A keynote speech from Laurence Geller CBE on the need for collaboration across specialisms in the care sector.

The care sector contains a vast range of expertise and disciplines, each of which holds keys to innovations and improvements. The only way to ensure the sector thrives, and provides the greatest possible outcomes for those it serves, is to advance collaboration between these disciplines. In December 2023, Laurence launched the Geller Commission, a cross-sector Commission into dementia clinical pathways in the UK. The Commission is a working group across the key voices of UK dementia care, seeing this as the only way to ensure that practical and effective improvements to care can be made.

Drawing on his experience collaborating with medical, sporting, technological and political experts for the Government, which led to the publication of the world’s first government-backed guidelines for concussion in grassroots sports, Laurence has seen first-hand the importance of bringing in a range of voices to surmount challenging issues. The Geller Commission is relying on technology, innovation, research, clinical studies and care expertise to seek to reduce dementia-related hospital occupancies. This approach must be mirrored by those across the care landscape in order to address some of the biggest challenges facing the UK today.