We believe the best advances in health come from a true understanding of the challenges faced by patients, health professionals and the wider system at the point of need - or preferably before. This year we are running a 'Call for Problems' where anyone can submit the pain points, obstacles and complications they faced in our current healthcare system, and our experts have selected a number of scenarios to feature in this dynamic and interactive problem clinic.

Select the problem you are most interested in from the list below, join a table discussion with the submitter and an expert relevant to the field, and begin to co-create some potential solutions together! We know these problems will not be solved in a day, but hope to start interesting conversations that will continue beyond the event and in to real world practical outcomes in the future.

Here is a selection of the problems that you can participate in:

• Decision making in NHS trusts is too slow.
  The NHS Trust decision-making process suffers from inertia, resistance to change, and bureaucratic delays, hindering AI adoption. Despite multiple engagements, indecisiveness and lack of accountability stall healthcare innovation and progress.
  Community contributor: Aswini Misro, Innovation Lead, YouDiagnose
• It's too hard to safely implement AI into primary care.
  How do we govern, train existing staff, and safely embed AI into primary care consultations, ensuring it supports decisions, protects patients, and doesn't worsen health inequalities?
  Community contributor: Asad Ashraf, GP/CCIO/Clinical Director/LMC Chair, NHS (NEL ICB)
• The turnover of international nursing recruits into the NHS is too high.
  International nurses in the UK struggle with digital skills, environmental awareness, cultural adaptation, and career progression, leading to high turnover that wastes NHS recruitment investments and affects patient care.
  Community contributor: Dina Paoloni, Pain CNS and Career Coach for IENs, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust and P&B Service Solution Ltd.
• Postnatal care for women and babies is poor.
  The current provision of maternal postnatal care is undervalued and substandard, likely contributing to persistent health inequalities and rising maternal mortality rates in the UK.
  Community contributor: Dhiviya Tharan, General Practitioner, Ordsall Health Surgery
• Poor occupational health support in many sectors contributes to poor productivity.
  Millions of workers lack access to timely occupational health support, leading to avoidable sickness absence, reduced productivity, and preventable health deterioration especially in SMEs and underserved sectors.
  Community contributor: Cameron Black, MSK Lead, Buckinghamshire HNHST
• Mental health professionals aren't trained to deal with how young people act online.
  Mental health professionals want to discuss online use with young people but often lack expertise, as no sustainable, scalable approaches currently exist to train and support them. 
  Community contributor: Zoe Haime, Senior Research Associate, University of Bristol
• The coronial system lacks national standards, digital integration and equitable access to post-mortem imaging.
  The coronial system lacks national standards, digital integration, and equitable access to post-mortem imaging - creating a postcode lottery that harms bereaved families and limits learning from death.
  Community contributors:
  Natasha Davendralingam, Consultant Radiologist, Anubix Ltd
  Mohammad Ali Shah, Consultant Radiologist, Anubix Ltd / Stanmore Hospital
• Few of the people who need them are accessing the available lifestyle change interventions that could help.
  Only 10% of eligible people attend Diabetes Structured Education, 10% take up NHS Health Checks, 2% of weight management referrals report 5% weight loss. (National Diabetes Audit, OHID, Fingertips Data).
  Community contributor: Helen James, Founder & CEO, Nutriri.org
• Children with cancer struggle to access clinical trials.
  Children with cancer face systemic delays accessing clinical trials due to fragmented setup processes, strained resource, and inefficiencies across NHS sites , limiting access to innovative treatments.
  Community contributors:
  Emily Hall, Public Affairs & Advocacy Lead, Solving Kids' Cancer UK
  Pamela Kearns, Emeritus Professor of Clinical Paediatric Oncology, University of Birmingham
  Eleni Syrimi, ITCC Drug Development Fellow and IMPACCT Fellow, Royal Marsden Hospital