Nhs

Mark Reckless is in trouble for reckless campaigning. One of his promotional leaflets (pdf), noting his plans for the NHS in Rochester and Strood, features a photo of Reckless alongside the Medway NHS Trust chief executive Phillip Barnes. Unsurprisingly, the local NHS chiefs aren’t happy about this. By using a photo of Barnes and Reckless, taken when he was the Conservative MP for Rochester, on a campaign leaflet the Medway NHS trust believes it may be taken as ‘inferring that both Dr Barnes and the hospital were supporting Mr Reckless’ campaign.’ Shena Winning, chair of the Medway Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, has written to Reckless over the weekend, asking him to

I am leaving London soon, coming to the end of my time as a voluntary hospital visitor working from a chaplaincy in a London teaching hospital. I have been roaming around a variety of wards for the last three years, only one day a week, but in those few hours I have seen quite a lot. The most disturbing things have been the poor quality food, which cannot aid anyone’s recovery, and the neglect of the very old and vulnerable, the patients rather ominously labelled ‘bed blockers’. On my last visit, the Anglican chaplain was not in the hospital, so instead of attending a morning service with him in the

[audioplayer src=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/spectator/TheViewFrom22_15082013.m4a” title=”Andrew Haldenby and Sean Worth join Sebastian Payne to discuss NHS reforms.”] Listen [/audioplayer] GPs enjoy the salary of bankers, regularly pulling in £100,000 for a five-day week, with no on-call or weekend duties and a lovely taxpayer-funded holiday every year. I know this because it says so in the papers, so it must be true. Stories of GP largesse are far from accurate, and bear testament only to the media’s desire for sensationalism. GPs are the true medical heroes of the NHS, the soldiers in the trenches, too loyal to the metaphorical army to revolt, protest or express opinions, lest such opinions serve as an indirect abrogation

Lacking in pep? Looking for some extra zing as winter sets in? The Spectator recommends our energy conference on 1 December. Tickets are still available, sign up here. Society is changing fast because we live longer. But the NHS was designed for a different age where the gap between retirement and death was much smaller. The result is that the health service’s financial footings are fragile and require new ways of delivering health to keep spending at sustainable levels. A new roadmap for reform of the NHS has been produced by Sir Simon Stevens. But there is a large hole where herbal medicine should be. Sadly, it does not merit a single

So ingrained is the NHS as part of British life that it’s hard to imagine it disappearing. But it can’t go on as it is: its budget is being squeezed while its costs are rising and people are demanding more from it than ever. We want ongoing treatment for chronic conditions; exemplary care for our growing elderly population; the latest drugs; the highest standards of care across the country; and the NHS’s founding principles – the provision of universal care free at the point of use – to be adhered to. Earlier this year The Spectator held its first health lunch with a round-table discussion to coincide with preparations for

Last week’s public-finance statistics were truly dreadful. They showed that despite a year of fairly robust economic growth, UK government borrowing since the start of the financial year 2014 to 2015 was actually 10 per cent higher than in the same period in 2013 to 2014. Once again, it seems, our public finances will be in deficit by more than £100 billion this year. Running sustained deficits of this kind adds to the overall debt burden. According to the new ONS figures, public-sector net debt is currently £1.45 trillion (79.9 per cent of GDP) – meaning we are paying just over £50 billion per year in debt-interest payments. Whilst debt

Who enjoys all that calorie counting? If you hate diets but love the idea of losing a bit of weight, these quick fixes might just help you shift a few pounds – or prevent you from putting on any more. Get enough shut-eye. Research has shown that people who are sleep-deprived eat a lot more the next day than those who are well rested. In one study it was an average 600 calories more. Why? Quite simply, if you stay awake for longer, you’re more likely to have the munchies. Down the dairy. A few studies have suggested that people who eat more dairy products when they’re trying to lose

Labour wants the next election to be about the NHS, one of their strongest issues. Party strategists have been struck by how it has been rising up voters’ list of concerns and now want to keep it there. Ed Miliband’s pledge today that Labour will ensure that people who fear they have cancer are seen and tested for within a week is astute politics. It keeps the NHS near the top of the political agenda. It is also paid for by a levy on the tobacco companies, which have few friends and little public sympathy. Meanwhile Labour can claim that this is a prudent use of £150 million as cancer

No one likes getting the flu and for some people, in particular the sick and elderly, the virus can prove deadly. So it’s worth taking a few simple steps in a bid to stave it off. 1. Wash your hands. Use soap and water to wash off the germs you pick up on all the surfaces you touch (and make sure you clean them too). Wash hands often and thoroughly – sing “Happy Birthday” or another short song to yourself while you’re doing it. And grasp the tap with a piece of loo paper when you turn it off. Overkill? Maybe. But who wants the flu? 2. Don’t smoke. You’re