Theme 2 b 4 - The challenge of medical advances Flashcards
How was the NHS to an extent a victim of its own success?
- The effectiveness of NHS hospitals led to increasing expectations.
- Longer lives led to an ageing population with more comple health needs.
- Medical advances meant that the NHS could perform new procedures.
Expansion of treatments, 1948-64
In June 1948- how many prescriptions were dispensed by chemists?
How did this change by September 1948?
June 1948- 6.8 million prescriptions dispensed. (Last month before NHS introduced).
September 1948- figure risen to 13.6 million.
Expansion of treatments, 1948-64
When was there a ‘pharmacological revolution’ ?
Between 1949 & 1964
Expansion of treatments, 1948-64
What happened due to the ‘pharmacological revolution’ ?
How much more did the NHS spend on drugs in 1964 compared to 1951?
- More and more medicines became available. Led to increasing NHS drug costs.
- Spent 250% more. Largely due to the fact that drugs became more expensive!
Expansion of treatments, 1948-64
What happened to vaccinations?
- Vaccinations increased scope of NHS provision.
- Prior to 1939- only vaccine given routinely was for smallpox.
- By 1964- vaccines against diphtheria, TB, poliomyelitis, whooping cough and tetanus were all available universally.
Expansion of treatments, 1948-64
In 1959 - as a result of the Younghusband Report, what services did the NHS offer?
Chiropody services!
By 1964- what had the NHS proved to be?
- An extremely cost-effective way of improving public health.
- Although there were shortages and inequalities - NHS was rarely a major political issue.
- In general NHS patients felt that NHS provision far superior to pre-war medical provision and were therefore prepared to tolerate shortages and the dilapidation of many NHS hospitals.
The challenge of medical advances, 1964-79
From 1948-1960 what had there been little investment in?
What did the governments try to do in the 1960s & 1970s?
What happened also during this period?
- Little investment in modernising NHS hospitals.
- Tried to modernise the NHS and deal with long-term inequalities in provision.
- Also- there was an increasing demand on NHS resources & new treatment possibilities.
The challenge of medical advances, 1964-79
What happened to NHS spending ?
It increased at rates higher than those predicted in the 1950s.
The challenge of medical advances, 1964-79
- During the 1950s, what did the National Institute of Economic and Social Research predict that NHS spending would increase by per year between 1960-1975?
- What was the reality?
- What did this reflect?
- 3%
- 4.5%
- Reflected the greater demands being placed on the service, and the underfunding that had taken place between 1948 & 1964.
(However higher funding cuts took place in context of weaker economic growth & during the 1970s economic crisis.)
Treatment & staffing
Why did increasing high-tech medical lead to new challenges for the NHS?
Tend to require specialist staff to operate new technology.
Treatment & staffing
Wat treatments were the NHS able to provide in the 1960s?
Kidney dialysis.
Catheters.
Organ transplants.
Treatment & staffing
What did new new treatment procedures require in the 1960s?
Expensive technologies.
Expansion of specially trained staff.
Treatment & staffing
What happened to the number of consultants and nursing staff between the years 1964-1979?
What happened to the number of technical staff during the same period?
Increased by 66%.
Increased by 300%.
Treatment & staffing
What happened to the total number of NHS staffing between 1951-1979?
Increased from 407,000 (1951) to just over 1 million (1979).
