Folks identified with long-term well being circumstances will obtain additional assist and help from charities by way of the NHS App.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer introduced the brand new service on the Civil Service Summit, which passed off on the Science Museum on 17 July 2025.
The Analysis Join programme is meant to make sure that sufferers are referred on to trusted charities and help organisations as quickly as they’re identified – offering personalised recommendation, data and steering.
Sufferers shall be despatched a textual content or push notification by way of the NHS App with details about related help teams and charities ought to they want to search additional assist.
Talking on the Science Museum, Starmer mentioned the prognosis join programme would supply “consolation and help” to individuals who had been newly identified.
Addressing the charities within the room, he mentioned: “And that’s placing your experience immediately in folks’s pockets with the NHS app, in order that’s going to go on the NHS app… after which folks could have it as their map to the help from the charities that they want once they’ve been identified.
“What a consolation and safety that shall be for therefore many thousands and thousands of individuals.”
In its first stage, launching in 2026, Analysis Join will deal with sufferers identified in major care—reminiscent of at their GP surgical procedure.
Sufferers shall be robotically related with specialist charities that supply helplines, data, native help teams and providers tailor-made to their situation.
Because the programme expands, a digital referral system will permit NHS groups in all healthcare settings—together with hospitals—to attach sufferers to a broad community of voluntary, group, and social enterprise organisations.
Initially, the service will deal with key areas reminiscent of diabetes, lung circumstances and psychological well being, with additional circumstances added over time.
Juliet Bouverie OBE, chief govt of the Stroke Affiliation and chair of The Richmond Group of Charities, which developed the initiative, mentioned: “We’ve just lately been trialling an analogous programme to make sure folks affected by stroke find out about our providers proper from the purpose of prognosis.
“So, we’re assured that Analysis Join might help rework the early phases of restoration and rehabilitation for the 1.4 million stroke survivors within the UK at present and their family members.”
By serving to folks perceive and handle their circumstances from day one, the brand new service is meant to assist scale back flare-ups, enhance high quality of life and keep away from pointless hospital visits.
Wes Streeting, well being secretary, mentioned: “Simply as folks with most cancers or dementia are sometimes guided to well-known charities for specialist recommendation and help, this new service will be certain that sufferers with different long-term circumstances are immediately referred to trusted organisations from the second they’re identified.
“It’s about making it far simpler to provide folks the emotional help, sensible steering and confidence they should handle their situation and reside fuller, extra impartial lives.”
The NHS App is central to the federal government’s 10 yr well being plan, revealed on 3 July 2025, with plans for AI instruments, psychological well being help and a characteristic enabling sufferers to browse and signal as much as medical trials.
