Following Labour Party conference, James Hallwood, Head of Policy and External Affairs who attended on behalf of the Council of Deans of Health said:
It was good to meet both the Shadow Health and Education teams at Labour’s conference, explaining the Council’s policy platform and committing to working together in the future. A joined-up approach between education and health will be essential to unlocking the commitments Labour has made if they take office.
It was welcome to see the Labour Party prioritise healthcare as part of their policy platform. A pledge of an extra 10,000 nursing and midwifery clinical placements every year and a real focus on technology and future workforce are good to see. Crucial to this, and the delivery of the ‘10 year plan for change and modernisation’ highlighted by the Shadow Health Secretary, will be embracing simulated learning and regulating accordingly. The delivery of a new generation of district nurses and other healthcare professionals will depend on a new generation of healthcare educators and new approaches to pedagogy. As Labour seeks to draw a line under the question of Brexit, the Council would encourage the party to look at opportunities such as moving beyond the EU nursing directive for something better-suited to the UK in the 2020s.
The Council looks forward to building on our conference engagement with Labour politicians to express members’ priorities as we meet with them in the months ahead.