I work in the NHS and Malawi – we need to urgently rethink how we see health spending

The cost of missing oxygen

In Malawi, Charity Gladstone says people she knew have died when oxygen was unavailable. As a nurse, she has seen how timely treatment, suitable equipment and access to care can affect whether a patient survives.

Health investment reaches families

At the World Health Summit in Berlin, Diene Keita, executive director of the United Nations Population Fund, urged participants to view women’s health as an economic priority rather than a development burden. When women cannot get essential care, Gladstone writes, families can lose income, children can lose opportunities and communities miss their contributions.

Ghana’s Health Minister, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, stressed that maternal mortality involves more than hospital treatment. A woman also needs to reach a hospital in time, receive skilled care and obtain the treatment she needs.

Tools need services behind them

Digital tools could allow blood pressure readings taken in communities to reach clinicians remotely, supporting earlier treatment and monitoring. Gladstone says this could help prevent strokes, kidney disease and other serious complications.

But technology on its own is not enough. It needs reliable connectivity, affordable medicines, working referral pathways and accessible health services.

A shared case for action

Gladstone sees similar lessons in Britain, where NHS investment in prevention, frontline professionals and appropriate care can help patients before their conditions worsen. She argues that shrinking international aid budgets make it especially important to weigh health spending against the human and economic costs of inaction.