Over 100 delegates from across our member organisations, as well as national organisations, heard from the Minister for Public Health and Prevention Ashley Dalton, the Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza and young people about the importance of paediatric healthcare at the Children’s Hospital Alliance (CHA) conference on 4 March.
Held in Birmingham, the conference brought together senior leaders from across healthcare to share learning and innovation, hear feedback from young people and consider how further collaboration can improve paediatric healthcare, as we move towards the publication of the NHS Ten-Year Plan.
During the morning, young people from across our member organisations asked the minster some challenging and insightful questions about the importance of listening to children and young people’s voices, the need to increase paediatric health research, transition to adult care, access to mental health and rare diseases.
The minister talked about:
- The importance of healthcare on providing children with a happy childhood and a healthier future
- Challenges around waiting times and mental health
- Mission-led healthcare and providing children with the best start in life – including work around the first 1,001 days
- The Government vision for the healthiest generation ever
Our afternoon speaker, Dame Rachel, gave a wide-ranging talk focusing on learning from other countries, the importance of data, concerns about social media’s impact on children, improving healthcare for children in primary care and ensuring earlier and more effective screening for children. Her speech also talked about the importance of specialist hospitals for children.
As well as our keynote speakers, we also heard from our co-chairs Ruth Brown, chief executive from Sheffield Children’s Hospital and Matthew Shaw, chief executive from Great Ormand Street Hospital, alongside CHA managing director Alexandra Norrish who presented key findings from engagement with children and young people about the Ten-Year Plan (this will be published soon).
We also had poster displays and innovation talks from across member trusts, ranging from gene therapy and virtual wards to plans for a new children’s hospital in Cambridge.
Delegates then discussed how the CHA can support them in the future as the NHS continues to manage ongoing challenges and many were taking valuable learning back to their local organisations and systems.
Alexandra Norrish said: “The conference was an amazing opportunity for our members to share innovation, collaborate on key opportunities and challenges and hear from key figures in healthcare and children’s services. Feedback from our children and young people was an integral theme of the day and I know we all found their insight and lived experiences incredibly valuable.
“I would like to say a huge thank you to our speakers, those who shared posters and innovation talks and to all those who attended the conference and helped make it such a successful and valuable day.”