South West investigation shows painful compromises to avoid deficits
According to a Lowdown survey of recent board papers, Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) covering the South West of England are … Read more
Cuts to services
Thousands of pests found at English hospitals
The Guardian reports that thousands of pests including rats, cockroaches and bedbugs have been found at NHS hospitals in England. Hospital … Read more
Children’s emergency mental health referrals in England soar by 53%
NHS data shows that the number of children referred to emergency mental healthcare in England has soared by more than … Read more
1 in 5 NHS patients believe delays to treatment made their cancer worse
A recent report by MacMillan Cancer Support found a collapse in waiting time standards since 2014 has resulted in 180,000 … Read more
Tory ‘neglect’ blamed for 3.6m abandoned calls to NHS 111 in England
An analysis by the House of Commons Library, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, has found that patients contacting NHS 111 … Read more
Eating disorder service in ‘very distressing’ state after 19 deaths
Ombudsman Rob Behrens, the author of a Parliamentary report into ‘failing’ eating disorder services in 2017, says the number of … Read more
Thérèse Coffey to drop smoking action plan, insiders say
The Guardian reports that ministers are expected to break a promise to announce an action plan to tackle smoking, in … Read more
DIY dentistry on the rise as 90% of NHS practices not seeing new patients
The director of the Healthwatch England watchdog has warned that incidents of DIY dentistry, including people using superglue to stick … Read more
Cuts to hospital discharge programme fuel crisis
NHS England’s response to the new austerity embodied in Rishi Sunak’s spending review from last autumn has been to slash … Read more
Senior nurse tells of acute pressure on NHS 111
A senior nurse describes to The Guardian how the NHS 111 telephone advice service is increasingly unable to help those … Read more