CIMSPA Associate Director of Education and Career Development Natasha Eason comments on the UK government’s 10-Year Health Plan
The UK government’s 10-Year Health Plan, unveiled on 3 July, puts prevention, community care and digital innovation at the heart of NHS reforms. This plan recognises that achieving better health outcomes and narrowing health inequalities will require a broader, more integrated workforce, including professionals in the sport and physical activity sector, to play a vital role in prevention, management and recovery of health conditions.
The plan’s ‘sickness to prevention’ shift aims to make healthy choices easier and more accessible. Physical activity professionals, including PTs, coaches, group exercise instructors, community sport leaders and hundreds of thousands of others, are uniquely positioned to make a massive contribution to this shift through:
- delivering tailored activity programmes that reduce risk factors for chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease
- engaging local communities through outreach in parks, schools and neighbourhood centres, making physical activity part of everyday life
- supporting public health campaigns, e.g. weight loss services, and helping individuals to build sustainable habits that prevent illnesses which can have a huge detriment on people’s lives.
With the new plan focusing on more health and care-related services moving from hospitals to community settings, our workforce is essential in designing and supervising physical activity interventions for people with long-term conditions, such as arthritis, hypertension or mental health challenges.
The also have a vital role working within multidisciplinary teams at the new neighbourhood health centres. By collaborating with GPs, pharmacists and social care staff, they will offer holistic support as well as assisting with digital health initiatives such as remote monitoring and virtual coaching to help patients manage their conditions at home.
As we know, physical activity professionals are increasingly involved in a range of health-management interventions including post-hospital rehabilitation, such as cardiac or stroke recovery, using evidence-based exercise to restore function and confidence. Our workforce is also supporting mental health recovery through movement-based interventions, group activities and social prescribing.
On top of that, as a sector, we are reducing hospital readmissions by helping patients to maintain mobility, strength and independence after acute illness or surgery.
Undeniably, our sector is foundational in meeting the ambitions set out in the plan.
But, and it’s a significant but, what are we doing in the sector to ensure we can have impact at scale? After all, we’ve known about and been shouting about the benefits of our sector professionals being integrated into health condition prevention, management and rehabilitation for some time. We’ve seen great pockets of work locally for years, so what is different now to mean that we are at a turning point?
The answer is, we’ve got the conditions right and, put simply, that’s something that hasn’t just happened overnight.
For professionals in our sector to work hand in glove with healthcare professionals and to deliver on this plan, they need recognised, specialist skills and knowledge to support specific populations, conditions and behavioural change.
It has taken time for learning and training providers to develop high-quality provision that is aligned to the robust, sector-agreed professional standards. However, we are now in a position where there are over 250 quality-assured and endorsed courses, offered by providers across the country, that specifically equip physical activity professionals with the skills and training to fulfil roles and be part of an adaptable workforce which is aligned with the NHS’s new direction.
Take the latest course from BACPR (British Association for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation), which enables professionals to safely prescribe and deliver exercise programmes for individuals with cardiovascular disease.
Or the Specialist Instructor in Cancer and Exercise Rehabilitation course from CanRehab, which enables professionals to design safe, effective and individualised programmes adapted to the needs of cancer patients.
There are many other courses to support practitioners in working with clients/patients with specific health conditions including Reach Your Peak’s course focused on exercise for clients with Parkinson’s; Scoliosis and Spinal Fusion provision; arthritis exercise courses; Orthopaedic Research UK’s ESCAPE-pain training; plus, endorsed courses to support clients with back pain, neurological conditions, eating disorders, respiratory conditions and diabetes, among others.
Add to that the range of learning that is available to enable professionals to tailor their practice to support populations whose health would benefit from specialised activity.
This includes a number of courses from Later Life Training focused on training practitioners to deliver physical activity to older adults. Falls prevention is one such offering, which can reduce the £2.3-billion-a-year cost of falls to the NHS.
Tai Chi and Qi Gong for Rehabilitation and Wellbeing offers further opportunities for professionals to enhance their skillset in supporting people with both mobility and cardiovascular conditions.
Menopause Movement offer the opportunity for sector professionals to develop their skills in supporting women. Through an evidence-based approach their training addresses the impacts that menopause has on body composition, energy levels, mental health, mobility and injury risk.
Equally, there are a number of courses to enable practitioners to specialise in supporting women with pre- and post-natal exercise.
With strong evidence of the benefits of physical activity for people with mental health conditions, there are considerable opportunities for developing skills and knowledge to support clients with these conditions.
Underpinning the training opportunities to develop skills to support clients with particular conditions and specific populations, there are a number of courses on behaviour change and weight management. These will enable professionals to work with clients to address lifestyle issues which may impact their health. One new learning opportunity helps practitioners who are working with clients who use weight loss medications.
All of this is in addition to endorsed exercise and GP referral courses which not only equip professionals with the skills and knowledge to work alongside medical practitioners in supporting patients to manage their conditions but also gives those medical practitioners the confidence to refer to the physical activity professional.
Ongoing CPD is essential in supporting practitioners to keep pace with evolving evidence, new techniques and changing community needs. There is also an essential need for physical activity professionals to keep abreast of the health priorities within their locality and hone their skills and learning in line with this. Through this, they will be able to connect with local activity opportunities as part of broader location-based health and care plans.
The 10-Year Health Plan’s vision for neighbourhood health centres – open 12 hours a day, 6 days a week – presents a massive opportunity for sport and physical activity professionals with appropriate skills and professional recognition to become core deliverers of prevention, management and rehabilitation care. Their presence in these centres, as well as in outreach programmes, will help ensure prevention and recovery are truly embedded in local communities, particularly in areas with the lowest healthy life expectancies.
Ultimately the success of the new NHS plan hinges on reducing demand on, and the cost of, traditional services through investment in prevention, condition management, and recovery in the community. The sport and physical activity workforce, equipped with the right training and skills, is an integral part of that. The learning is there; the opportunity is there. Now is the time for professionals across the sector to grasp the chance to develop their skills and become an essential part of building a healthier, more resilient nation.
For details on thousands of learning opportunities from quality-assured, endorsed providers that will help you develop your skillset to align with the NHS shift to prevention, visit the Training Academy for Sport and Physical Activity.
