Government to deliver 160 CDCs a year early

THE Government will meet its target to open 160 Community Diagnostic Centres (CDC) a year early, the Health and Social Care Secretary will announce today. All 160 centres will be open by March 2024, a year ahead of the original March 2025 target; speeding up access to potentially lifesaving tests and checks.

In a speech to the Independent Healthcare Providers Network, he will confirm the rollout of the one-stop shops following the hard work of NHS staff and the Government's efforts to maximise use of the independent sector; backed by the £2.3 billion in capital funding.

Based in a variety of settings including:- Shopping Centres, University Campuses and Football Stadiums, 127 of the community healthcare hubs are already open; including:- 40 brought forward earlier than planned. They offer patients a wide range of diagnostic tests closer to home and greater choice on where and how they are treated, reducing the need for Hospital visits and helping them to receive potentially life saving care sooner.

The programme constitutes the largest central cash investment in MRI and CT scanning capacity in the history of the NHS and has already delivered more than 5 million additional tests, checks and scans across the country. The new centres will provide capacity for 9 million more by 2025 as part of the NHS and Government's plan to recover services following the pandemic.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said:- "Patients deserve the highest quality care, and Community Diagnostic Centres have been instrumental in speeding up the diagnosis of illnesses like cancer and heart disease to ensure patients are treated more quickly. I'm delighted we will open 160 CDCs a year early, allowing greater access to high tech scans and diagnostics in communities across the England. This has been made possible by using all capacity available to us and drawing on the independent sector; helping us to cut waiting lists, 1 of the Government's top 5 priorities."

The Government has announced 3 of the final locations which will serve tens of thousands of patients, with all set to open in December 2023. They are:-

Queen Mary's Sidcup CDC; Based in South East London, the facility will offer CT, MRI and ultrasound checks, along with blood tests; providing at least 58,000 additional checks once fully operational.

Halifax CDC; Based at Broad Street Plaza shopping centre in the Yorkshire Town, this CDC will offer ultrasound checks, blood tests, and heart scans; delivering at least 90,000 tests once fully operational.

Chichester University CDC, Bognor Regis; This facility will offer CT and MRI scans along with ultrasound checks and blood tests to patients, and deliver at least 18,000 additional tests once fully operational.

In total, 13 of the CDCs are led by the independent sector, with 8 of these already operational. There are a further 22 CDCs located on the NHS estate where the independent sector is providing diagnostic services. They function like NHS-run CDCs but by making use of the available capacity in the independent sector patients can access additional diagnostic capacity free at the point of need.

Alongside this, as the Prime Minister originally announced in May, hundreds of thousands of NHS patients who have been waiting longer than 40 weeks for treatment will today be offered the opportunity to travel to a different Hospital as part of ambitious measures set out in the Elective Recovery Plan.

Any patient who has been waiting longer than 40 weeks and does not have an appointment within the next 8 weeks will be contacted by their Hospital via letter, text, or email. The 400,000 eligible patients who will then be able to submit their details including:- how far they are willing to travel.

Thanks to this and wider measures, the Government successfully met the 1st target in its elective recovery plan to virtually eliminate waits of over 2 years and has cut 18 month waits by over 90% from the peak in September 2021.

Earlier this year, the Government's Elective Recovery Taskforce set out a plan to maximise independent sector capacity to treat NHS patients more quickly. Chaired by Health Minister Will Quince and made up of academics and experts from the NHS and independent sector, the taskforce looked for ways to go further to bust the COVID19 backlogs and reduce waiting times for patients.

Its recommendations will ensure patients have the right to receive care at a provider of their choice, encourage the system to work together to deliver a post-pandemic recovery, and monitor the contribution of the independent sector to delivering health services and developing the workforce.

Earlier this month, the Government also invested £200 million to boost resilience in the NHS and help patients get the care they need as quickly as possible this winter. The new funding came after the Prime Minister and Health and Social Care Secretary met clinical leaders and NHS chiefs to drive forward planning to ease pressures in urgent and emergency care while protecting waiting list targets this winter. Alongside this, £40 million was invested to bolster social care capacity and improve discharge from Hospital.

Drivers torn between eco-conscience and affordability of EVs

A recent consumer study from Europcar Mobility Group UK has highlighted some of the eco versus cost dilemmas motorists face.

Key findings:-

• 39% of drivers believe the cost of electric vehicles (EVs) is justified by the environmental benefits, but they cannot afford an EV.
  

• 44% said the environmental benefits, followed by lower running costs (30%) are the main appeal of driving electric.
  

• 54% of drivers said cost was the main reason they had not yet switched to an EV.
  

• 38% stated they were reluctant to buy an electric vehicle without having completed a test drive of several weeks.

The survey shed light on the complex relationship between consumer interest in electric cars and the economic challenges many people face when purchasing an EV. It is a challenge that Europcar is aiming to solve with rental solutions that give motorists the chance to experience electric motoring without having to make any long term commitment.

TV presenter Amanda Lamb recently used a rental car supplied by Europcar to try out electric. She had never driven an EV before. A Europcar EV expert provided the usual detailed hand over to introduce her to the Mercedes EQA electric vehicle when it was delivered. Amanda said of her experience:- "I've always been a creature of habit for years driving similar size, similar makes of car and always using petrol in my travel presenter career. Driving an EV was pleasantly refreshing and has definitely opened up my eyes to the benefits as well as the superior comfort!"

According to the Europcar research there is a growing environmental consciousness among consumers, with an eagerness to embrace sustainable transportation options. However, the research also found 31% currently say nothing about driving electric appeals to them, showing that there is still some way to go in driver education regarding the benefits and ease of EV driving.

"Despite the growing popularity of EVs, our research shows they are still out of reach for more than half of new and used car buyers. However, increased interest in EVs reflects the broader trend towards eco-friendly choices which is a promising sign for reducing carbon emissions and mitigating the environmental impact of personal transportation. As the world grapples with the urgency of climate change, the early EV adopters see electric cars as a tangible way to contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable future for our planet. Now the challenge is to get more people on board." commented Mark Newberry, Sustainability spokesperson at Europcar Mobility Group UK.

Understandably for such a significant outlay, 2 in 3 considering purchasing an EV would appreciate the chance for a long test drive of between 1 day and 2 weeks. This would go a long way to put to rest the many unknowns of EV ownership, such as cost and time of charging, range, cost of maintenance and the driving experience itself.

Mark Newberry added:- "When buying privately it is unlikely a motorist will be able to test out a car for more than a few minutes. This is where rental can fill a gap, allowing drivers to try out a variety of electric vehicles before deciding whether to invest and make a purchase. Drivers who are looking at EV ownership can hire an electric vehicle for a single day, a month or anything in between. Just as Amanda Lamb found, EV rental provides the unique opportunity to gain real world experience of EV ownership, and the confidence to make a longer term investment."

Europcar offers a range of electric vehicles for rental at different price points, all available for delivery or collection from over 100 locations across the UK.

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