A “Doncaster” doctor used by David Cameron to promote his health reforms yesterday has quit his commissioning group and doesn’t even live in Doncaster. The prime minister attempted to embarrass Miliband at PMQs by quoting a medical worker supposedly from his own constituency: Speaking as acting chairman of the Doncaster pathfinder CCG he said this: [...]
The Department of Health has invoked free market thinker Adam Smith to rationalise further privatisation of the NHS. While impact assessments are supposedly prepared by neutral civil servants to “outline advantages and disadvantages of each option”, official papers underpinning the announcement last week of yet more tendering to external providers characterises current arrangements as “the [...]
Astonishing scenes transpired at St. Guy’s hospital today as a surgeon shouted at a group including the prime minister and his deputy as he demanded people leave an orthopaedic ward for breaches of hygiene regulations. While government ministers are keen to be seen obeying hygiene guidelines during hospital photo opportunities, their entourage of media, press officers and political spinners seem [...]
A consultancy firm receiving millions of pounds in NHS privatisation contracts has seen its controversial research used in attempts to derail reforms designed to bring health cover to 32 million Americans. McKinsey & Company rowed with the White House after releasing a study claiming that 30% of US employers are planning to stop health insurance [...]
Kudos to the Predictable Paradox blog for exposing some potentially unparliamentary language during PMQs. Referencing the hitherto restrained use of private health providers under New Labour, Nick Clegg could be seen to lash out across the dispatch box as Ed Miliband took the government to task over the NHS this week. To the untrained eye, the [...]
As the government attempt to get NHS privatisation up and running even before the Health and Social Care Bill is passed, private healthcare providers are paying upwards of £60,000 for access to government ministers and senior NHS management, including ”top table places” at a dinner with Andrew Lansley. Networking packages for the NHS Confederation conference next [...]
One of David Cameron’s most senior health advisers told a conference of health executives that the NHS will be privatised, advising representatives from healthcare companies of an impending goldrush in the wake of Andrew Lansley’s health reforms. Mark Britnell was NHS director general for commissioning and system management before joining the private sector as global head [...]
While increasing numbers on the organ donation register are undoubtedly a good thing, perhaps NHS managers could have chosen a more sensitive formulation for this internal memo: “We are thrilled to be able to announce this financial year for the first time ever, there were 1,011 deceased organ donors in the United Kingdom.” The note memo [...]
