A call for 'direction, clarity, and leadership'.

How the NHS can transform itself into a healthcare system equipped to meet current and future challenges--an ageing population, patients demanding an equal say with doctors on their treatment, a shift towards more care provision at home, and the radical plans proposed for GP commissioning consortia in the Health and Social Care Bill, all against a backdrop where public healthcare funding looks set to remain largely static for at least the next 3-5 years, was the theme of an impassioned keynote address by former Health Secretary and Labour MP for Darlington, Alan Milburn, at the recent Future Health & CareExpo conference and exhibition in London. HEJ editor Jonathan Baillie reports.