Operating theatres will act as Formula 1 pit stops to get sick Britons back to work, Wes Streeting has said.
Teams of top doctors are being sent to hospitals to implement reforms aimed at getting patients treated and back into the workforce more quickly.
Top doctors who have developed new ways of working are performing up to four times as many operations as normal.
The Health Secretary will tell Labour’s conference on Wednesday that the “star” teams are starting with 20 hospital trusts in parts of the country with the highest rates of economic inactivity.
Currently, around 2.8 million people are out of work due to health problems – 500,000 more than in 2019.
Operating theatres will act as Formula 1 pit stops to get sick Britons back to work, Wes Streeting will say on day four of the Labour Party conference
Teams of doctors are being sent to hospitals to implement reforms aimed at getting patients treated and back into the labour market more quickly. Around 2.8 million people are now out of work due to health problems.
The Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that the bill for sickness and disability benefits will rise by £30 billion over the next five years if current trajectories continue.
NHS waiting lists currently stand at 7.6 million, of whom 3.1 million have been waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment (the maximum patients are supposed to wait).
Mr Streeting will tell the conference in Liverpool: ‘Ending junior doctors’ strikes was central to our commitment to deliver 40,000 more appointments a week to reduce waiting lists.
‘But in addition to getting staff back to work, we need to get them working to the best of their abilities.
‘We are sending world-class teams of leading doctors to hospitals across the country to implement reforms, developed by surgeons, to treat more patients and reduce waiting lists.
‘The first hospitals to be targeted by these teams will be in areas with the highest number of people absent from work due to illness, because our reforms are not only focused on fulfilling our healthcare mission, but also on advancing our growth mission.
“We will bring the best of the NHS to the rest of the system, getting sick Britons healthy and back to work. That’s the difference a Labour government makes.”
