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This forum is automatically fed with news from various news sources. The articles linked to and quoted here are not necessarily our views, they're just what is being discussed in the news, and therefore we can discuss this then too.

Alan Milburn to be given lead role in Labour’s health ministry

Alan Milburn to be given lead role in Labour’s health ministry Move reignites row over Labour figures with private interests having access to government Who are the key New Labour figures in Keir Starmer’s government? Wes Streeting is to hand Alan Milburn a lead role in the running of his health ministry, in a move that has reignited the row over Labour figures with private interests having access to government. The health secretary is preparing to appoint Milburn, who was a radical reformer of the NHS in his time in that post under Tony Blair, as the lead non-executive director of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). Continue reading... By Denis Campbell and Rowena Mason Alan Milburn to be given lead role in...
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Let’s get this straight: private healthcare will and must work for the NHS – not the other way around | Polly Toynbee

Let’s get this straight: private healthcare will and must work for the NHS – not the other way around | Polly Toynbee Labour is right not to be squeamish about independent healthcare firms, but Wes Streeting seems wise enough to prioritise public benefit Our critically injured public services beg for help, but the totem signifying the state of the nation will always be the NHS. The monthly waiting time reports on ambulances, the state of A&E, the wait for cancer or GP appointments: all take the nation’s pulse. The latest figures showed a twitch of improvement. Can a government only 100 days old claim any credit? Alastair McLellan, the editor of the Health Service Journal, suggests it probably can, as health trusts accelerate...
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Unemployed could be given weight-loss jabs to get back to work, says Wes Streeting

Unemployed could be given weight-loss jabs to get back to work, says Wes Streeting Health secretary announces trials to assess impact of medicines such as Ozempic or Mounjaro on worklessness New weight-loss jabs could be given to unemployed people to help them get back into work, Wes Streeting has suggested. The health secretary said “widening waistbands” were placing a burden on the NHS. Continue reading... By PA Media Unemployed could be given weight-loss jabs to get back to work, says Wes Streeting to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums
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Guilt, worry, resentment: how the ‘club sandwich’ generation juggles caring for parents, children and grandparents

Guilt, worry, resentment: how the ‘club sandwich’ generation juggles caring for parents, children and grandparents With people surviving longer and with greater infirmity, the pressures on adults living among three other generations are increasing Like the doctor in a corny joke, the study published last week by the Journals of Gerontology had some good news and some bad news. The good news, say researchers from University College London (UCL) and Oxford University, is that people born in the 1940s and 1950s are living longer than their parents. The bad news is that they are more likely to be ill. Continue reading... By Andrew Anthony Guilt, worry, resentment: how the ‘club sandwich’ generation juggles caring for parents...
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Plans for digital NHS tag for overseas patients cause migrant privacy concerns

Plans for digital NHS tag for overseas patients cause migrant privacy concerns Doctors say proposals will make it difficult to reassure trafficking victims and asylum seekers ‘hospitals are safe places’ Plans to create a new digital tag for the records of NHS patients from overseas has caused concern among doctors, as well as privacy and migrants’ rights campaigners. A new data category called Overseas Visitor Charging would be created in national NHS records under proposals the Labour government has inherited from its Conservative predecessor. Continue reading... By Ben Quinn Plans for digital NHS tag for overseas patients cause migrant privacy concerns to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums
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Assisted dying bill leaves much unanswered | Letters

Assisted dying bill leaves much unanswered | Letters Dr Lucy Thomas says Charles Falconer’s assertion that the type of legislation he is proposing is ‘safe’ does not make it so; plus five other readers respond on questions of palliative care and Kim Leadbeater’s private member’s bill If Lord Falconer’s aim (Letters, 4 October) is to develop a safe and compassionate assisted dying law he should want to understand and address, rather than dismiss, the serious concerns raised by people like me who work with terminally ill patients on a daily basis and who he expects to enact his legislation (I see the worrying consequences of assisted dying in other countries. Britain’s bill needs a radical rethink, 2 October). He should also be...
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We need person-centred mental health care, not more psychiatrists | Letter

We need person-centred mental health care, not more psychiatrists | Letter Dr Jennifer Poole says a less medicalised approach using therapists other than consultant psychiatrists would be more effective in the long term Regarding your article (Scottish NHS boards pay up to £837 an hour for locums amid psychiatry crisis, 7 October), the solution to this increasingly untenable situation is a change of approach to mental health. Psychiatrists (medically qualified doctors who go on to treat emotional and mental health issues with medications) are necessarily focused on diagnosis of a “disorder” as an illness in the person. However, there is little evidence that this is effective with mental health issues in the vast majority of cases...
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Lucy Letby: police and CPS handling of case raises new concerns about convictions

Lucy Letby: police and CPS handling of case raises new concerns about convictions Exclusive: Letby’s barrister says application challenging verdicts is being prepared using expert medical evidence When the public inquiry into the crimes of the former nurse Lucy Letby opened in Liverpool last month its chair, Lady Justice Thirlwall, dismissed concerns about the safety of the convictions as “noise”. The judge cautioned that questions being raised were increasing the distress of parents whose children had died or been harmed. Letby was found guilty across two trials of murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others at the Countess of Chester hospital (COCH) in 2015 and 2016. Thirlwall pointed out that in May this year...
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Disgraced breast surgeon Ian Paterson refuses to attend inquest

Disgraced breast surgeon Ian Paterson refuses to attend inquest Families of former patients condemn refusal to give evidence, which lawyers say is due to health reasons and ‘inadequate facilities to prepare’ The jailed former breast surgeon Ian Paterson has refused to give evidence at an inquest into the deaths of 62 of his former patients, in a move labelled “unacceptable” and “atrocious” by families of the deceased. Paterson had been due to speak at the judge-led inquest at Birmingham and Solihull coroner’s court, which is investigating whether 62 of Paterson’s former patients “died an unnatural death as a result of his actions”. Continue reading... By Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent Disgraced breast surgeon Ian...
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Robert Jenrick rejects claim Tory MPs put him in final two for leadership ballot by mistake – UK politics live

Robert Jenrick rejects claim Tory MPs put him in final two for leadership ballot by mistake – UK politics live Jenrick says he thinks Tory MPs voted for ‘the best placed people to lead this party forward’ Robert Jenrick, one of the final two Tory leadership candidates, is delivering a speech in London. There is a live feed on his X account. Jenrick started by promising “a complete break with Labour’s failing agenda”. He said: The real choice this country faces is between Labour’s failing agenda and the new approach I want us to take, the new approach we need as a country. Because if I am chosen as the next leader of this party we will stand to offer a complete break with Labour’s failing agenda. Continue reading... By Andrew...
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Teachers regularly helping pupils in distress in attempt to fill NHS funding gap

Teachers regularly helping pupils in distress in attempt to fill NHS funding gap Three in four teachers put a pupil’s psychological needs before teaching at least once a week, UK survey reveals Teachers are picking up the pieces of the deepening crisis in children and young people’s mental health, with many regularly helping pupils in distress on top of their classroom duties. Teachers say they are playing an important role in supporting pupils’ often fragile mental wellbeing because so many who need help from the NHS are not receiving it, a UK-wide survey found. 78% of teachers say pupils’ mental health has got worse since they joined the profession. 76% say only half or fewer of the pupils who they believe need help with their...
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Lucy Letby encouraged by manager to visit Alder Hey children’s hospital, inquiry hears

Lucy Letby encouraged by manager to visit Alder Hey children’s hospital, inquiry hears Countess of Chester senior nurse said placements would give Letby ‘break’ from stress, despite knowing she was under investigation over babies’ deaths Lucy Letby was encouraged by a senior nurse to undertake regular visits to Alder Hey children’s hospital despite her being under investigation on suspicion of murdering babies, a public inquiry has heard. Letby, 34, was told the placements would give her “a break from the stress here”, weeks before police were called over the unexplained deaths and deterioration of newborns at the Countess of Chester hospital. Continue reading... By Josh Halliday North of England editor Lucy Letby encouraged by...
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The Guardian view on the coroner’s role: if deaths can be prevented, they should be | Editorial

The Guardian view on the coroner’s role: if deaths can be prevented, they should be | Editorial When inquests make recommendations, they must not be allowed to sink into a bottom drawer The family of Maeve Boothby O’Neill, who died aged 27 after suffering from myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) for many years, is not the first to reach the end of an inquest only to be faced by uncertainty regarding its results. The coroner issued a prevention of future deaths notice (PFD) addressed to Wes Streeting and five health organisations, including NHS England. This criticised the lack of specialist care and training for doctors, and raised concerns about clinical guidelines and nutrition. But while there is a legal obligation on any body in...
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Colleague of disgraced surgeon Ian Paterson raised concerns two decades ago, inquest hears

Colleague of disgraced surgeon Ian Paterson raised concerns two decades ago, inquest hears Paterson is serving a 20-year sentence for wounding after being found guilty in 2017 of carrying out unnecessary and damaging breast cancer operations A colleague of the disgraced surgeon Ian Paterson raised concerns about him carrying out “incomplete” breast cancer operations two decades ago, an inquest has heard. A judge-led inquest into the deaths of 62 of Paterson’s former patients commenced at Birmingham and Solihull coroner’s court on Tuesday, and is to be one of the biggest inquests in British history. Continue reading... By Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent Colleague of disgraced surgeon Ian Paterson raised concerns two...
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Scottish ministers ‘mismanaging NHS’, say opposition, as huge hourly rates revealed

Scottish ministers ‘mismanaging NHS’, say opposition, as huge hourly rates revealed SNP government lambasted by Lib Dem, Labour and Tory MSPs over sums paid to locum emergency psychiatrists Scottish opposition leaders have accused ministers of mismanaging the NHS after the “jaw-dropping” costs of hiring emergency psychiatrists came to light. The Liberal Democrats, Labour and Conservatives will press Scottish health ministers this week to explain why the health service has spent more than £130m over the past five years hiring temporary psychiatrists for routine mental health appointments. Continue reading... By Severin Carrell Scotland editor Scottish ministers ‘mismanaging NHS’, say opposition, as huge hourly rates revealed to...
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Doctor secured Lucy Letby hospital placement while she was suspected of murder

Doctor secured Lucy Letby hospital placement while she was suspected of murder Registrar who exchanged more than 1,000 messages with nurse tells public inquiry he believes he was misled A doctor who exchanged more than 1,000 “inappropriate” and “frivolous” Facebook messages with Lucy Letby secured her a placement at another hospital while she was suspected of murdering babies, a public inquiry has heard. The registrar, who can only be named as Dr U, said he had supported the nurse because she was “struggling with her mental health” but that he now believed he had been “misled and maybe manipulated”. Continue reading... By Josh Halliday North of England editor Doctor secured Lucy Letby hospital placement while she was suspected...
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Inquest to open over deaths of patients treated by breast surgeon Ian Paterson

Inquest to open over deaths of patients treated by breast surgeon Ian Paterson One of UK’s largest ever inquests to begin at Birmingham and Solihull coroner’s court with cases of 62 people When Stuart Coyne received a letter to say his wife’s death, now 16 years ago, was being investigated to see if she had died unnecessarily after being operated on by the disgraced surgeon Ian Paterson, he was taken aback. “It was a shock; it came out of the blue. When Catherine died, we all thought that she’d had the best treatment for the breast cancer that she had,” said Coyne, 70, who lives in Solihull. “Now, of course, it raises that question – would she still be here today?” Continue reading... By Jessica Murray Midlands correspondent...
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Address ‘non-existent’ severe ME care or risk further deaths, UK health minister told

Address ‘non-existent’ severe ME care or risk further deaths, UK health minister told Coroner who heard inquest into death of Maeve Boothby O’Neill calls for action to tackle chronic fatigue syndrome A coroner has urged the UK health secretary, Wes Streeting, to address the “non-existent” care available to people with severe ME or risk further deaths like that of Maeve Boothby O’Neill. The Devon coroner, Deborah Archer, who heard Boothby O’Neill’s inquest, also called on the government and NHS leaders to ensure there is more training for medics on treating patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis, and additional funding for research on the condition. Continue reading... By Steven Morris Address ‘non-existent’ severe ME care or...
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Scottish NHS boards pay up to £837 an hour for locums amid psychiatry crisis

Scottish NHS boards pay up to £837 an hour for locums amid psychiatry crisis Quarter of posts in adult psychiatry vacant, forcing hospitals to rely on expensive private cover Scotland’s health boards have paid up to £837 an hour for locum psychiatrists to help cope with a deepening staff shortage crisis in mental health services. They have been charged more than £130m by dozens of private health care companies to provide temporary psychiatrists over the past five years, including one firm now owned by two billionaires from Texas. Annual spending by Scotland’s 14 health boards on locum psychiatrists reached nearly £35m last year, up from £20m five years ago. NHS Tayside has spent more than £30m since 2019, and NHS Fife nearly £26m...
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‘No care left in the system’: patients on use of locum psychiatrists in Scotland

‘No care left in the system’: patients on use of locum psychiatrists in Scotland Patients angry at getting contradictory advice, inconsistent care and facing indifference from locums, survey finds The complaints about locum psychiatrists have a clear pattern. Patients say they routinely experience inconsistent care or get contradictory advice. Some describe an indifference that borders on box-ticking. “I had 14 locums [and] they all had different views and opinions on my care,” said one respondent to a survey of 469 patients by the advocacy group Vox Scotland. “The last locum did not bother to call me back. That was four months ago. I’ve had no contact from my mental health team since then.” Continue reading... By Severin Carrell...
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NHS restricting access to obesity services across England, BMJ finds

NHS restricting access to obesity services across England, BMJ finds <p>Budget cuts to local services fell disproportionately on care for obese patients, leading to ‘postcode lottery’</p><p>The NHS is restricting access to obesity services across England, leading to patients in nearly half the country being unable to book appointments with specialist teams for support and treatments such as weight-loss jabs.</p><p>An investigation by the British Medical Journal found budget cuts to local services fell disproportionately on obesity care, with patients living with the condition often deemed less worthy of care than others.</p> <a href="NHS restricting access to obesity services across England, BMJ finds">Continue reading...</a> Budget...
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NHS maternity staff to receive mandatory training to improve patient safety

NHS maternity staff to receive mandatory training to improve patient safety Obstetricians, midwives and obstetric anaesthetists will take part in pilots after damning report by health regulator NHS maternity staff will take part in a mandatory training programme to improve patient safety after a damning report by the health regulator said that poor care and harm in childbirth was in danger of becoming “normalised”. Obstetricians, midwives and obstetric anaesthetists at nine maternity units across England will all have to do extra training from Monday under government plans to raise care standards for women and babies. The scheme will be rolled out to every maternity unit in the country if the pilots are successful. Continue...
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GP care analysis casts doubt on Labour pledge to ‘bring back the family doctor’

GP care analysis casts doubt on Labour pledge to ‘bring back the family doctor’ Patients will increasingly see nurses, physiotherapists or pharmacists instead of GPs, says Frontier Economics study Keir Starmer’s pledge to “bring back the family doctor” is in doubt because more and more patients will not see a GP over the next 10 years, according to research. By 2034, qualified GPs in England will deliver just 70% of all appointments at surgeries, down from the 90% who did so as recently as 2015, the analysis forecasts. Continue reading... By Denis Campbell Health policy editor GP care analysis casts doubt on Labour pledge to ‘bring back the family doctor’ to Continue reading... NHS Forums - For NHS Staff | Patient Forums
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I thought I was fine with being bald. But the chance of a cure has stirred up all sorts of feelings | Emma Beddington

I thought I was fine with being bald. But the chance of a cure has stirred up all sorts of feelings | Emma Beddington It’s almost 30 years since I lost my hair to alopecia. What if Pfizer’s drug Litfulo could bring it back? My hair looks incredible at the moment. I know because people keep telling me – in bakeries, cafes and when I was getting my tattooed eyebrows touched up yesterday. What to say? “Thanks!” feels conceited. “My hairdresser’s a genius,” is (part of) the truth. I often narcissistically worry what would happen if he were to slip away before me; how wrong would it be to bring him five or six wigs to cut on his deathbed? In a similar vein, I was thrilled yesterday, when S, who has done my brows for decades, told me her...
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Three local NHS CEOs join NHS England as directors

Three local NHS CEOs join NHS England as directors
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Two integrated care board chief executives and a trust CEO have been appointed as part-time national directors at NHS England.

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