In sickness and in health. Part 3.

This year the NHS celebrates its 50th birthday. With increasing demands on health care, it needs to decide who gets priority. Dr David Cohen, a leading health economist, believes that if the entire gross national product were to be invested in health care, it would still not be able 'fully, immediatly and in the best way possible, to meet all people's expectations'. Prioritisation is vital for the survival of the NHS. A MORI poll was conducted to find out how the public thinks that NHS spending should be allocated. Dr Alan Fraser, Consultant Cardiologist at Univrsity of Wales College of Medicine talks about the problems caused by long waiting lists. Steven Thornton, the Health Authorities Chief Executive, advocated a fair system that would make decisions about priorities openly. Aneurin Bevan in his speech on the first birthday of the NHS declared that its defects were caused by the 'overwhelming volume of its needs'. Fifty years on this is still perhaps true.