An ageing population and rising rates of non-communicable diseases are some of the challenges currently facing healthcare in the UK and worldwide.
Recent advances in medical science and technology, including diagnostics, therapeutics, new medical devices and the increasing ability to collect health data, are helping to improve healthcare and public health. But there are concerns that this medical innovation is not helping patients fast enough.
One of the factors slowing the adoption of medical advances are the perceptions of the risks and benefits connected to new treatments and devices; not just from patients, but from all players, from healthcare providers to industry.
To explore these perceptions and how to address concerns, the Academy of Medical Sciences and the British Academy, in association with the Medical Innovation Academic Consortium, hosted a joint workshop which resulted in a report, 'Exploring a new social contract for medical innovation' published today.
The report focuses on the perceptions of value and risk of medical innovation, the importance of the NHS in any social contract for the delivery of health, and above all, the need for engagement with patients and broader society to develop the future of medical innovation.
The report can be downloaded from the right-hand side of this page.
For further information, please visit our policy project page.
Exploring a new social contract for medical innovation