NHS 10-Year Plan Consultation: The public’s view

Our contribution to the Change NHS Consultation

We all know that our NHS is in crisis. For the public, including 38 Degrees supporters, it is consistently ranked as one of the highest priority issues facing the country. From spiralling waiting lists to inaccessible GP practices, our health service faces a web of problems that touches everyone.

That’s why we leapt into action to contribute to the once-in-a-generation opportunity to help create a ten year plan for the NHS. Over 40,686 38 Degrees supporters took part in the biggest ever national conversation about the NHS by completing a survey sharing their views, which we shared with the Change NHS team.

The results of this survey show a clear call to action to improve access and waiting times across NHS services, underscored by widespread dissatisfaction at the current state of affairs. But these frustrations are coupled with a cautious optimism around the themes of community care, utilising technology and preventative healthcare presented by the Change NHS team. The Prime Minister and Health Secretary now need to take the results of this consultation seriously, consider the concerns raised, and implement the bold changes needed. 

Digital innovation and AI

38 Degrees has been leading the way in using digital tools to make politics more accessible and break down barriers between the public and decision makers. Now, with AI developments ushering in a new era, this report is an example of how we are once again at the frontier of digital innovation. 

For this piece of work, we used large language models (LLMs), an emerging form of advanced AI, to process and summarise the free text views shared by survey respondents. Without the use of these tools, this would have taken months of painstaking analysis. However, this technology allowed us to share detailed insights from supporters on the topics of care in the community, the use of technology in healthcare and preventative healthcare, providing rich qualitative insight in a matter of days. The responses were analysed following Clarke & Braun’s six stage process for thematic analysis to draw out themes, and Claude and ChatGPT were the LLMs used for this.

More detail on methodology can be found in the report, but whether adopted by other third sector organisations or government bodies, we believe this approach can be used to help put the public’s voice front and centre of decision-making.

We’re using people power to push for bold change

In contrast to this cutting-edge technology, some things don’t change: including the fact that 38 Degrees’ work, including this report, is funded almost entirely by small donations from members of the public. Our supporters live in every constituency across the country, and are united by their desire to build a fairer, more respectful and more sustainable Britain. 

Ultimately, this consultation is an opportunity for Sir Keir Starmer’s Government to be remembered as a true ‘government of service’ who brought the nation’s prized NHS back from the brink. The 38 Degrees community has long been committed to fighting for a properly funded, public NHS, and we’re continuing to push for this through innovative tactics, petitions, and research such as this report. Throughout this consultation and in the weeks and months that follow, 38 Degrees supporters in every constituency across the country will be watching and waiting to see the changes our NHS so desperately needs.