MND Association response to the NHS 10 Year Plan

We welcome today’s publication of the NHS 10-Year Plan, which sets out ambitious goals to improve NHS services over the coming decade. 

For people with MND, access to NHS services is of critical importance. Too many people living with MND do not receive the care and support they need through the NHS.  

Longstanding shortages in the specialist neurology workforce mean that people frequently wait months for a confirmed diagnosis or must travel significant distances for consultations. To realise the vision of neighbourhood health services closer to home set out in the plan, these obstacles must be addressed. 

Too often, people living with MND face unacceptably long waits to access critical services such as psychological support, genetic testing and genetic counselling. Access to specialist nursing and care coordination support is highly variable across the country, impeding access to the integrated, coordinated multi-disciplinary care that people living with MND require. 

As the Government gets to grips with the challenges facing the NHS, it must tackle the issues affecting services for people with MND and other neurological conditions. The Neurological Alliance’s recent survey of adults living with neurological conditions found that fewer than 1 in 3 believe NHS services meet their needs. This must change. 

We call on the Government to ensure that the NHS 10 Year Plan is supported by a specific implementation plan for services for people affected by neurological conditions, and to deliver a clear plan to tackle the critical workforce shortages in neuroscience and associated specialities as part of its NHS workforce plan, expected later this year.  

Implementation of the 10 Year Plan must also include addressing the barriers affecting access and uptake of new and emerging treatments through the NHS, to ensure patients benefit from advances in medical and scientific research over the coming decade.