The NHS in Late Soviet Britain
We are now at the unprecedented point where private hospitals are doing one in ten planned NHS operations in England. This marks a 50% increase in elective procedures outsourced to private providers since 2019 (before COVID), leading some to claim...
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Hospital privatisation is linked with worse quality care for patients – new research
The NHS is in a critical state. The continued consequences of the pandemic and long waits for treatment mean that people are facing more difficulties than ever accessing the care they need. A growing number of people are even paying...
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Frankie Boyle’s hamster & the NHS long-term plan
Back in what now seems like a curiously quaint era for UK civil democracy, the Scottish Independence referendum was the once-in-a-generation opportunity for a group of people to take back control™ of their own political destiny. Despite what must have...
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Co-payments for universal healthcare: the politics of blame
It was interesting to see the UK media discussion around the Co-Funding and Co-Payment Bill which was put before the House of Commons for its 2nd reading last week. The Parliamentary webpage describes it as “a Bill to make provision for co-funding...
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On euphemism & sheer cloudy vagueness: the case of tax credits
In his celebrated essay Politics and the English Language, Orwell talks about politicians calculated use of purposively vague language. Last week’s vote on tax credit reform, if you listen to Tory commentators, has precipitated a constitutional crisis in the UK....
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Manufacturing fictions: Gothic morality tales
I am not the first person to point out the Gothic nature of capitalism, nor is it a particularly recent observation. The full extent of just how gothic it is dawned on me during my time at Shades City Centre...
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David Cameron, England’s NHS, and the tiger in the bathroom
As it becomes impossible to deny the devastation being wreaked on the National Health Service by 2012’s Health & Social Care Act, who is really pledging to fix it?
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GPs aren’t private companies – but the private takeover is nearing
All GP practices will have to open to private sector competition, NHS England has announced. Is this why 85% of GPs think the NHS will be fully privatised in 10 years? ‘All you GPs are private providers anyway’ I often have...
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To Save or Let Die? Doctors’ Dilemmas in the Chinese Health Sector
In May 2014, a Chinese farmer in Anhui Province cut off his own feet when they deteriorated into severe necrosis, causing unbearable pain. In 2012, a peasant in Hebei province amputated his festering leg using a saw and a fruit...
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NHS Nu-Speak
This email has been scanned for viruses; however we are unable to accept responsibility for any damage caused by the contents. The opinions expressed in this email represent the views of the sender, not [name removed] NHS Foundation Trust unless...
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Proposals to regulate NHS Managers: a consultation