Paving a new pathway to prevention

This report from the NHS Confederation and CF analyses return on investment (ROI) at intervention level and the implications for the health and care sector, outlining how better targeting of existing money could deliver at least an extra £11 billion annual ROI.

The analysis shows investing in preventative measures including improving health education and housing can pay dividends in the long run and highlights the urgent need for health service and local authority leaders to invest more in prevention, and to focus on the highest-impact interventions. It finds two of the top five interventions with the highest ROI concern housing:

• Adapting 100,000 homes where a serious fall is otherwise likely to occur
• Adapting 100,000 homes where residents are likely to require treatment due to the excess cold

The report’s conclusions and recommendations centre on three key areas for national government, NHS England, integrated care systems and local authorities to enable delivery of prosperous, preventative places and improve population health outcomes and suggests the need to more systematically evaluate and apply an approach that incorporates both population needs and getting the best value for money.