Queues for accessing publicly-funded health care are a feature of almost every country that has an NHS system. In most of these countries they have worsened since Covid. There is one very notable exception to this.
On Wednesday HBI hosted a webinar on the huge opportunities for health care services providers and investors in Saudi Arabia, as the country privatises large swathes of its health care system as part of its Vision 2030 plan to reform and diversify its economy. What were the key takeaways?
Last week HBI attended a breakfast event hosted by international law firm BonelliErede on the impact of AI in health care. Vincenzo Salvatore, an expert on EU law and the former head of legal at the European Medical Association (EMA), gave a presentation in which he discussed the EU’s plans for regulating the use of AI.
In the UK, the conviction of neonatal nurse Lucy Letby for the murder and attempted murder of numerous infants has shaken the healthcare industry. Many co-workers have since spoken publicly about how their suspicions, although raised, were dismissed by the very institutions meant to prevent harm.
Anyone who’s been paying attention to new appointments in the for-profit healthcare sector will have picked up on an interesting emerging trend: executives being poached from outside industries. It raises an interesting question: do you need to have a background in healthcare to be a healthcare leader?
For-profit hospital groups do not always enjoy the best reputation, especially in countries where an NHS system is revered and protected. Profit, not patient focused, is the accusation. But as recent events have shown, they readily put profit aside for the greater good. Just look at Ukrainian hospital group Dobrobut, and what it has been doing on the frontlines.
The AI Revolution in Medicine GPT-4 and Beyond is an unusual book because it is made up of conversations with Open AI, the research lab part-owned by Microsoft. So the loudest voice in the book is GPT-4. It is a voice which leaves you slack-jawed with amazement.
When asked whether he used private healthcare, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was widely criticised for his evasiveness. His response “I grew up in an NHS family” was deemed defective and unsatisfactory, and after repeated calls this year from politicians and journalists to answer the “not relevant” question, he finally caved in.
Back in May, UK politician Wes Streeting made national headlines when he said patient choice was underused. Waiting lists were at a record high so this comment seems so obvious it's barely worth reporting. Of course the private sector should get involved! And yet because this was the UK, it was worth reporting, not least because Mr Streeting is the health spokesman for the centre-left opposition Labour Party.