31.07.12
One in six
The rise of neurological conditions in England, combined with the increased number of antidepressant prescriptions, means that more must urgently be done to improve quality of care for these patients.
Outcomes must be improved for these patients and unnecessary hospital admissions reduced, where care would be more appropriate in a primary or community healthcare setting. Patients should be offered sufficient information to understand their condition and doctors must act quickly to provide an accurate diagnosis.
The announcement that the Olympic drug-testing site will be used to create a Phenome Centre should help with diagnosis, as research could provide medical professionals with a greater understanding of some neurological conditions.
But with one in six people affected by a condition and the number of patients set to increase rapidly over the next few years, the Government must take immediate action to ensure the new NHS can provide an improved service.
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