Health News Blog

BMA vote to phase out PAs
Very often patients in GP surgeries, are seen by who they think is a doctor but is in fact a physician assistant. PAs have been introduced owing to a shortage of GPs. But a recent tragic misdiagnosis has contributed to concern and now the BMA has voted to phase out PAs. But will surgeries that employ them respond?

SOS NHS: Why privatisation isn't the answer
Join a meeting in person or online here to consider the pros and cons of NHS privatisation. All we have to do is look across the pond to see the dangers of privatised healthcare; medical bankruptcy, patients denied essential care for lack of insurance.

Private provider takes over community care
HCRG Care Group (formerly known as Virgin Care) will be the "lead" provider (which implies sub-contracting) for Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire. The trust decided in 2022 not to extend the contract to Virgin Care following its acquisition by private equity firm Twenty20Capital, but then reversed the decision.

Say "No" to using NHS budget to private healthcare
If you are concerned by the news that Streeting is considering plans that would guarantee private health companies public money and contracts for the long term, in exchange for promises that they'll invest £1 billion into building up their own facilities, then send him an email here.

Labour must learn from the past
...when they last took over from the Tories. Then, hundreds of billions of additional spending was invested in the NHS, to recover from austerity, and bring health spending on a par with comparable countries in Europe.

Wes considers using private sector...So?
Streeting says he'll use the private sector to cut waiting times, but what is the evidence? In its research  the Health Federation says "...ISPs’ [independent sector providers] ability to increase capacity was limited. Care was often just displaced from NHS hospitals to private hospitals, rather than increasing the overall volume of care." And The Lancet says "...our research raises doubts about whether the current extent of private sector use is optimal for the quality of care and ... further increases in for-profit provision would be a mistake."

PFI firm: "We'll close down if fines imposed"
A private finance initiative company has warned it may go bust if a hospital imposes any more fines after “severe” fire safety defects were found at its community hospital run by the firm.

How "efficiency savings" impacted the NHS
Here's a bit of history but it's worth a look. So called efficiency savings meant cuts, cuts and more cuts!

NHS data: Overseas patients fear privacy invasion
A new data category called Overseas Visitor Charging would be created in national NHS records under government proposals. Doctors of the World, which runs clinics for undocumented migrants said: “Major data-sharing arrangements like this one make it very difficult for us to reassure patients that hospitals are safe places."

Breaching care homes are privately run
Over recent decades there has been a growth of private for-profit provision; yet public and third-sector providers consistently outperform for-profit providers on quality measures by industry regulators. Public and third-sector adult care homes and children's homes show higher regulatory inspections ratings.

"Offer GPs a contract like consultants"
A trust chief executive has said GPs should be brought into the NHS by offering them a contract similar to hospital consultants who are employed by their hospital trust. Currently a GP surgery is a stand-alone entity with one of three types of contract.

What are Labour's "unthinkable" NHS reforms?
This article suggests some, for example changing GP employment as above, raising prescription charges, it even says "using the private sector" but it admits it doesn't have the capacity (which is correct so why suggest it?) None of these will make much difference ....Or we could even fund our health service to the extent that similar european countries do!

Royal Colleges:"review needed into PAs"
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges has called on Streeting to commission a review into the role of medical associate professionals (MAPs) in GP practices as well as secondary and community care, in order to establish an evidence base. Concern has arisen about safety issues - a patient has died when wrongly diagnosed by a PA, and supervision - do they really free up a doctor’s time?

What Darzi didn't say
Yes, the Health and Care Act 2022 repealed Section 75 (compulsory tendering of clinical services) of the hated Lansley Act; but it did not remotely eliminate the role of markets. Reports by the Centre for Health and the Public Interest and the Keep Our NHS Public show how the private sector has penetrated the NHS from service provision through to commissioning. Further, Darzi ignores other important issues.

Trust selects CEO's wife's firm for contract
To run its Urgent Care Centre a hospital trust has selected a company whose chair is the wife of the trust's CEO. Buckinghamshire Healthcare Trust has selected a GP-led co-operative company, FedBucks, as its preferred provider to run urgent care and out-of-hours services.

Racism leads to health inequality
A review conducted by the UCL Institute of Health Equity led by Prof Sir Michael Marmot, found that people who are repeatedly exposed to structural racism during their daily lives experience worse physical and mental health as a direct consequence.