2 January
Mid Yorkshire trust advancing plans to ‘centralise’ A&E to cut costs (local)
Yorkshire Post: http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/mid-yorkshire-hospitals-trust-to-bring-forward-plans-to-centralise-a-e-services-to-this-year-1-7652283
14 more stories
Lincolnshire NHS under-claiming from developers (local)
Local councillor fights change of policy denying cash to NHS from ‘small-scale’ housing developers. This could also be true elsewhere and is topical given the latest news about the Government ‘seeding’ small-scale housing developments. Connection?
Horncastle News, Lincs: http://www.horncastlenews.co.uk/news/local/nhs-is-missing-out-on-vital-money-claims-campaigner-in-horncastle-1-7137808
3 January
Government charging interest on emergency loans to NHS trusts
Plans to levy interest on loans given to bail out trusts. King’s Fund doubts scheme.
Daily Express: http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/630979/NHs-debt-crisis-hospitals-forced-pay-out-millions-loan-fees-government-scheme
4 January
Parlous state of dental care
Dental health in the UK (now almost wholly not provided by the NHS) has been likened by dentists to ‘third world’ levels because of lack of NHS provision, especially in children.
Cancer drug funds spent elsewhere
Cancer patients ‘being denied drugs’ as NHS ‘siphons off drug cash’ to spend elsewhere
£1 billion that the NHS could have spent on cancer drugs was used to provide other services.
The Times: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/health/news/article4655456.ece (paywall restricted)
Hospital issues ‘worst winter’ warning (local)
Northampton General Hospital says NHS facing worst winter for 30 year because of underfunding and low morale.
Northampton Chronicle: http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/news/local/nhs-facing-toughest-winter-for-30-years-according-to-report-by-northampton-general-hospital-1-7138669
Junior doctors to strike next week
After breakdown in talks.
Daily Mirror: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/new-junior-doctors-strike-go-7116443
Overview paints bleak picture for NHS in 2016
Call for return to proper levels of funding and staffing to avoid breakdown
6 Jan
Calls to back junior doctors’ strike
Socialist Worker: https://socialistworker.co.uk/art/41940/Back+junior+doctors+strikes+to+defend+NHS
And also on the nurses’ bursary protest
Call to save NHS from current Tory ideology
Historical analysis of the legacy of the Letwin plan and the current government ideology in trying to end the NHS, by John Lister
Morning Star: http://www.morningstaronline.co.uk/a-7f40-Lets-save-our-NHS-from-extremists#.Vo0Gl7SOXTQ
Call for cross-party commission to review NHS and social care jointly
By former Ministers
BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35233346
Letter of support for junior doctors from NHS staff
Over 1,000 NHS staff signed letter saying there is no other option.
…as Hunt continues to trot out ‘determination to back 24/7 NHS’
A classic example of diversionary ‘spin’.
Daily Express: http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/631755/Hunt-I-ll-keep-pushing-for-a-seven-day-NHS
NHS could be on brink of chaotic disintegration
Analysis of organisational state of the NHS in the light of recent ‘innovations’ such as Vanguard gives a stark warning of collapse.
STOP PRESS: There’s a Better Way…
You can now get alerts sent about health stories yourself. This is much better than a regular, ‘supplied’ service because you can choose what key words trigger the alerts: “Keep Our NHS Pubic”, “NHS”, “health” – your choice. Then you can adjust the settings to improve the coverage. This has the added advantage that local stories to you can be searched for, as well as national. Alerts can be set up to send you an e-mail as a story breaks, or summarise them under headings you decide once a day.
This is done through Google news and Google alerts: free services anyone can set up. To find out how to do this, go to the Steering Group, News & Events section and look for the “starter set of instructions”.
… and please don’t forget, your smartphone or tablet will have free apps that look for and filter news, too: try configuring those for health stories, or the NHS, as well.
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