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- International Coffee Day 2022: How The Beloved Brew Helps Fight Cancer, Kidney Disease And Depression - ABP Live - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Corey Feldman And Jamison Newlander Talk The Lost Boys And The Birth Of The Two Coreys - Forbes - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Proven Levels of Human Longevity | NextBigFuture.com - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Prolonging healthspan by delaying ageing -- NUHS opens Singapore's first Centre for Healthy Longevity to increase healthy lifespan of Singapore... - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- What is the Secret to Longevity in Real Estate? - CandysDirt.com - Candy's Dirt - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Jeff Stukey & Jay Olshansky, Ph.D with Wealthspan Advisors, Interviewed on the Influential Entrepreneurs Podcast Discussing How Aging Science... - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- The Queen of the World - The Atlantic - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- THR Icon: At 100, Norman Lear Looks Back (And Ahead) at Whats Changed Since the Maude Abortion Episode - Hollywood Reporter - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- TIFF 2022: The Colour of Ink Review - ThatShelf.com - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Should Age Be on the Ballot? - Next Avenue - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Was The Spring Water At Balmoral Castle The Secret To Elizabeth II's Longevity? - Nation World News - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- A complete guide to the health benefits of nuts europeantimes.news - The European Times - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Debut Launches its Bio2Consumer Platform to Become the Leader in Vertically Integrated Synthetic Biology - PR Web - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Rapamycin Drug Used in Cancer Therapy Found to Increase Human Lifespan [Study] - Nature World News - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Eating Healthy: Why Eating Grapes Would Increase Lifespan | The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News Guardian Life The Guardian Nigeria... - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Beauty Bets on Longevity WWD - WWD - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Analysis of the impact of success on three dimensions of sustainability in 173 countries | Scientific Reports - Nature.com - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- You might have glowing skin in no time by making few easy changes to your skincare routine - TDPel Media - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Nucleai Appoints New Head of Pathology to Support Expansion in Biopharmaceutical and Clinical Markets - Business Wire - August 8th, 2022 [August 8th, 2022]
- Daily AI Roundup: Biggest Machine Learning, Robotic And Automation Updates - AiThority - August 8th, 2022 [August 8th, 2022]
- Prolonged and intense heatwave affecting parts of western and northern Europe breaks temperature records; globally, July 2022 was one of three warmest... - August 8th, 2022 [August 8th, 2022]
- YLEM: Augmenting sustainable futures through material exploration and testing - STIRworld - August 8th, 2022 [August 8th, 2022]
- Do you want to live forever? Big Tech and the quest for eternal youth - The New Statesman - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- This startup wants to copy you into an embryo for organ harvesting - MIT Technology Review - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Renewal Bio Acquires Breakthrough Stem Cell Technology With Applications in Infertility and Longevity - Benzinga - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Get married or get a degree to live longer says study, debunking theories of womens longevity over men - Times Now - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Nucleai Appoints New Head of Pathology to Support Expansion in Biopharmaceutical and Clinical Markets - StreetInsider.com - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Some species are immortal but dying of old age is humanity's secret weapon - The Telegraph - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Opinion: Changing When and How Much We Eat May Extend Health Span - The Scientist - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Vieroots uses genome testing to win over a growing tribe of wellness enthusiasts - YourStory - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- Herbs radiate and give you youthful skin - The Hans India - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- How Pop Culture, Politics, Science, and Business Got So Old - The Atlantic - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- John Hood: How to read this column | Columnists | journalnow.com - Winston-Salem Journal - August 6th, 2022 [August 6th, 2022]
- How Long Is The Human Lifespan? Here's What Studies Have Found | mindbodygreen - mindbodygreen - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Employees are livingand workinglonger. CEOs are introducing initiatives like phased retirements to harness the longevity economy - Fortune - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Why Do We Get Old, and Can Aging Be Reversed? - Quanta Magazine - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]