Separating the rhetoric from reality around health and social care reform
/This article was featured in the SCDC Weekly - 11th November 2026
New research has set out the 'reality gap' between the ambitions for health and social care reform and people's everyday experiences.
Published by The Alliance, this research brought people together to explore their experiences of health and social care in Scotland.
Participants shared their frustrations around long waiting lists and access to services, along with a clear-headed understanding of the need for long-term, prevention-based reform.
The report is a result of a series of deliberative discussions where participants considered a range of views and evidence.
These conversations led to a clear acknowledgement that difficult decisions are needed in this complex area, with deliberation revealing a "greater public appetite than often assumed for honest conversations about limits, trade-offs and sustainability, including how universality and needs might be balanced in practice."
Participants also emphasised the importance of a focus on person-centred, preventative and equitable care, and the role that respectful, non-stigmatising language plays as debates around public service reform continue.