Reflections from Urology Awareness Month
Chris Whitehouse, a political consultant and expert on medical technology policy and regulation at Whitehouse Communications, chair of the Urology Trade Association, and governor of the Anscombe Bioethics Centre, updates readers on Urology Awareness Month.
Last month was Urology Awareness Month (UAM), an annual campaign run by The Urology Foundation (TUF) to raise awareness of urological diseases, which make up some of the most common conditions in the UK. You may be surprised to learn that one in two of us will be affected by a urological condition in our lifetime. Many of these conditions are sadly still taboo and can have a significant impact on an individual’s mental and emotional well-being, as well as their physical health. The theme of this year’s UAM was bladder health, encompassing urinary incontinence, urinary tract infections and bladder cancer.
Since 1995, TUF has been working with researchers, urologists, and other health care professionals to find new ways to diagnose, treat and manage these conditions. Members of the Urology Trade Association (UTA) produce a range of urology products, including catheters, sheaths, and stoma care products, which aid the management of these conditions. A key part of both of our organisations’ work is ensuring that a wide range of stakeholders - including urology patients and their families - are involved in the policy decision-making process.
The urology sector depends on medtech to improve patient outcomes, but as with other sectors, it is facing mounting pressure to deliver new innovations which also deliver value for money. Manufacturers must also grapple with the government’s significant overhaul of medical device regulation: legislative change through the Health and Care Act 2022 and Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021, regulatory challenges from Brexit, and divergence from the EU regime, have all required medtech developers to adapt.
These changes also take place against the backdrop of major changes in the NHS and conversations around its future, with the government accelerating efforts to promote innovation and boost the health and care sector. Recently, the health secretary announced a new £30 million fund for Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) to roll out innovative technology. These conversations around how best to harness the power of technology are only likely to intensify as we approach next year’s general election, with Labour already promising major changes in the NHS.
These ongoing challenges and opportunities prompted us to bring together the voices of policymakers, patients, clinicians, and industry at our joint parliamentary reception in April. The central message of this event was clear: keep patient choice at the heart of NHS and medtech reform.
We were pleased to hear a urologist, patient and representative from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)’s new MedTech Directorate singing from the same hymn sheet when it came to this issue, however experience has taught us that actions speak far louder than words.
Ensuring that patients have access to the right product, at the right price and in the right place was central to DHSC’s landmark Medical Technology Strategy, which was published back in February. As representatives of medical device manufacturers and healthcare professionals in the sector, the UTA and TUF will work with the Department to support this vision, but the voice of patients must be considered above all else as they are the only ones who can truly assess the impact a medical device will have on their quality of life.
We are at a pivotal moment for medtech innovation and healthcare reform. The government must show that it is listening to the concerns shared by patients and industry by progressing policies which support the implementation of patient-centred care. If not now, then when?