By modernising the system through the adoption of a much greater level of technological innovation and integration, we can realise a future in which our healthcare system once again meets our needs and expectations.

The NHS needs huge technological investment to survive, but we need to get the basics right first.

North East Hampshire features a considerable technology sector, with over 700 tech firms registered within the constituency. So, it’s not surprising that the number of people employed in the sector is considerably higher here than the national average.

This is one of the reasons I delivered my maiden speech in a debate on the use of technology in public services.

The other is that it’s well-known our public services are at breaking point. Wages have been stagnant, conditions worsening, and long-term sickness increasing, resulting in people leaving public sector employment in their droves, just at a point when our aging population means that we need them more than ever.

We cannot even start to reverse this trend without first looking at the reasons why people are leaving, and here the conversation is dominated by pay. However, when you look at last year’s NHS staff survey, it quickly becomes apparent that it’s the conditions which are driving people away. More than 40% of NHS staff last year felt unwell as a result of work-related stress, and only 32% felt like their organisation had enough staff for them to do their jobs properly.

A dignified level of compensation is vital, but it's not enough to focus solely on pay and recruitment if we want to strengthen our services, and the NHS in particular, in the long-run. To do this, we must also address our current issues with retention, which requires a thorough review of working conditions.

As detailed by Lord Darzi's Report, our NHS has been crippled by a long-term shortfall of capital investment, which the aforementioned figures very much reflect. This has caused productivity to stall, forcing staff to take on unbearable, and unhealthy, workloads in an effort to keep up with rising demand.

By providing our key workers with the tools they need to do their jobs effectively, we can dramatically improve outcomes for patients – particularly through the full digitisation of primary care, whose limitations cascade throughout the rest of the system.

I had personal experience of this recently, with a lack of data sharing resulting in a process having to start again, via a different referral pathway, nearly 12 months after the original appointment. Not only do these kinds of delays cause frustration for both staff and patients, but they also contribute to slow diagnosis rates, late treatment and worsened patient outcomes – no wonder they are frustrated.

With no ‘give’ in the system, investment in technology will need to be up-front. Investment always brings with it the cry of affordability, but wise technological investment could induce a considerable multiplier effect for the NHS; decreasing costs not only by increasing efficiency, but also by contributing to a healthier population. It is much less expensive to treat minor problems before they evolve into complex issues. However, for this to happen, healthcare providers need to be able to spare some time for these less serious conditions, and the systems must integrate. It is simply not sensible for hospital staff to still be using pencil and paper to take patient notes.

Finally, and very significantly, public support for the NHS remains extremely strong, with The King's Fund finding last year that around 90% of people still believe that it should provide a comprehensive service that is free at the point of delivery – an ideal that is not impossible, despite the challenges we face.

The NHS is currently on life support. However, by modernising the system through the adoption of a much greater level of technological innovation and integration, we can realise a future in which our healthcare system once again meets our needs and expectations.