Tag: health

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NHS England told to treat the less sick BEFORE those ‘at death’s door’ to meet Tory ‘political’ targets

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This is all-too-familiar to us here. I’ve reported on NHS England re-starting the clock after A&E arrivals have been admitted to a department, to improve published statistics; on NHS Wales reducing targets from 95% for cancer waiting times, to 70%, to make things look less bad; on Public Health England not counting care home deaths to make their Covid death rate seem comparable to those in Scotland; on BBC UK using the ‘All’ A&E waiting time figures to compare with our ‘ED’ only performance to make theirs seem bearable and on English hospitals ‘coping’ with third world hospital-acquired Covid infection … Continue reading NHS England told to treat the less sick BEFORE those ‘at death’s door’ to meet Tory ‘political’ targets

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Deaths from heart disease FALL – another complete lie from the Herald’s health correspondent

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From the National Records of Scotland, on 12 December 2023, the most recent data, the above reveals: Deaths from heart disease overall in 2023, were fewer than the average for 2021-2022 and those for 2018-2022, despite an aging population. The excess deaths figure was also down. For ischaemic heart disease deaths (sudden ‘heart attack’), they were significantly down. https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/news/2023 Yet in the Herald today: The number of people on cardiology waiting lists is at the highest level on record in Scotland amid “chronic underinvestment” and a “worrying” increase in deaths from heart disease.   The British Heart Foundation (BHF) Scotland has warned that decades … Continue reading Deaths from heart disease FALL – another complete lie from the Herald’s health correspondent

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Scottish media unable to find any dental queues and feel sick to…….

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From the Guardian today: Police were called to manage hundreds of people lined up outside a dentist in Bristol, who had flocked to the newly opened practice desperate to secure an NHS appointment. The dentist, which was formerly a Bupa dental centre, reopened under the name St Pauls dental practice on Monday morning. The St Pauls area in Bristol has been without a dentist for seven months after the site closed last June. The Herald and BBC Scotland health correspondents have just returned home after failing to find any dental queues thought they did manage to persuade two friends of Reporting … Continue reading Scottish media unable to find any dental queues and feel sick to…….

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Water bills reporting does not add up Scottish charges which are lower for better water

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From BBC Business today: The average annual water and sewerage bill is expected to rise by 6% in England and Wales, up £27 to £473, says suppliers’ trade body Water UK. In Scotland, water and waste charges will go up by 8.8%, a rise of £36. From BBC Scotland yesterday: Water bills in Scotland will increase by 8.8% from April. Scottish Water said the rise was needed to provide “significant investment” in replacing ageing infrastructure and improving services. The publicly-owned company dismissed reports that it was already planning similar-sized increases for a further two years beyond 2024. This year’s increase … Continue reading Water bills reporting does not add up Scottish charges which are lower for better water

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Not one case of measles in Scotland for three years, 95% vaccination and the Herald’s health correspondent tries to suggest it’s like the West Midlands here too

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I’m indebted to for As a genuine and scary surge in measles cases after plummeting vaccination rates among young children explodes in parts of England, especially London and the West Midlands, the Herald’s Helen McUrdle, yesterday, asks: Measles, MMR, vaccine hesitancy: How at risk is Scotland? and suggests: The West Midlands region of England is in the grip of its worst measles outbreak since the 1990s, while uptake of the MMR vaccine in Scotland is at it lowest level since records began in 2014. Her report is packed full of England’s data and a Roald Dahl story. There’s no sign … Continue reading Not one case of measles in Scotland for three years, 95% vaccination and the Herald’s health correspondent tries to suggest it’s like the West Midlands here too

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More on MMR immunisation in Scotland – latest research

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By stewartb Let me share some other positive insights on MMR immunisation, this time from a recent peer reviewed research paper: Source: McQuaid F, Mulholland R, Sangpang Rai Y, Agrawal U, Bedford H, Cameron JC, et al. (2022) Uptake of infant and preschool immunisations in Scotland and England during the COVID-19 pandemic: An observational study of routinely collected data. PLoS Med 19(2): e1003916. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1003916 ‘We found that early uptake of infant and preschool immunisations (within 4 weeks of a child becoming eligible) ROSE SIGNIFICANTLY FOR THE DURATION OF THE FIRST LOCKDOWN PERIOD IN SCOTLAND, RESULTING IN THOUSANDS MORE CHILDREN RECEIVING THEIR … Continue reading More on MMR immunisation in Scotland – latest research

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Measles outbreak – Surely the Herald would not cherry pick dates?

johnrobertson834

By stewartb The absence of news coverage of measles from a Scotland perspective in the relevant section of the BBC News website is worthy of note. After all, BBC Scotland supposedly provides a public service and arguably, issues of public health relevant to children merit greater attention. BBC Scotland COULD communicate the significance of Scotland’s relatively high rate of MMR vaccine take-up and provide evidence – for context and perspective – which would encourage even higher levels. It’s not as if BBC Scotland has always been ‘disinterested’! From its News website dated 25 June 2019 we find this headline: ‘MMR … Continue reading Measles outbreak – Surely the Herald would not cherry pick dates?

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Scotland’s ‘safest in UK’ measles vaccination rates not worth comparing in the media unlike drug deaths

johnrobertson834

The Guardian today has: UK measles outbreaks: why are cases rising and vaccination rates falling? BBC London has: Mum urges vaccine push and shares how son died after catching measles The UK Mail has: UK GRIPPED BY MEASLES CRISIS The Mail in Scotland has only WhatsApp cover-ups and BBC Scotland focus on the same plus catching up on Michelle Mone. What is the actual situation in Scotland with regard to measles vaccination rates compared to rUK figures? Well it’s pretty newsworthy you’d think. Typically in the West Midlands, they’d see no cases but in the last month they’ve had 50! … Continue reading Scotland’s ‘safest in UK’ measles vaccination rates not worth comparing in the media unlike drug deaths

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The Campaign to blame the SNP for Covid deaths contrary to the facts is underway

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When the otherwise excellent Open Democracy seems to have swallowed the myth, much loved by Anas Sarwar, that Covid 19 deaths in care homes were the result of hospital discharges of untested patients into them, you know the campaign to turn around the story of Scotland’s better pandemic performance, is well on the way. Yesterday, they had: Care home deaths soared as Holyrood took two months to introduce testing for outgoing hospital patients, inquiry hears. Donald Macaskill, the chief executive of Scottish Care, which represents the country’s independent social care sector, said he warned the then-secretary for health and sport, … Continue reading The Campaign to blame the SNP for Covid deaths contrary to the facts is underway

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Misleading the public on hospital operations in Scotland for cheap political gain

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In the Herald’s health newsletter and big on their website, today: It is fairly obvious that clearing the elective waiting list backlog depends on ramping up the number of patients getting into theatre for surgery. Yet the results of a new workforce survey, published today, highlight that a lack of available theatre spaces is (alongside stress and burnout) the number one gripe for the nation’s surgeons. Indeed, the most recent available data for Scotland illustrates just how much patient turnover continues to lag behind pre-pandemic levels. As of November 2023, a total of 25,922 operations were scheduled for theatre in … Continue reading Misleading the public on hospital operations in Scotland for cheap political gain