10-Year NHS Health Plan: The government has unveiled a transformative initiative that will empower millions of NHS patients to find and join clinical trials via the NIHR’s “Be Part of Research” portal within the NHS App
Under the 10-Year NHS Health Plan, patients will access cutting-edge treatments sooner, as accelerating clinical trials becomes a key priority. Millions of people will now be able to search for and sign up for life-changing clinical trials through the NIHR Be Part of Research service on the NHS app.
The plan will eventually enable the NHS App to automatically match patients with relevant studies based on their health data and interests.
UK-wide recruitment drive for clinical trials
The NIHR has launched a UK-wide recruitment drive for clinical trials to encourage as many people as possible to participate in research. Adults across the UK are being encouraged to register, with underrepresented groups, including young people, Black people, and people of South Asian heritage, being particularly urged to sign up.
The 10 Year NHS Health Plan aims to bring transparency to which Trusts are performing well in clinical trials and which are not. All NHS Trusts will be required to submit data on the number of trials being conducted and the amount of progress being made.
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: “The UK has been at the forefront of scientific and medical discovery throughout our history. Some countries will lead the charge in the emerging revolution in life sciences, and why shouldn’t it be Britain?
The 10 Year plan for health will marry the genius of our country’s leading scientific minds, with the care and compassion of our health service, to put NHS patients at the front of the queue for new cutting-edge treatments.
The NHS App will become the digital front door to the NHS, enabling all of us as citizens to play our part in developing the medicines of the future. The British people showed they were willing to be part of finding the vaccine for Covid, so why not do it again to cure cancer and dementia?
By slashing through red tape and making it easier for patients to take part, reforms in our 10 year plan will grow our life sciences sector, generate news funds for the NHS to reinvest in frontline care, and benefit patients through better medicines.”
250 days to set up a trial in the UK
The UK has struggled to compete with other countries in terms of clinical trials. For example, in Spain, it takes 100 days to set up a trial, compared to 250 days in the NHS. The plan aims to reduce commercial clinical trial setup times to 150 days or less by March 2026. This ambitious goal would be historic for Britain.
The setup process for clinical trials is a lengthy process, often hindered by unnecessary bureaucracy and duplication of activities across different agencies and sites.
The UK Government will reduce setup times for clinical trials by introducing a national standardised contract, which can save months of wasted time, as well as simplifying paperwork to eliminate duplication of technical assurances.
Professor Lucy Chappell, Chief Scientific Adviser at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Chief Executive Officer of the NIHR, said: “We know the benefits of embedding clinical research across the NHS and beyond. It leads to better care for patients, more opportunities for our workforce and provides a substantial economic benefit for our health and care system. Integrated into the NHS App, the NIHR Be Part of Research service enables members of the public to be matched with vital trials, ensuring the best and latest treatments and care reach the NHS more quickly.
Ensuring all sites are consistently meeting the 150-day or less setup time will bring us to the starting line. Still, together, we aim to go further and faster to ensure the UK is a global destination for clinical research to improve the health and wealth of the nation.”
Dr Vin Diwakar, Clinical Transformation Director at NHS England, said: “The NHS App is transforming how people manage their healthcare, with new features letting them see their test results or check when prescriptions are ready to collect – all at the tap of a screen.
We’re making it easier to sign up for clinical trials through the NHS App so patients can access new treatments and technologies earlier, improving their quality of care.”
