Headlining in the Herald today:
PATIENTS are at risk from a “dangerous” shortage of doctors in some areas with overstretched hospital departments “barely able to provide a service” due to vacancies, a medical leader has warned.
It’s Dr Kennedy again, described as a ‘medical leader’ warning of the risks to life posed by shortages of hospital consultants and GPs in rural areas.
Does he have any evidence for that?
Higher mortality in Scotland is largely due to higher rates of deprivation, smoking, alcohol consumption and poor diet.’ Shortened lives are not more common in rural areas but rather in post-industrial urban Scotland.
He was among us back in January this year:
It’s Dr Iain Kennedy again.
As recently as 29 December, he was everywhere telling the same tale:
Doctor Iain Kennedy is everywhere in the MSM, forecasting doom and scaring the old and vulnerable in a manner quite unworthy of a trained medic
As the ever alert MSM Monitor has noted he fails to mention what his UK HQ has reported:
NHS would not survive without the contribution of overseas healthcare workers, BMA says
Instead, he joins that venal posse of opposition politicians in blaming the ‘SNP Government.’
Again as MSM Monitor has revealed, he seems far too fond of that other part-timer, Sandesh Gulhane MSP (Con):
Kennedy is presented as a top or leading doctor when he’s just the convenor of the Scottish branch of the BMA, a trade union.
Top or leading doctors manage teams of cutting edge specialists in giant hospitals or do the latest research into complex conditions.
As a union rep he’s not even a regular doctor.
The day before BBC Scotland platformed him:
The head [convenor] of Scotland’s doctors union says the NHS is haemorrhaging crucial staff. The BMA’s Iain Kennedy says action’s needed to keep under-pressure health service workers.
‘They’re telling me they they’re not sure if they can go on much longer.’
No doubt all day today across BBC Scotland, TV, radio and the website, we’ll be hearing the above story with not a trace of any numbers or trends in those numbers to help us decide if we can trust this trade unionist any more than say someone from the RMT or the EIS.
BBC Scotland is supposed to fact-check before platforming claims by partisan groups. The BMA, like any other trade union, works in the interests of its members.
As for the numbers. In the past, the BMA has offered us the results of badly implemented internal surveys based on self-selecting and tiny samples suggesting some crisis. This time, they don’t even have that; just ‘they’re telling me.’
It’s not good enough.
Here is some actual evidence, we’ve had here recently:
In September 2022, from the same man:
In the Herald today:
THE NHS “is crumbling and patients are being failed”, according to the new leader of the BMA in Scotland. Dr Iain Kennedy, a GP based in Inverness who took over as chair of the trade union earlier this month, said doctors are more worried now than they have ever been about a looming winter crisis.https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/22828740.new-bma-leader-says-patients-failed-staff-shortages/
GP practices collapsing?
The headcount of GPs in Scotland is 5,195. This is a rise of 74 GPs compared to last year. Prior to 2018, the headcount of GPs had remained fairly constant at around 4,900 since 2011. After 2018, the number of male GPs levelled out while the number of female GPs increased. This resulted in an increase of 209 GPs from 2018 to 2021. https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/general-practice-gp-workforce-and-practice-list-sizes/general-practice-gp-workforce-and-practice-list-sizes-2011-2021/
They are in England:
Nearly 1.5 million patients have lost their GP in the last eight years after the closure of almost 500 practices, research has suggested.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/08/29/almost-15m-patients-lose-gp-hundreds-practices-close/
When I searched for ‘Scotland GP practices closing‘, the above was the second hit after reports of closing for the Queen’s funeral. There’s nothing on Scottish GP practices closing to the above effect though there are now fewer but larger ones, typically.
Junior medics quitting for jobs in finance?
The FT has the story of one US ‘doctor’s assistant‘ quitting for something unspecified. In Scotland, the Record has Dr Michael Moronski going to Australia from Glasgow and BBC NE has Clinical Quality Advisor Dr Roelf Dijkuizen leaving NHS Orkney for….who knows…Glasgow?
Two out of more than 5 000 leave?
NHS Crumbling?
NHS Scotland’s workforce has reached a record high of more than 155,000 whole time equivalent (WTE) staff.
The number of doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, and support staff working across Scotland’s hospitals and in communities increased by over 7,000 in the past year alone.
Staffing levels have now increased for ten consecutive years in NHS Scotland and have grown by over 28,500 (WTE) since 2006, meaning an extra 22.6% staff working in the health servicehttps://www.gov.scot/news/nhs-workforce-at-new-record-high/
Finally, patients at risk? Evidence? Increasing death rates in rural areas?
No evidence at all for
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
You can rest assured, when this sort of attack goes up a gear, that we are about to hear something much more drastic about NHS England.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And right on cue here it comes courtesy of CH4 News tonight. Note: they make it clear it is NHS England they are talking about
https://www.channel4.com/news/nhs-england-wait-times-reach-record-high
LikeLiked by 2 people
Perhaps Dr. Kennedy is hankering after a job in the Scottish Parliament – as a Tory or Labour whinger – he clearly has the credentials !
LikeLike
The Tories cut NHS funding £20Billion from 2015 to 2020. ConDems. Austerity. Instead of increasing funding. The Tories mismanaged the pandemic to concentrate on Brexit. Another disaster losing £Billions. The Tories spent £270Billion over two years on Covid funding, £Billions wasted by the Tories and their associates. Squandering and defrauding public funding. £370 funding Covid over a lifetime. UK Gov Accounts 2019/20. Published June 2022. All the £Billions wasted could have been spent on the NHS and essential public services. Scotland lost out on £Billions. On tax evasion, illegal wars, Westminster fraud, paying back loan repayments on monies not borrowed or spent in Scotland, Scottish pays too much for Trident and the military with no return. Whisky company tax evade. UK Gov tax Laws not enforced by UK Treasury. Scotland loses £Billions because of Brexit. Scotland pays too much for fuel and energy. Despite being in surplus and nearest the source. No parity. Scotland loses £Billions to Westminster bad, poor decisions and mismanagement. £Billions more could be spent on essential services in Scotland, without Westminster total mismanagement of Scotland revenues and resources. Count down has begun to vote the Tories out and vote for Independence Parties. With a higher turnout and majority. Independence supporters should march to the Polling station. A higher turnout at the Ballot Box every election,
LikeLike
Attacking the SNHS is fruitless. The SNHS has total support of all who use it. The whole population. They appreciate it and the Scottish Gov efforts in times of Westminster adversity. Taking people for fools does not work. They can read between the lines. They can exchange and get information from the internet.
People are getting doctors/hospital appointments. Operations and treatment for manageable conditions. Some had to wait a bit longer so not to die of Covid. Too many people were dying from the disease. The SNHS saving lives everyday. It can get better with Independence. Instead of Westminster wasting Scotland’s revenues and resources. The Scottish Gov has to mitigate Westminster cuts. Austerity etc killing people off.
LikeLike
True Gordon. I phoned my Health Centre just after 8am on Monday. reason for calling taken, triage nurse called back, was seen by a G.P and given appropriate medication, all within two hours.
LikeLike