Lord Darzi's report reveals urgent need to fix the NHS

The investigation took place after the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, asked Lord Darzi to carry out an 'honest assessment' of the NHS's current performance. 

What we told the investigation

Over 200 organisations gave evidence to the investigation, including Parkinson's UK. In our submission, we highlighted several major challenges people with Parkinson's face with their healthcare, such as:

• long waits for vital care
• lack of access to multidisciplinary care provided by experts with an understanding of Parkinson's
• not receiving medication on time in hospital, which can have severe health consequences
• inadequate access to mental health and dementia care
• unequal access to treatments such as deep brain stimulation, Produodopa and Clozapine.

What does the report say?

The report's key themes echo many of the issues we raised. Its findings included:

• waiting lists and waiting times have increased significantly in recent years
• access to integrated multidisciplinary care must improve
• access to mental health services is particularly poor.

We were pleased the report emphasised the importance of involving people with lived experience of their health condition within the NHS, especially in decision-making. The report calls for the 'patient voice' to become louder, which we fully support.

The report also highlights the importance of the NHS carrying out research. It warns the number of people taking part in clinical trials has dropped, as has the number of clinical academics in the NHS.

We hope the government takes action on these critical issues. They are crucial to progressing vital Parkinson's research into finding better treatments and a cure. This includes the work we're funding, thanks to your support.

We welcome the report's focus on work and health. While the majority of people develop Parkinson's symptoms after the age of 65, thousands of working-age people also have the condition. People with Parkinson's want to work for as long as they're able. Access to timely, high-quality mental and physical health care is critical to making this possible, along with strengthening disabled people's rights in the workplace.

What next?

The findings from this report will feed into a 10-year health plan the government is developing. We'll work with the Department of Health and Social Care to help make sure the plan addresses the challenges people with Parkinson's face and to ensure their voices are heard.

Rowan Wathes, Associate Director of Policy and Health Strategy for Parkinson's UK, said: 
"Lord Darzi's report lays bare the stark reality of the state of NHS performance in England today. We told the investigation that many people with Parkinson's face significant delays in accessing care, all while their health continues to worsen.

"It is unacceptable that the neurology waiting list is now almost 234,000. But with the UK ranking 44 out of 45 European countries for the number of neurologists per population, it's easy to see why neurology services struggle to meet the 18-week waiting time target.

"The work to fix the NHS must begin now; people with Parkinson’s can't wait any longer. Access to multidisciplinary care provided by experts with an understanding of the condition is vital. We look forward to working with the Department of Health and Social Care on the forthcoming 10-year health plan to tackle these issues."