Month: February 2018

Two-year wait for mental-health treatment not good enough

depression

According to a BBC Freedom of Information request, a third of NHS Trusts are missing the government guidelines for psychological therapy, which should start within six weeks for 75% of referrals.

What’s more concerning is that, in some cases, there were patients waiting more than two years for the vital mental health treatment they needed.

Mental health intervention is key to saving lives. Although we all know the NHS is stretched right now, lives are clearly at risk if some patients are having to wait too long for the psychological treatment they need.
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The worrying trend of data breaches will not help the NHS funding situation

NHS technology

Data breaches are practically the new norm, and with healthcare sector breaches at the top of the pile, we have a lot of reasons to be worried as a nation relying on a public-funded healthcare system.

For the private healthcare systems like they have in the U.S., the liability and the costs can fall on a private organisation or their insurance. In the U.K., the taxpayer picks up the tab.

The increasing numbers of healthcare sector data breaches is not helping the NHS funding situation at all.
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Medical negligence compensation claims – a few facts

Medical negligence compensation is a hotly-debated topic. On the one hand, we have a stretched and underfunded public health service that could do without legal cases eating up millions of taxpayers’ pounds in pay-outs and legal fees, but on the other hand, we have the victims.

One of the major problems with medical negligence claims is that they’re often complex to run. Unlike a road accident where someone hits the back of another driver and it’s usually obvious who is at fault, in a medical negligence claim, it can be far harder to determine whether any negligence has occurred. The case often requires in-depth investigations and an expert lawyer representing you for the case; both of which costs money.
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NHS statistics say we are obese, sedentary and drug-reliant

nhs obese and opioid warning

According to the latest report from our National Health Service, we are statistically obese; spend way too much time sat down; and take far too many prescribed drugs.

So, just to reiterate, many of us overeat, barely do enough exercise, unless it’s walking towards the fridge and back which then creates health problems that leads to us apparently swallowing prescribed pills like they’re mints and thus contributing towards the nation’s growing drug-dependency problem.

Much like the reported opioid crisis in America, the U.K. may not be far behind a similar drugs crisis either…
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