News about the NHS

Devi Sridhar · Oct 30, 2024

Britain has closed its eyes to long Covid – which means it will ravage even more lives and livelihoods | Devi Sridhar Unlike the US, Canada and Australia, the UK is only giving free boosters to some. But the cost of restricting them could be huge Trust me, no one, even in public health or medicine, wants to talk or think about Covid-19. The trauma of those pandemic years is burnt into our minds. But, whether we want to deal with it or not, Covid-19 is still affecting all of us, and circulating at fairly high levels in Britain this month. While community surveys are no longer conducted by the Office for National Statistics to estimate overall cases, hospital data from England indicates that the weekly hospital admission rate for...

Sammy Gecsoyler · Oct 30, 2024

‘Waiting to die’: Layla Moran raises plight of NHS surgeon who fears for parents in Gaza Exclusive: Surgeon who treated Lib Dem MP has worked for NHS for 20 years and grew up in the Jabalia camp In April, Layla Moran was admitted into hospital for sepsis. For a while, doctors thought antibiotics would clear the infection but it soon became clear she needed surgery. While recovering, a surgeon told her he had removed her appendix. “He told me his name and I was like, ‘Hold on, where are you from?’” Like Moran, Mohammad is Palestinian. The NHS surgeon grew up in the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza and has worked for the health service for 20 years. Moran, the Lib Dem MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, had to remain in hospital for an extra...

Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor · Oct 29, 2024

NHS will not be fixed in single budget, says Wes Streeting Health secretary says NHS cannot be turned around ‘overnight’ but vows to get service ‘back on its feet’ over course of parliament UK politics live – latest updates The NHS will not be turned around in one budget, the health secretary, Wes Streeting, has warned, saying measures to be announced on Wednesday would “arrest the decline” amid significant reform of the health service. Streeting told broadcasters new efficiencies in the health service would be the key quid pro quo for significant investment. The government is expected to announce a spending boost of at least 4% to the health budget. Continue reading... By Jessica Elgot Deputy political editor NHS will not...

Jessica Elgot, Anna Bawden and Kiran Stacey · Oct 29, 2024

Budget will end neglect of ‘broken not beaten’ NHS, say Labour ministers Funding for more surgical hubs and radiotherapy machines planned in what PM says will be budget to ‘fix foundations’ The budget will revive a “broken but not beaten” NHS, Labour ministers have said, with billions of pounds of funding to be announced in an effort to cut record waiting lists. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said measures to be announced on Wednesday would “end the neglect” of the health service, delivering more surgical hubs and radiotherapy machines in a drive to lay on an extra 40,000 appointments a week. Continue reading... By Jessica Elgot, Anna Bawden and Kiran Stacey Budget will end neglect of ‘broken not beaten’ NHS, say Labour...

Jonathan Portes · Oct 28, 2024

Rachel Reeves’s first budget offers a chance to break out of the doom loop. Here’s how she should do it | Jonathan Portes It’s a tall order but Labour has a chance to improve people’s lives in both the short and long term Jonathan Portes is professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London and a former senior civil servant Four years of economic turmoil. High inflation, then high interest rates, then an (albeit mild) recession. A pre-election budget with some distinctly dodgy looking tax cuts. All leaving an election-winning, but nevertheless very unpopular, government with a big fiscal hole to fill. What does the chancellor do? Put up taxes, of course. And indeed that is precisely what Norman Lamont did in March...

Jasper Jolly · Oct 28, 2024

Creaking public services are costing companies in absent staff, employers tell TUC Union group urges chancellor to better fund health, social care and childcare to get staff back to work and boost productivity UK businesses are losing staff working time because of waits for healthcare or caring duties due to underfunded public services, according to a poll of managers before Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first budget. More than half of 500 UK business leaders polled for the TUC said workers had to take time off in the last year because of problems accessing public services. Continue reading... By Jasper Jolly Creaking public services are costing companies in absent staff, employers tell TUC to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For...

Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent · Oct 28, 2024

Numbers studying nursing down sharply in all parts of England, RCN says North-east the worst-affected region, recording 40% drop in acceptances on to pre-registration courses, union finds The number of people studying to become nurses has fallen substantially across England, with some areas recording a 40% drop in successful applications, according to analysis by the largest nursing union. The latest regional data from Ucas, the university admissions service, shows the number of people accepted on to nursing courses fell across all parts of England between 2020 and 2023. Continue reading... By Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent Numbers studying nursing down sharply in all parts of England, RCN says to Continue...

Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent · Oct 28, 2024

Researchers study treatment for chronic pain in childhood cancer survivors Team at Nottingham Trent University is investigating how chemotherapy in early life could damage nerve cells Treatments that could help alleviate the chronic pain experienced by thousands of childhood cancer survivors are being investigated by scientists and researchers in the UK. About eight out of 10 children survive their cancer for 10 years or more but more than half of them report delayed and ongoing pain in adulthood. Continue reading... By Tobi Thomas Health and inequalities correspondent Researchers study treatment for chronic pain in childhood cancer survivors to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

Guardian Staff · Oct 27, 2024

Ways to make the NHS – and all of us – more healthy | Letters Medicalising problems chiefly caused by health inequalities is not a long-term solution, says Emeritus Professor David J Hunter. Plus letters from Jennifer Marshall, Amanda Baker and Chris Clough Re the article by Wes Streeting (I love the NHS: it saved my life, but the operation to rescue it must be led by the people and its staff, 21 October), the government’s health plan must devote serious attention to the public’s health. Focusing on individual lifestyle behaviour change because it’s the easier option will not result in sufficient progress in tackling preventable illnesses such as obesity. Nor is prescribing more weight-loss drugs the answer. Medicalising problems...

Amelia Hill · Oct 27, 2024

Positive assessment rates for autism vary widely between parts of England Charity says findings on evaluations of children and adults suggest different approaches and are ‘deeply worrying’ Children and adults seeking an autism diagnosis in England are up to almost seven times more likely to receive one in some NHS foundation trusts than others, according to research. Freedom of information requests by the charity Autistica revealed that positive assessments in children ranged from 100% of those evaluated by one trust to just 18% in another. In adults the figures ranged from 97% to 14%. Continue reading... By Amelia Hill Positive assessment rates for autism vary widely between parts of England to Continue reading... NHS Forums...

Emma Beddington · Oct 27, 2024

Want to understand British irony, humour and politics? Visit the NHS suggestions website | Emma Beddington Put a Wetherspoon’s in every hospital? Make Larry the Cat the health minister? The public’s ideas are like British banter bingo – but they show how much we care Do you ever wonder if the British might be a fundamentally unserious people? I do, though I should stress that I include myself; a thoroughly trivial person whose “professional” life is mainly spent in the silliest corners of an internet that long ago destroyed my capacity for joined-up thinking. Still, if you do have any intellectual rigour, it must be troubling, what with the hegemony of Hun culture, voting for politicians purely on bants potential, expressing dissent...

Toby Helm, Political Editor · Oct 26, 2024

Reeves: ‘My budget will match greatest economic moments in Labour history’ The chancellor says she will invest to reverse Tory decline, but stands accused of breaking party manifesto promises Labour will launch a new era of public and private investment in hospitals, schools, transport and energy as momentous as any in the party’s history in this week’s budget, the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has said. In an interview with the Observer before the first budget by a female chancellor, Reeves draws comparisons with Labour’s historic reform programmes begun in 1945 by Clement Attlee, in 1964 under Harold Wilson and in 1997 under Tony Blair. Continue reading... By Toby Helm, Political Editor Reeves: ‘My budget will match greatest...

Merope Mills · Oct 26, 2024

This mother made six attempts to raise the alarm about her sick toddler. Doctors told her he’d be fine. They were fatally wrong The death of her son, Micah, highlights the danger of medics ignoring parental concerns. ‘It was like they were gaslighting us,’ says Keri-Sue McManus On the morning of 30 November 2022, Keri-Sue McManus sat down with her three-year-old son, Micah, to watch the TV series Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. A preschool animation about a tiger cub, the show sets out to teach life lessons. That day, Keri-Sue chose a specific episode, Daniel Goes to the Hospital, for a reason. She planned to take Micah to hospital and was using the cartoon to reassure him that everything would be OK. She was sensitive to his mood...

Peter Walker, Aletha Adu and Jessica Elgot · Oct 25, 2024

Labour MPs fear chancellor’s tough budget will bring new set of problems Concerns from party that significant cuts to key departments will set damaging tone for new government When Rachel Reeves stands up in the Commons on Wednesday, her budget will end months of speculation, allowing the government to fully set out what it stands for. And that, some Labour MPs fear, might herald a whole new set of problems. For all the expectation management about a disastrous economic inheritance and the fabled £22bn fiscal black hole, the sheer lack of money and tight constraints over tax rises mean that however well Reeves presents her choices, many of them will be painful. Continue reading... By Peter Walker, Aletha Adu and Jessica Elgot...

Nicola Davis Science correspondent · Oct 25, 2024

Which disease-modifying Alzheimer’s drugs are the most promising? Many drugs in development aim to delay, slow or reverse symptoms, but which are causing the biggest stir? This week England’s health spending watchdog rejected a new Alzheimer’s drug – the second such drug it has turned down this year. Both donanemab and lecanemab were approved by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), yet the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said their benefits were too small to justify their costs, while there have also been concerns over potential side effects – such as brain swelling and bleeding. Continue reading... By Nicola Davis Science correspondent Which disease-modifying Alzheimer’s...

Julia Kollewe · Oct 25, 2024

Private healthcare boom fuelled by NHS waiting lists UK market rose to all-time high of £12.4bn last year, with NHS paying for nearly £3.5bn of procedures to ease backlog The value of the UK’s private healthcare market rose to a record £12.4bn last year as long NHS waiting lists fuelled demand from individuals and the health service paid for nearly £3.5bn of procedures to help ease the care backlog. As private medical insurance boomed, total revenues generated in the independent healthcare sector hit an all-time high in real terms pegged to 2003 prices, research revealed. Continue reading... By Julia Kollewe Private healthcare boom fuelled by NHS waiting lists to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

Guardian Staff · Oct 24, 2024

French finesse can deter buffet gluttons | Brief letters A warning sign | Queuing for Van Gogh | NHS passports | Paddington Bear’s passport | Fitting F-words for Trump Fining diners who overload their plates is one way to stop bad buffet behaviour (Emma Beddington, 21 October), but gentler solutions can be just as effective. The French do it well. A favourite local bistro in Saint-Palais-sur-Mer has a sign at the buffet counter, warning customers: “Gluttony is a wicked vice. Please fill your plates with moderation.” It works: I’ve hardly dared help myself to an extra cornichon with my slice of terrine. William Ham Bevan Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan • Four of us travelled from Essex and Suffolk on Wednesday with 2pm timed tickets for...

Deborah Harding · Oct 24, 2024

Carole Pound obituary My friend Carole Pound, who has died aged 66 of ovarian cancer, was a speech and language therapist. She broke new ground as a champion for the inclusion in services and research of people with language loss (aphasia) after they had suffered a stroke, head injury or neurological illness. After working in hospitals, in 1995 she moved into an academic role at the speech and language therapy department at City, University of London, where she led research but also continued to work clinically at the university’s aphasia clinic. Continue reading... By Deborah Harding Carole Pound obituary to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

Polly Toynbee · Oct 24, 2024

A royal commission on social care may be coming – don’t despair, it may actually work this time | Polly Toynbee Though royal commissions have a bad reputation, this is a real chance to establish a realistic plan before it is too late A collective groan greeted the rumour that the government will announce yet another royal commission on social care. The fear is that it just kicks this problem into the blue yonder; it was Harold Wilson who jibed that royal commissions “take minutes and waste years”, which can be politically convenient. The world of the NHS and local government needs a resolution to the care crisis: 250,000 people wait for a care assessment and almost 30,000 a year die waiting while councils go bankrupt because of...

Andrew Gregory Health editor · Oct 23, 2024

NHS in England to trial AI tool to predict risk of fatal heart disease ‘Superhuman’ technology known as Aire can detect potential problems doctors cannot see from ECG results The NHS in England is to trial a “superhuman” artificial intelligence tool that predicts a patient’s risk of disease and dying early. The new technology, known as AI-ECG risk estimation, or Aire, is trained to read the results of electrocardiogram (ECG) tests, which record the electrical activity of the heart and are used to check for problems. Continue reading... By Andrew Gregory Health editor NHS in England to trial AI tool to predict risk of fatal heart disease to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

PA Media · Oct 23, 2024

Alzheimer’s drug rejected for widespread NHS use in England Health spending watchdog says donanemab ‘does not currently demonstrate value for the NHS’ A new Alzheimer’s drug has been rejected for widespread use by the NHS in England after the health spending watchdog said that it “does not currently demonstrate value for the NHS”. The news comes as the UK’s medicines regulator said donanemab could be licensed for use in the UK. Continue reading... By PA Media Alzheimer’s drug rejected for widespread NHS use in England to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent · Oct 22, 2024

Ian Paterson pitched cleavage-sparing mastectomy ‘like sales job’, inquest told Procedures performed by convicted breast surgeon were not a recognised or authorised type of operation The convicted breast surgeon Ian Paterson pitched one of his patients an unauthorised cleavage-sparing mastectomy “almost like a sales job”, an inquest has heard. Chloe Nikitas, an environmental consultant from Tamworth, died in 2008 at the age of 43 from breast cancer that returned three years after having a mastectomy she believed had removed all of her breast tissue. Continue reading... By Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent Ian Paterson pitched cleavage-sparing mastectomy ‘like sales job’, inquest told to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For...

Andrew Gregory Health editor · Oct 22, 2024

NHS in England given go-ahead for AI scans to help detect bone fractures X-ray add-on at estimated £1 a scan aimed at reducing missed diagnoses in initial assessment Millions of patients in England with suspected broken bones could have their X-rays checked with a £1 artificial intelligence scan to help NHS doctors avoid missing fractures. Overlooked broken bones are among the most common mistakes made in A&E units and urgent care centres, with as many as 10% of fracture cases either not spotted at all by medical professionals or diagnosed late. Continue reading... By Andrew Gregory Health editor NHS in England given go-ahead for AI scans to help detect bone fractures to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient...

Guardian Staff · Oct 21, 2024

Private sector offers to the NHS must beat ‘one for the price of two’ deal | Brief letters Streeting’s scepticism | The force of female artists | Accordion jokes | Defining ‘scientific racism’ | Tesco’s solar energy drive Re Polly Toynbee on private sector offers to help the NHS (Let’s get this straight: private healthcare will and must work for the NHS – not the other way around, 15 October), in around 2000, a similar proposal was made to the then health secretary, Alan Milburn, who commended it to NHS bodies. I remember Geoff Scaife, then chief executive of Birmingham Health Authority, describing it as “one for the price of two”. We can perhaps hope, with Polly, that Wes Streeting will be more sceptical. Alan Wenban-Smith Former...

Rebecca Hendin · Oct 21, 2024

Rebecca Hendin on Labour’s plans for the NHS – cartoon Continue reading... By Rebecca Hendin Rebecca Hendin on Labour’s plans for the NHS – cartoon to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums

News about the NHS

Show only:

Britain has closed its eyes to long Covid – which means it will ravage even more lives and livelihoods | Devi Sridhar

‘Waiting to die’: Layla Moran raises plight of NHS surgeon who fears for parents in Gaza

NHS will not be fixed in single budget, says Wes Streeting

Budget will end neglect of ‘broken not beaten’ NHS, say Labour ministers

Rachel Reeves’s first budget offers a chance to break out of the doom loop. Here’s how she should do it | Jonathan Portes

Creaking public services are costing companies in absent staff, employers tell TUC

Numbers studying nursing down sharply in all parts of England, RCN says

Researchers study treatment for chronic pain in childhood cancer survivors

Ways to make the NHS – and all of us – more healthy | Letters

Positive assessment rates for autism vary widely between parts of England

Want to understand British irony, humour and politics? Visit the NHS suggestions website | Emma Beddington

Reeves: ‘My budget will match greatest economic moments in Labour history’

This mother made six attempts to raise the alarm about her sick toddler. Doctors told her he’d be fine. They were fatally wrong

Labour MPs fear chancellor’s tough budget will bring new set of problems

Which disease-modifying Alzheimer’s drugs are the most promising?

Private healthcare boom fuelled by NHS waiting lists

French finesse can deter buffet gluttons | Brief letters

Carole Pound obituary

A royal commission on social care may be coming – don’t despair, it may actually work this time | Polly Toynbee

NHS in England to trial AI tool to predict risk of fatal heart disease

Alzheimer’s drug rejected for widespread NHS use in England

Ian Paterson pitched cleavage-sparing mastectomy ‘like sales job’, inquest told

NHS in England given go-ahead for AI scans to help detect bone fractures

Private sector offers to the NHS must beat ‘one for the price of two’ deal | Brief letters

Rebecca Hendin on Labour’s plans for the NHS – cartoon

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