Thanking delegates for making the time to attend the conference in the face of the huge challenge of the recent cyber-attack, Philips UKI CEO Neil Mesher, said: “I am absolutely delighted to be here and particularly delighted that Philips continues to support a conference which is so important.
"The events since the cyber-attack have presented challenges for all of us, so I am even more grateful that you have been able to attend.”
Many changes have taken place in the seven years since the first conference, said Neil – not just politically but in terms of technological advances in healthcare and in general.
“It is quite staggering to think about what has happened in the past seven years and what is going to happen in the next seven.”
How will we deal with the increasing year-on-year demand in every modality? He asked the audience.
“It is a useful frame of mind to employ throughout today – thinking about the ways in which we will cope with that demand in seven years’ time. There is not enough money and certainly not enough physical resources, and the technology will have changed beyond recognition,” he said.