Tag: mental-health

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Donald – Scotland is not bad at all already and a damn sight safer too

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The homicide rate in Scotland? 0.8 per 100 000. The rate in the USA, 7.2 times higher! Professor John Robertson OBA Suffice to say, by contrast, sometimes stark, with England after decades of Tory/Labour rule, Wales after decades of Labour rule, Scotland has: Shorter hospital waiting times, for all treatments, especially for 18-weeks, cancer, alcohol and drug treatment, IVF and A&E. Far more doctors, nurses, midwives, home visitors and beds. Far better patient protection schemes. Free prescriptions to enable, for example, all asthmatics to access medication, unlike the many in England who died from Covid for this reason. Far more … Continue reading Donald – Scotland is not bad at all already and a damn sight safer too

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Domestic abuse previous – another factor in Scotland’s lack of riots last summer?

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Professor John Robertson OBA From the Guardian today, this striking information: Two out of every five people arrested after participating in last summer’s riots had been previously reported to the police for domestic abuse, the Guardian can disclose. Police data released under freedom of information (FoI) laws shows that 41% of 899 people arrested for taking part in the violent disorder last July and August had been reported for crimes associated with intimate partner violence. For those arrested by one police force, this figure was as high as 68%. Previous offences include actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm, stalking, breach … Continue reading Domestic abuse previous – another factor in Scotland’s lack of riots last summer?

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As resident (junior) doctor strikes begin today in NHS England, SNP settlement praised by BMA means NHS Scotland set to avoid thousands of excess deaths again

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Professor John Robertson OBA After the last set of Junior Doctor strikes in 2023/2024, there were serious concerns about postponed appointments and excess deaths due to these. Above, the shocking picture of 52 out of the last 365 when doctors were on strike in England. There were no days lost to action in Scotland. According to the Guardian on 10 January 2025, junior doctor strikes caused around 1.3 million appointments to be cancelled. Had there been comparable action in Scotland, around 130 000 appointments would have been lost. According to the Telegraph on 2 January, there were nearly 53 000 … Continue reading As resident (junior) doctor strikes begin today in NHS England, SNP settlement praised by BMA means NHS Scotland set to avoid thousands of excess deaths again

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If Nigel Farage is wrong on ‘UK’ crime, he’s even more wrong on crime in Scotland

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Guardian yesterday, the above and evidence that Farage is a bit off in his use of statistics on ‘UK’ crime. Will they survive a collision with the evidence here? From May 2025: Crime confirmed as really continuing to fall, based on three sources, to remain at roughly 1 in 10 experiencing crime directly from 1 in 5 under Labour From Safer Communities and Justice Statistics Monthly Data Report: May 2025, published today: Police recorded crime is down 1% since year ending December 2023, and remains below the position immediately prior to the pandemic. The total number … Continue reading If Nigel Farage is wrong on ‘UK’ crime, he’s even more wrong on crime in Scotland

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As resident (junior) doctor strikes loom in NHS England, SNP settlement praised by BMA means NHS Scotland set to avoid thousands of excess deaths again

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Professor John Robertson OBA In the Guardian today, the above and: In a letter to the NHS chief executive, Sir Jim Mackey, the BMA council chair, Dr Tom Dolphin, and the deputy council chair, Dr Emma Runswick, said: “Your decision to instruct hospitals to run non-urgent planned care stretches safe staffing far too thinly, and risks not only patient safety in urgent and emergency situations, but in planned care, too. “Consultants cannot safely provide elective care and cover for residents at the same time. We therefore strongly urge you to reconsider your instructions to hospitals, which should be preparing now … Continue reading As resident (junior) doctor strikes loom in NHS England, SNP settlement praised by BMA means NHS Scotland set to avoid thousands of excess deaths again

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Leading health think tank praises new framework for population health co-created by Scottish Government and COSLA

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– ‘this is a major step forward’ –  ‘Despite the now released Fit for the future: 10 Year Health Plan, England has nothing equivalent’ – ‘England would do well to draw inspiration from its neighbour’. By stewartb A respected think tank focusing on health and care in England, the King’s Fund published (July 14) a blog post with the headline: ‘What can English health policy learn from Scotland? A coherent policy approach to population health.’ Source: https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-analysis/blogs/scotland-coherent-policy-approach-population-health It describes the King’s Fund’s longstanding advocacy of a stronger focus in England on population health through promoting the ‘integration for health, as … Continue reading Leading health think tank praises new framework for population health co-created by Scottish Government and COSLA

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News you won’t see – Scottish Government funding for playparks to promote children’s health and development surges by FIVE times in only five years

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Professor John Robertson OBA From: Funding to upgrade children’s playparks: FOI release Information request and response under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 published yesterday: Question 1 – How much of this money has been allocated (not to be confused with the £25,000,000 announced recently)? The Scottish Government has allocated and committed the following sums since May 2021: £5 million in year 2021/22, £5 million in year 2022/23, £10 million in year 2023/24 and  £15 million in year 2024/25. The Scottish Government announced recently that in 2025/26 the final funding instalment of £25 million will be provided to the local … Continue reading News you won’t see – Scottish Government funding for playparks to promote children’s health and development surges by FIVE times in only five years

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‘No current investigations in Scotland involving offences against children which would mirror the investigations [in England] described in Baroness Casey’s audit as being perpetrated by “grooming gangs”

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Professor John Robertson OBA Readers will be aware no doubt of new Labour MP Joani Reid’s shameless u-turn on national inquiries into grooming gangs – no in England where they are many, to save her boss a red face, but yes in Scotland, where there are none, proving that as Jimmy Reid’s granddaughter, the apple can fall pretty far from the tree at times. Reid also wrote to FM Swinney, demanding an inquiry here but his response published on 4th July 2025 has had no MSM coverage. You can see why: However, in order for any action to be effective, … Continue reading ‘No current investigations in Scotland involving offences against children which would mirror the investigations [in England] described in Baroness Casey’s audit as being perpetrated by “grooming gangs”

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NHS Scotland’s emergency stroke treatment saving thousands but the service remains in crisis in England after a year of Labour

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Professor John Robertson OBA Many thanks to Brenda Robb for both alerting me to this and for research assistance. In the Guardian today, the above, and: The NHS has repeatedly failed in its diagnosis and care of stroke patients, England’s health ombudsman has said. According to the World Stroke Association, more than 12 million people worldwide will have their first stroke this year and 6.5 million will die as a result. Strokes are one of the UK’s biggest killers, causing about 34,000 deaths a year, and the single biggest cause of severe disability. The NHS Fast campaign aims to raise awareness of the most common symptoms of … Continue reading NHS Scotland’s emergency stroke treatment saving thousands but the service remains in crisis in England after a year of Labour

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NHS Scotland caring for 8% of the population but with not one of the five major maternity crises and a system that is ‘equitable’

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Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Health today: Health Secretary Wes Streeting, has said “we must act now” as he announced a national investigation into maternity care in England. The announcement comes after a series of critical reports into maternity care over the past decade. In March 2015 an investigation found mothers and babies died unnecessarily at the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust between 2004 and 2013 – the report described a dysfunctional culture with substandard clinical skills, poor risk assessments and a repeated failure to properly investigate cases and learn lessons. In March 2022 an investigation into services at the … Continue reading NHS Scotland caring for 8% of the population but with not one of the five major maternity crises and a system that is ‘equitable’