The Northern Ireland Conservatives have welcomed the ‘Connected Health’ memorandum of understanding, aimed at delivering a coordinated approach to healthcare from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (DETI), the Department of Health (DHSSPS) and Invest NI.
Spokesperson, Dr Steven Kinnear, said that the initiative shows that, “it is possible to try to join up the various arms of government where there is a will to do so”.
“We should give credit where credit is due”, Steven continued, “and, in this case, Ministers Arelene Forster and Edwin Poots and their departments are at least trying to coordinate their approach for the benefit of patients and local businesses. ‘Connected Health’ should allow private companies and the NHS to collaborate and deliver healthcare remotely, which can deliver savings and benefit the economy.”
“Earlier this week David Cameron announced proposals in England and Wales which will allow patients to benefit more swiftly from new innovations and treatments being developed in the private sector. In Northern Ireland we need to follow the government’s lead and investigate how partnerships between government, the NHS and private enterprise can deliver the best possible service, free at the point of use, for patients.”
“This memorandum is certainly a move in that direction but it raises broader questions for the Executive. Why don’t we see more examples of joined up thinking across Executive departments, rather than the silo mentality which is far more common? This initiative sees ministers from the same party cooperating, but when will we see ministers from different parties working together to achieve positive outcomes?”
“There are countless examples across education, trade, regional development and so on, where a similar approach and similar memorandums might produce improved services and a boost for the economy. We’re calling on the ministers to break out of their department silos and their party silos to start delivering for the people of Northern Ireland.”