The changing health needs of the UK population

McKee, Martin, Dunnell, Karen, Anderson, Michael ORCID: 0000-0002-8454-4640, Brayne, Carol, Charlesworth, Anita, Johnston-Webber, Charlotte, Knapp, Martin ORCID: 0000-0003-1427-0215, McGuire, Alistair ORCID: 0000-0002-5367-9841, Newton, John N., Taylor, David and Watt, Richard G. (2021) The changing health needs of the UK population. Lancet (London, England), 397 (10288). 1979 - 1991. ISSN 0140-6736

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Abstract

The demographics of the UK population are changing and so is the need for health care. In this Health Policy, we explore the current health of the population, the changing health needs, and future threats to health. Relative to other high-income countries, the UK is lagging on many health outcomes, such as life expectancy and infant mortality, and there is a growing burden of mental illness. Successes exist, such as the striking improvements in oral health, but inequalities in health persist as well. The growth of the ageing population relative to the working-age population, the rise of multimorbidity, and persistent health inequalities, particularly for preventable illness, are all issues that the National Health Service (NHS) will face in the years to come. Meeting the challenges of the future will require an increased focus on health promotion and disease prevention, involving a more concerted effort to understand and tackle the multiple social, environmental, and economic factors that lie at the heart of health inequalities. The immediate priority of the NHS will be to mitigate the wider and long-term health consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it must also strengthen its resilience to reduce the impact of other threats to health, such as the UK leaving the EU, climate change, and antimicrobial resistance.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/home
Additional Information:	© 2021 Elsevier Ltd
Divisions:	Health Policy
Subjects:	R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine
Date Deposited:	09 Jun 2021 16:33
Last Modified:	12 Dec 2024 02:33
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/110807

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