Under a tasteless image of a woman grimacing in pain, BBC Scotland today is using the news on new testing for endometriosis to suggest waiting times are longer in NHS Scotland than in NHS England based on the average. Using this measure, we hear it’s 10 years and 2 months in Scotland but 9 years and 4 months in England. There’s a problem. This is not based on Public Health Scotland officially checked and published statistics but, rather, it’s based on data collected by the charity Endometriosis UK. What’s wrong with that? Several things make the figures unreliable and, if … Continue reading BBC Scotland’s Endometriosis claims are based on an unreliable survey

From BBC England this morning, the above, and: The cost of damages paid out to people injured in the UK by e-scooters and e-bikes has topped £110m, the BBC has learned. It is only seven years since the first claim was made, with the biggest individual payout being for £20m. Such claims have also led to premiums for drivers being pushed up, to effectively cover the bill for insurers. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c05y9pe5p1jo I’ve been unable to get a breakdown for the 4 UK nations or to find a comparative report for Scotland. I have, however, been able to compare the number of … Continue reading Serendipitous National Party Government has ‘failed to exploit potential’ in rental e-bikes leading to only one sixth of the casualties per head of other parts of the UK

Travelling to Scotland’s West Coast islands with Calmac typically costs between £0.20 to £0.70 per nautical mile. For example, Ardrossan to Brodick one way, 19nm, 55 min, for a foot passenger – £5-101 Similarly subsidised, the Northern Isles pay the same rate. Isle of Wight with Wightlink typically costs £1.50 to £2.50 per nm. For example, Plymouth to Fishbourne, one-way for a foot passenger, 10nm – £14-£22. 2 Channel Isles – £1.50 to £3+ per nm, Jersey to Guernsey 30nm, one-way foot passenger £32 to £50 .3 Sources: Continue reading Scotland’s islanders paying between one quarter and a half of the price paid by those travelling to the Isle of Wight or the Channel Islands

From Fife Today, today: The leader of the Conservatives at Fife Council has quit the party – and made the shock move across the political divide to join Labour. Councillor Kathleen Leslie [above] said she was “increasingly unable” to support the Tory Party’s positions on “everything from migration to foreign policy to welfare reform” and said she was a “better fit” as part of Labour’s minority administration at Fife House. The Burntisland, Kinghorn and Western Kirkcaldy councillor, who was elected in 2017, confirmed she had also recently resigned from the Conservative Party “following much thought and reflection.” https://www.fifetoday.co.uk/news/people/fife-council-conservative-group-leader-quits-party-and-joins-labour-8779331 Why did … Continue reading Struck-off teacher who called Nicola Sturgeon a ‘drooling hag’ joins Labour rather than Reform UK because presumably they look the same to her

From Nursing Standard last week but for some reason I don’t understand, just appearing in one of my alerts today, the above and; Latest joint board papers for Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust and Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, both part of the NHS Humber Health Partnership (HHP), said ED overcrowding, plus operational and staffing pressures were contributing factors in the cases. The trusts run five hospitals between them. Both incidents took place at the Hull Royal Infirmary in 2024. HHP said it had since introduced a mandatory training package for nursing staff to assess, recognise and treat deteriorating patients, … Continue reading Sepsis deaths in error still happening in NHS England 18 years after SNP Government took steps to prevent them