Blair 'will not quit next week'

Downing Street has strongly denied press claims Tony Blair will announce his resignation before Scottish, Welsh and English local elections on 3 May.

He has been widely expected to announce a departure date in the days following the poll but
some reports suggested he was planning to go earlier.

In a rare comment on his retirement plans, Downing Street said speculation he would quit on 1 May was "wrong".

Mr Blair has urged voters not to give him a final "kicking" next Thursday.

LETS WAIT AND SEE...........................AND WHAT A LEGACY TO HAVE.............


UNJUST WARS IN IRAQ & AFGANISTAN.............

A CARVED UP HEALTH SERVICE WITH A CARVE UP SECRETARY OF STATE IN CHARGE

PFI THAT IS COSTING US THE TAX PAYER BILLIONS AND IS GOING INTO FAT CATS
POCKETS..........

HIGH FUEL COSTS...........

EXPLOITED EAST EUOPEAN WORKERS.........

PENSIONS THAT ARE WORTHLESS..............

UNFAIR FUNDING FOR NHS & COUNCILS.........

New scheme to improve quality and convenience of care closer to home

Accreditation process for GPs and Pharmacists with Special Interests

Health Minister Andy Burnham today published new guidance to help health bodies and practitioners deliver high quality convenient care closer to people's homes.

Under government plans, GPs and Pharmacists with special interests will need to go through a new rigorous and fair form of accreditation to ensure they have the necessary skills to deliver efficient and effective patient care in the community that was traditionally only available in hospitals.

By shifting services in this way, patients will wait less time and have shorter journeys for treatment, as well as having a greater choice and convenience about when and where they are treated.

Today's guidance, Implementing care closer to home - convenient quality care for patients, provides practical support to NHS commissioners for the provision of more specialised services delivered by PwSIs. It includes:

- an introduction to shifting services into the community;

- a step by step guide on the issues for consideration when redesigning patient care using PwSIs; and

- a new nationally recognised accreditation process for GPs and Pharmacists with special interests that can be delivered locally to ensure services and the individuals working within them are underpinned by excellent clinical governance.

THIS IS ANOTHER GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE THAT HAS FORCED THIS NEW
ACCREDITATION TO BE INTRODUCED.
HOW MANY OF THESE G.P'S WITH SPECIAL INTERESTS WILL BE UP TO OR PREPARED
TO GO THROUGH THIS ACCREDITATION PROCESS, THIS WILL PROBABLY KILL OFF
THE CHANCES OF PCT'S TO FORCE THE PUBLIC TO HAVE TREAMENTS DONE IN
THEIR G.P'S OR A G.P LED CLINIC.....................THANK YOU MR BLAIR...............
YOU WILL KILL OFF A STUPID SCHEME, PLEASE NOW FUND EACH PCT EQUALLY
ACCROSS THE U.K, YOU KNOW IT'S RIGHT AND KEEP THE HOSPITALS OPEN


REMEMBER MR BLAIR.............................................


PATIENT CHOICE IS THE KEY

THIS WILL COME BACK AND HAUNT YOU LIKE THE G.P CONTRACTS...............

Mixed news over NHS staff numbers

The debate over NHS staffing continues after independent data showed there had been a cut in posts, but more doctors and nurses were working full-time.

The NHS Information Centre has estimated that 17,000 posts have been lost in the year
up to September 2006.

But among nurses and doctors there was actually an increase in capacity as more staff were working full-time.

Ministers said it showed the NHS was strengthening frontline staffing, but critics said cuts were hitting hard.

Jobs cuts has been at the centre of controversy in recent months, with unions and opposition parties estimating thousands of posts have gone as the health service struggles with deficits.

The latest figures, which the NHS Information Centre said was a "best estimate", has given
weight to both sides of the argument.


Only last month, the Royal College of Nursing claimed 22,000 posts have gone in the last 18 months, reasonably in-line with the 17,000 figure over 12 months.

But shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said: "Staff across the NHS feel badly let down and threatened by the impact of lost jobs and financial deficits."

Lib Dem health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "Government spinning and denial cannot conceal the fact that frontline medical jobs have been lost as a direct result of this government's appalling mismanagement of the NHS."


And Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing said the figures confirmed fears deficits were having a damaging impact.

"When you dig below the surface... the headline increase in nurse numbers is made up of double counting existing nurses working extra shifts."

Community Rally 28th April 2007

Well it will soon be here, we are basing the rally/March around giving the information to the
public as to the proposals laid out in the PCT/Hinchingbrooke Consultation Document.

As the Local PCT meeting have been poorly attended and the fact that, out of 70,000 homes &
businesses in the affected Huntingdonshire catchment area, only 14,000 document have been
delivered we have decided to give the people access to the document and what it means to them
and their future Health care.

Many things have been said at many meetings over the last 6 months or so but there is  an
issue with how the people are seeing the situation.
Most locally, due to certain press reporting, think that everything is "business as usual" at
the Hospital when clearly this is not the case, there are sweeping changes afoot and  that
is not a political statement, just fact.............
So our aim at the weekend is to raise awareness of the Consultation and what it means..........

So come along and meet the people who know and the people who care..............

Surgery 'should be done locally'

Eight out of ten operations should be carried out on patients in their local area, says the government's national advisor on surgery.

Professor Sir Ara Darzi said the remaining more complex cases should take place at specialist centres by highly skilled surgeons.

He said developments in surgery over the past 20 years have changed how operations can be carried out.

Bernard Ribeiro, President of the Royal College of Surgeons, welcomed the call.

In his report, Sir Ara said developments like lasers and keyhole surgery had led to a quicker recovery for patients and less risk of infection.

He said procedures such as hernia operations could now be done as day cases in local settings.

Sir Ara said: "Whilst I have been practising as a surgeon there have been major advances in surgical techniques.

"Yet we could be doing much more minimally invasive day case surgery.

"The NHS is not yet providing surgery in a way that makes the most of the progress in surgery over the last twenty years.

"I hope my report will be a step in changing that."

THIS IS WHAT WE ALL WANT, LOCAL HOSPITALS DOING DAY TREATMENT.............
HAVE WE GOT ONE....................
OH YES WE HAVE AND A DAY TREAMENT CENTRE TOO.................................AND THEY
STILL WANT TO CLOSE IT IN 2 YEARS TIME

Some comments from a Community Midwife's e-mail

These ladies workload has increased by 400% to save cash, now it does not take too many brains
to work out the stress of overwork that will happen and also the chances of errors being made,
the service will suffer as many will retire or leave the job....................... How can you run a service
like this on the Cheap...............you can't

read and weep, but take heed

* We already provide all round care, from pre-conception, ante-natal care (including being experts in ante-natal screening, parentcraft, child protection issues, and detection of the abnormal) to labour and birth in the home setting, plus full post-natal care, including supporting breast feeding.
 
* At present there is no two way traffic. The hospital midwives do not `integrate' into the community.

* I personally would feel extremely stressed at the prospect of working a shift on the delivery suite, where policies and protocols are constantly changing.

* My area of expertise is in the community. This helps to provide high quality, safe care to my women.

* The midwives who choose to work in the hospital also offer high quality care because it is their area of expertise.

* The government wants all women to be offered a home birth, and to have a named midwife. We can not achieve this if our numbers are going to be depleted by propping up the labour ward.

* Community midwives are going to feel increasingly undervalued and demoralised if their skills are not recognised appropriately.

* The down grading of community midwives has further increased our feelings of unhappiness at the lack of appreciation of our skills.
 
I'm looking at xxxxxx xxth to retire

what can be said apart from........

SAD BUT THE ACCOUNTANTS HAVE NO HEART, NO SOUL AND NO BRAINS

Cuts 'squeezing life out of NHS'

The NHS is having the "life squeezed out of it" by cuts imposed because of deficits, says the UK's nurse leader.

Dr Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, congratulated ministers for tripling the health budget since 1997.

But he warned the progress made was at risk of being reversed as wards are closed, jobs lost and services slashed.

Nurses called for the law to be changed to introduced guaranteed nurse/patient ratios as a way
of preventing cuts.


Speaking at the RCN's annual conference in Harrogate, Lothian nurse Geoff Earl said evidence
had shown death rates increased by a third if the number of patients per nurse increased from four to eight.

"The lower the ratio the lower the rates of urinary tract infection and pneumonia," he said.

"It also improves recruitment and retention, reduces the use of agency staff and leads to less staff sickness. So it also makes financial sense - in the long term."

David Dawes, part of the RCN's body for nurses in senior management, said he supported the move as it would make many of the recent cuts - the RCN estimates over 22,000 post have been lost in the last 18 months - illegal.

And Lisa Leicester, a community mental health nurse from Gloucestershire, added: "Lets ensure appropriate staffing levels but also appropriately qualified nurses."

Nurses voted to pass a motion calling for new legislation to ensure appropriate staffing levels.

Ratios would vary depending the type of care a patient was receiving but could mean in some specialities (did not specify which one) one-to-one care would be guaranteed.

But Howard Catton, head of policy at the RCN, said: "The problem with minimum ratios is that they becomes maximums and that takes away from professional judgement. And if minimums can't be met, wards are closed."

Tough times

The debate came after the RCN's new leader set out the "tough" times the NHS was facing.

The former NHS trust chief executive, who took up the post in January, said: "Training budgets are being raided and public health programmes are being targeted.

"We've got workloads gong through the roof as jobs are lost and vacancies frozen."

He said the Labour government deserved credit for increasing funding, which has increased the workforce of nurses and doctors.

But he added: "The situation is so serious that the progress we've made could soon be reversed or, sadly, lost altogether."

NHS trusts are making cuts in a bid to balance their books after racking up over £500m of deficits last year.

Alluding to recent press reports, Dr Carter said it had got so bad that nurses were being asked to work for nothing and cutting down on the use of lightbulbs.

He also strongly criticised this year's 2.5% pay rise for nurses, describing the award as "shameful".

Commenting on the fact the RCN has not invited any politician to congress this year, he said: "It was pointless bringing someone from government in because of how badly they have treated nurses and other health workers."

ENOUGH SAID...............NOTHING I HAVE NOT SAID BEFORE......................

NHS 'will not be free in future'
The NHS is unlikely to be free at the point of use within 10 years, say doctors.

A British Medical Association poll of 964 young GPs and hospital doctors found 61% thought patients would have to pay for some treatment by 2017.

Nearly half of all young doctors also expect to leave the NHS within 10 years, according to the survey.

All three main political parties have ruled out bringing in a form of charging in the short-term.

The doctors questioned were members of the BMA's Junior Members Forum, which effectively represents the top doctors of the future as it includes those who have graduated within the last 12 years and students.

The poll also revealed 94% thought the role of the private sector would continue to grow

what a sad day when we have to pay and pay again
this is what happens when fat salary accountants
get involved in YOUR health care.........cant find
a dentist..........think 10 years ahead............
cant find an NHS doctor or Hospital........

Warning over surgery kit cleaning.
Plans to centralise the sterilisation of surgery equipment into 50 new "super centres" have been labeled "a recipe for chaos" by the British Orthopedic Association (BOA). Ministers insist thew move is needed to meet new standards of cleanliness. But surgeon Andrew Thomas, spokesman for the BOA, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme said it could delay operations. He added that the BOA had contacted the National Audit Office to see if centralising the services represented value for money for the NHS. In January, figures emerged that showed a large increase in the number of operations canceled due to a lack of surgical instruments. A total of 1,765 operations were canceled in 2005/ 06 - up 40% from 1,252 in 2002/ 03.

http:/ / news.bbc.co.uk/ 1/ hi/ health/ 6531979.stm

Health workers face job threat.
Health service workers across Norfolk and the East are preparing themselves for the full impact of a wave of restructuring of the area's NHS. The newly formed Norfolk Primary Care Trust has already shed almost 180 jobs in the process of streamlining the previous five PCTs
into one county-wide entity. In both Great Yarmouth and Waveney, and the rest of Suffolk, significant redundancies are expected, although so far job losses have been minimal. Morale is described as low by union bosses who say the trust's multi-million pound deficits are making
staff fear for their jobs as the inevitable efficiency drives take affect. Health workers were, under the reorganisation, guaranteed their jobs till June. However, as the trust fully implements its plans, redundancies are being described as inevitable. PCT Unison branch officer covering Norfolk, Nigel Burrage, said: "Staff morale is very low, people are insecure about job losses but also over the impact of workload on everybody else that remains. The job losses do not reflect a loss of activity and the workload for everybody else is increasing. It is a very difficult time and we do not know how many jobs will be lost." He added that Norfolk PCT's plans for intermediate care would see further job losses as community hospitals close and beds are lost. "From our point of view, we are concerned that the teams that remain are properly resourced," he said. "There is increasing insecurity across the whole organisation over this process. In addition we have a £47m over spend with turnaround teams from the Department of Health looking at that and it is clear they will be working to save money. The impact of that is more job losses."

http:/ / new.edp24.co.uk

85% of health cash 'goes to labour areas'.
Up to 85% of Government spending on health has gone to Labour areas, according to the Conservative Party. Details from parliamentary questions show that 33 of the 46 multi-million pound hospitals built since 1997 are in Labour areas. Government policy has been targeted at removing health inequalities and tackling problems in deprived areas, many of which are Labour strongholds. However the Conservative say they are waiting for an explanation of the rationale behind the placement of such projects. Andrew Lansley the shadow health spokesman, said:
"Four in every five of Labour's new hospitals have been built in the constituencies of their own MPs. Meanwhile, ministers are holding secret meetings with Labour Party officials to target up to 60 hospital cutbacks on the constituencies of Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs. These figures confirm what we suspected when Patricia Hewitt went against the advice of experts and ordered a new hospital to be built in a Labour constituency in south London. Last year, Patricia Hewitt launched a policy dictating that care should be provided at home and not in hospitals. Patients in Conservative and Lib Dem areas will be wondering why it is their hospitals that have to close in support of the policy, while patients in Labour areas benefit from virtually all the spending Labour is committing to building new hospitals which are, apparently, unnecessary." Andy Burnham, the health minister, angrily denied the claims and said that need was determining the location of new hospitals. "The Tories slashed capital spending in the early 1990s and left the fabric of the NHS in an appalling state, in many cases in the most deprived areas," he said. "Now they are having a go at us for putting things right. Over 100 major new hospital projects worth more than £10 billion have either already opened or have started construction since 1997 as we rectify years of under-investment." The Tories also drew attention to the long-term cost of these hospitals, which were revealed in a written answer last year to be £52.8bn over the lifetime of the PFI contracts under which they have been built.

http:/ / www.telegraph.co.uk/ news/ main.jhtml ?xml=/ news/ 2007/ 04/ 12/ nhealth12.xml

Health tops public priorities for next election.

A YouGov survey for the Royal College of Nursing has found that the public believe health should be the top spending priority for the next government. The survey of over 2,000 people also found overwhelming support for the NHS with 93% saying they valued it as an essential free public service.

http:/ / www.hsj.co.uk/ healthservicejournal/ pages/ HSJDailyAnnouncementsService

Health 'should be top priority'

A poll of nearly 2,400 people by the Royal College of Nursing found that health was ranked above law and order, defence, education and the environment.

And nearly half of those questioned agreed ministers should introduce a dedicated NHS tax.

It comes as the government is predicted to reduce the record increases in funding the NHS has been receiving in recent years.

The NHS budget will have trebled by 2008 after rises of over 7% a year in real terms since 2002.
Many predict the spending review in the autumn is likely to lead to increases of about half that from 2008-9.

Critics have said if this does happen it will actually feel like a budget cut.

A third of those questioned said they wanted to see funding maintained at current levels, while 59% said they wanted it to be increased.

Many said they feared services would be cut if this did not happen.

In total, 37% said health should be the most important spending priority, 23% law and order, 20% education, 10% environment and 2% defence.

When asked in more detail about their healthcare priorities, almost half of those surveyed ranked hospitals above other areas, such as reducing waiting times, more health services in the community, care for the elderly and public health.

The poll, carried out by YouGov for the RCN and published as nurses gather in Harrogate for their annual conference, also suggested there was an appetite for a specific tax for the NHS.

Some 46% said they would be happy for this to be introduced with 17% saying it should be levied from all taxpayers, 18% from higher rate tax payers and 11% from those earning over £100,000.


RCN general secretary Dr Peter Carter said: "This survey is proof that the public value and believe in our NHS.

"They want modernisation, not privatisation and that they demand increased investment in order to maintain the welcome progress made in recent years.

"The NHS is a unique public institution with a unique role in our national life and it should be supported and sustained.

"That's what the public believe and that's the message our politicians need to hear and act upon."

But health experts said a cut in the increases would not necessarily mean the NHS has to suffer.

A recent report by the King's Fund health think-tank concluded good planning and a better relationship between doctors and managers could avoid cuts in services.

And Henry de Zoete, a researcher at the centre-right think-tank Reform, added: "It is not like it is a pay-cut.

"I think what we will see is that it will focus people's minds and make the health service more efficient."


THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE ALL BEEN SAYING, WITH ALL THE SEVERE CUTS AND JOB LOSSES GOING ON AND
WITH ACCOUNTANTS RUNNING THE SERVICE IT IS DOOMED UNLESS CHANGES TO HOW THE NHS IS
RUN.............FOR PATIENTS AND THEIR NEEDS NOT FOR PROFIT............