Tag: health

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How BBC England exposes the threat to GP surgeries of Labour’s National Insurance hike but BBC Scotland hides it and tries to blame Scottish Government instead

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Professor John Robertson OBA BBC England, quite clear about the major threat to GP surgeries, in their headline above, and: GP practices could be pushed “over the edge” by a planned rise in the National Insurance (NI) rate for employers, a doctor has said. The government has said the NHS and the rest of the public sector would be shielded from the rise but that does not cover GP practices, many of which are run as small businesses. Dr Andrew Purbrick, who represents 300 GP practices across the south of England, said many would be forced to cut back on … Continue reading How BBC England exposes the threat to GP surgeries of Labour’s National Insurance hike but BBC Scotland hides it and tries to blame Scottish Government instead

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Drug deaths – this is not whataboutery but the means of calling out political hypocrisy and media bias

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By stewartb It could be deemed ‘unseemly’ to make btl comment on something as tragic as drug deaths. Of course the real topic – the real motivation – is political and mainstream media practices amongst those opposed to the Scottish Government. Fundamentally, this is not whataboutery but the means of calling out political hypocrisy and media bias! Many parts of the UK are experiencing, to a worrying degree, the harms and worse of drug misuse. Trend data strongly suggest that present UK drugs policy and associated interventions are proving inadequate. At least in Scotland the mortality rate, whilst still far too … Continue reading Drug deaths – this is not whataboutery but the means of calling out political hypocrisy and media bias

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For two years now, pharmacists in England look to Scotland

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Professor John Robertson OBA England has fewer drug deaths and a shorter two year hospital waiting list but that’s it. After 14 years of not having a Conservative Government, every area of public service is operating better in Scotland. Even our ferries are far better than those in England [Isle of Wight, Scilly Isles, Mersey]. Here’s another – pharmacies The Guardian today, above, typically confused: The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) said it had “been left with little choice” but to recommend its 6,000 members take collective action for the first time in its history, unless the government provides “new and sufficient” funding … Continue reading For two years now, pharmacists in England look to Scotland

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Former New Labour minister tries to hide the abolishing of the whole NHS England system, not just the ‘quango’ and the deaths that will follow

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Professor John Robertson OBA Thanks to AR for alerting me to this. The word ‘Perspective’ there, is doing heavy lifting as former Blair Minister, Brian ‘Bad Vibrations’ Wilson, tries to tell us that Starmer is only getting rid of the NHS England top layer and freeing the trusts up, to get imaginative [spend the money in the private sector] and, of course leave NHS Scotland behind. It’s by no means just a perspective, a point of view, It’s a whopping lie. Here’s another ‘perspective‘ but a far more honest and clear-sighted one: The Starmer government’s announcement that it is abolishing … Continue reading Former New Labour minister tries to hide the abolishing of the whole NHS England system, not just the ‘quango’ and the deaths that will follow

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How Orkney islanders fought off a lung cancer risk, nearly 100 times the normal rate

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Professor John Robertson OBA Many thanks to Frances McKie for alerting me to this. In 1975, not much reported at the time, as far as I can remember, the residents of the Orkney Islands faced and fought off a dark threat. From Beyond Nuclear International in April 2021: The Orkneys were being surveyed for a potentially valuable deposit of uranium ore. The South Scottish Electricity Board had already persuaded local farmers, unaware of the health risks, to allow bore hole drilling on their land. By 1977, the entire local population on Orkney opposed uranium exploitation there. Among those opponents was … Continue reading How Orkney islanders fought off a lung cancer risk, nearly 100 times the normal rate

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Suspected drug deaths fall again for 3rd quarter in a row to lowest since 2017 and plummet for younger abusers

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Professor John Robertson OBA From Suspected drug deaths in Scotland: October to December 2024, published today: During 2024 there were 1,065 suspected drug deaths, 11% (132) fewer than in 2023. This is one of the lowest numbers of suspected drug deaths recorded in a single calendar quarter since the start of the time series in 2017. https://www.gov.scot/publications/suspected-drug-deaths-scotland-october-december-2024/pages/3/ Of particular interest: A majority (64%) of suspected drug deaths were of people aged between 35 and 54 years. This is broadly in line with previous periods. There were 34 suspected drug deaths in the under 25 age group, 37% (20) fewer than … Continue reading Suspected drug deaths fall again for 3rd quarter in a row to lowest since 2017 and plummet for younger abusers

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Labour Freedom of Information request on cervical cancer with figures edited and used to scare by omitting the wider facts

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Professor John Robertson OBA I used to teach Research Methods to BA Journalism students. Nice kids with ambitions to helpfully inform readers. I worry for them now. Corporate and state media care little for informing, seek only to attract readers with scares and titillation and, must surely damage the mental health of those who work within. First, that claim – Wait times for cervical examinations increase in all but one health area since 2019 – is based on a Labour Freedom of Information request with the results edited to pick out this negative example and fed to uncritical media but … Continue reading Labour Freedom of Information request on cervical cancer with figures edited and used to scare by omitting the wider facts

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The Herald’s reporting on homes is ‘Not fit for trust’ and ‘well below a tolerable standard’ as proper researchers find 90% of Scottish homes entirely free of damp

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Herald today: More than 700,000 Scottish homes are classed as not fit for habitation – with 600,000 more properties registered as below a legal tolerable standard since the pandemic, The Herald can reveal. Official surveys carried out for the Scottish Government show that in 2023, the number of Scots properties falling below the ‘tolerable standard’ in order to be fit for habitation has shot up from an estimated 54,000 (2%) in 2018 to 729,000 (27%) in 2023. The report is keen to link the above figures to child deaths: OMG, we think, until we … Continue reading The Herald’s reporting on homes is ‘Not fit for trust’ and ‘well below a tolerable standard’ as proper researchers find 90% of Scottish homes entirely free of damp

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Increasing cases of Parkinson’s in Scotland – latest research into causes and Monsanto’s $8 billion US pay-outs

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Professor John Robertson OBA BBC UK has been featuring new technologies to assist people with Parkinson’s, today. Two days ago, the BMJ reported new research on the condition’s global surge in cases. The BMJ site was down as I wrote this but parkinson’s europe has this: A new modelling study published today in the BMJ (British Medical Journal) suggests there will be 25 million people living with Parkinson’s worldwide by 2050, more than doubling the current global prevalence of Parkinson’s. Researchers from Capital Medical University in Beijing, China, conducted this latest modelling study using data from the 2021 Global Burden of Disease … Continue reading Increasing cases of Parkinson’s in Scotland – latest research into causes and Monsanto’s $8 billion US pay-outs

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NHS Scotland’s ‘excellent ovarian [and other] cancer services across Scotland’

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Professor John Robertson OBA The Express today, rehashing a Record story on February 13th 2025, has the sickly headline: John Swinney shamed over NHS failures to treat Scottish women with ovarian cancer It’s nonsense. The facts, first on all cancers: In the Guardian on 3 February 2025: More than half a million people in England have had to wait longer than two months for essential cancer treatment, analysis of latest NHS figures has shown. It has led experts to suggest thousands more patients will die unnecessarily unless the NHS gets to grips quickly with the delays. Analysis of new NHS figures by Radiotherapy UK shows that in the … Continue reading NHS Scotland’s ‘excellent ovarian [and other] cancer services across Scotland’