Genomic medicine strategy 2024 to 2029

20. Next steps – implementation & governance

Genomics in Scotland: Building our future is a five-year national strategy which sets out to address short-term urgent needs and lay the necessary foundations for our genomic medicine service in the future. In doing so, we will use the three horizons model to provide an adaptive framework for our future growth and innovation, with further detail of each phase to be published within implementation plans throughout the term of this strategy. The first of these will focus on the foundational and preparatory work needed, in collaboration with stakeholders across Scotland, to ensure that investment and partnership working is targeted for maximum impact and value as part of the ongoing recovery and renewal of our health services as a whole.

The longer-term innovation to embed genomic medicine within the wider health and care system and create greater opportunity to benefit from genomics will be beyond the scope of this strategy but is dependent on the development of the foundations set out within this document.

This strategy supports and aligns with a number of national strategies and frameworks, both within Scotland and across the UK. Within a field as multi-disciplinary as genomics, there are a number of dependencies and limitations. Integrating with national structures and organisations and collaborating with a wide range of stakeholders is critical to the success of this strategy.

As part of delivery we will develop a set of performance measures to monitor and report on both the implementation of this strategy and the delivery of genomic medicine services in Scotland.

In developing this strategy for an equitable, person-centred, rights-based and population-based genomic medicine service for Scotland, our underlying principles and our overall ambition is to encourage different sectors and partners across Scotland to collaborate, innovate, invest and engage as one towards common goals.