Health News Blog

Privatisation leads to worse care
A new study by Oxford Social Policy researchers finds that higher mortality rates are linked to an increase in outsourcing of health services to the private for-profit sector. "Health campaigners were fearful that the 2012 Health and Social Care Act would increase the level of for-profit outsourcing, reducing the quality of care received by NHS patients. This study finds that their concerns may well have been justified."

Streeting: "the NHS uses the winter crisis as..."
...an excuse to ask for more money". Really? So Wes, there's an NHS staffing crisis and a 7.7 million patient waiting list; then ask yourself why? Here's a quote from research by the Health Foundation "Matching spending per head to France or Germany would have led to an additional £40bn and £73bn per year."

PPE via VIP lane 80% more expensive
PPE was on average 80% more expensive when the government bought it from firms referred through a special “VIP lane”.

Misuse of FDP data: patients concern
The contract to build a Federated Data Platform, a massive store of all of our health information, has been given to Palantir. A survey reveals a growing fear, confusion, mistrust about how their data is handled.

FDP and Palantir: a summary
If you need information on what the Federated Data Platform is and the US military intelligence firm that has been given the contract to build it, it's here.

The case for a unified database of health data
Using volunteer health data, UK Biobank shows how healthcare can be improved by data. Doctors will be able to identify patients according to their individual risks. Those at greatest risk of cancer, heart disease and dementia, for example, could be put forward for earlier screening, leading to better treatment and prevention. But should we trust Palantir with our data?

Doctor who fought for Covid transparency
Moosa Qureshi has been working to force ministers to publish results on pandemic preparedness. The withheld papers show that political leaders had not shared plans or guidance for healthcare rationing with NHS staff when hospitals became overwhelmed.

NHS underfunding caused 112 deaths
The Patients Association says "These data are alarming and show quite clearly the human impact the crisis in the NHS is having on individual patients". Almost 8,000 people were harmed and 112 died last year as a direct result of enduring long waits for an ambulance or surgery.

The Federated Data Platform (FDP) disaster
NHS England has announced it's giving the £480m contract, to develop a massive heath data store, to US spy tech firm Palantir. NHS England says patients do not need to be given an opt-out because their data will be anonymised before it is shared, but a) date of birth, gender, postcode are too important to be changed, and b) do you trust Palantir with your data?

FDP: Demand a public debate
We are being denied the right to opt out of the FDP, a right made even more acute by the awarding of the contract to Palantir. Email the government to demand a public debate about our right to opt out.

Integrated Care's priority - withholding funding
Integrated Care Systems have been instructed to make yet further cuts in plans for their regions NHS care while government ministers pretend the NHS should be able to provide comprehensive healthcare.

NHS Long Term Plan dilemma
What the Long Term Plan demands as opposed to the real NHS budget allocation presents a dilemma for next year's election winning party.

'Labour will hold door open to private sector'
For those who know that an entirely publicly-run NHS provides the most efficient way to run the NHS, the shadow health secretary's words are alarming. Are we really going to continue Tory government's mistakes? Evidence shows that privatisation of NHS services results in worse outcomes. Here's a collation of NHS privatised disasters in recent years.

Who's really to blame?
An analysis of  Care Quality Commission reports shows that of the 254 general hospitals seven were rated as “inadequate” and 122 as “requires improvement” – 51% of the total. If over half of all general hospitals are rated less than satisfactory what concusion should we draw? There are 40000 nurse vacancies, staff disatisfaction is at a record low, waiting lists at a record high, so is the primary problem the management of hospitals?

Private healthcare firms and home care
More than 500,000 patients rely on private companies paid by the NHS to deliver healthcare to their homes. A report by the Lords public services committee says patients are being harmed due to “real and serious problems” with the services provided by for-profit companies.

40 hospitals programme "mired in delay"
Boris Johnson’s flagship 40 hospital building programme, now down to 32, is mired in delays and unlikely to deliver on time. A cross-party committee of MPs said “very little has happened from the perspective of patients” since the programme was announced.