Sunak intervening to prevent end to doctors strikes

Having read the article it looks like his intention is to claim in the election build up that waiting list targets have failed to be met due to the doctors strikes. It’s quite a convenient excuse, because he can incite his supporters by saying he stood firm against the doctors on principle, demonstrating his strength as PM. Millions on waiting lists is neither here nor there.

Totally agree Casdon.

It’s a shameless tactic and one I hope will be rejected by the electorate.
I’ve been away in a group of 12 none of whom I’d met before. A mixed group of people from different parts of the country. One of our party needed antibiotics, easily bought at a local pharmacy. This led to a chat about our health service. The solid consensus was the ‘junior’ doctors aren’t junior, their Pat claim should be met.

I hope the article in the Guardian is untrue. It paints a very bad picture of the prime minister. Again the use of the word sources rings some alarm bells.

It doesn’t say anything positive about him, that’s for sure, but then I’ve never liked him, nor had much time for him.

Iam64

It’s a shameless tactic and one I hope will be rejected by the electorate.
I’ve been away in a group of 12 none of whom I’d met before. A mixed group of people from different parts of the country. One of our party needed antibiotics, easily bought at a local pharmacy. This led to a chat about our health service. The solid consensus was the ‘junior’ doctors aren’t junior, their Pat claim should be met.

No, junior doctors is the wrong term altogether.

I really don't know what was wrong with the previous terms which were in use.

A junior doctor could be a Foundation Year doctor or a Specialty Registrar.

Waiting for cancer treatment after diagnosis should take no longer than 62 days for 85% of patients - that's the NHS target - but only about 60% begin treatment in that timescale. The failure to meet the target has been a problem since 2014 so Sunak can hardly blame it on the 'junior' doctors' strikes (or the pandemic) though he may well try to do so.

I find it appalling that a person can wait 62 days for cancer treatment, or indeed even longer, at what must be the most worrying time of their life. How is it in any way acceptable? And Sunak has the nerve to blame junior doctors, most of whom, are nothing like junior!

maddyone

I find it appalling that a person can wait 62 days for cancer treatment, or indeed even longer, at what must be the most worrying time of their life. How is it in any way acceptable? And Sunak has the nerve to blame junior doctors, most of whom, are nothing like junior!

I watched my sister receiving a cancer diagnoses for aggressive melanoma this autumn and saw her agony as she was told that the waiting list for urgent referral was at least 31 days. That would have been 31 days of terror, that it would spread, and 31 days that she faced imminent death. What happened to the immediate referral - I was referred within a week and that was dreadful.

In the end she chose to go private which took a large amount of her savings, and even then I guess because of the pressure from people going private because of what the government has done to the NHS, there was a two week waiting list.

The whole system has become inhuman. We don’t live in a developing country, or a country where health care is dependent on your wealth.

We live in a country whose health system just 14 years ago was judged to be the best in the world.

What the Tories have done is an absolute scandal.

what the tories have done is an absolute scandal

The devastation of our NHS including mental health, drug/alcohol services along with the 20,000 experienced police officers they made redundant, the swathes of experienced social care managers/workers, the disdain with which ministers speak of teachers in state schools and much much more - we live in a broken country led by an arrogant group of people with inflated views of their own importance.

I’m so sorry to hear about your sister Whitewave. I hope she’s receiving the treatment she needs now. And that your treatment was successful and you are well.

It’s taken a year for me to be diagnosed with stenosis of the spine, between C4 and C5. My GP was good, and kept referring me to the appropriate people for the next test in the search for the diagnosis of why I had appalling pain my right hand. X rays, nerve conduction studies, hand specialist, psyiotherapist twice. Eventually we got to the MRI scan which showed up the problem and I have now got my first appointment with the spinal consultant next week when we return from NZ. A whole year since I first consulted my GP, and all the time in pain. I’m on steroids now to cope with the flight home. The reason for the delay was because each appointment entailed waiting. And then more waiting after I’ve seen the consultant for the initial treatment of a steroid injection into my spine.

maddyone My understanding is that in Germany every gp surgery has ultrasound available to patients. That must save time diagnosing some conditions. I wonder why MRI scans are not used sooner in treatment? With the huge backlog in the NHS, technology which speeds up diagnosis needs to be considered.

It’s the cost ronib

Iam64. But is it more expensive to do immediate ultrasounds and mri scans if you consider the cost of X-rays, nerve conduction studies, hand specialist, physiotherapist, gps etc. Also if such lengthy waiting is involved in diagnosis, surely there is a lot of pain and mental anguish? How much is an MRI scan as a cost to the NHS?

Also of course factor in lost days working!

I agree maddyone. The 85% 62 day target means it is intended that 15% wait longer and the failure to meet the target since 2014 means 4 out of 10 diagnosed patients exceed the 62 day wait because the current 'success' rate is only about 60%. It's totally unacceptable in my view and I imagine the King would find it unacceptable too if he were using the NHS.

Yes I understand that ronib

So he can use it as an excuse to try and gain votes, but surely after all this time people can see what our lying thieving Prime Miniature is up to?

Prime Miniature

But why are we expecting the PM to organise the NHS? There’s a huge hierarchy of managers- so what is their role?

Thank you ronib and Iam.
It started with the pain in my fingers over two years ago, but it wasn’t bad and I ignored it. By the time we were in New Zealand this time last year, it was bothering me a lot more, and I started wearing little splints on two of my fingers. I made an appointment online to speak to my GP for when I got home, whilst I was still in NZ, and when I spoke to her at home by telephone she first wanted me to go in to see her. I did, but of course had to wait for an appointment. She started me off straight away with the investigations, but each investigation was a wait of a few weeks. These were all relatively simple investigations, until we got to the MRI scan, but each one took several weeks of waiting. If I had gone privately I think it could all have been done in a month, instead it took a year. In the meantime my pain became worse and worse, sometimes unbearable and I have cried with the pain on occasion. I now take Pregabalin for the pain, but it has unpleasant side effects and so I can only tolerate a low dose. I can’t use anti inflammatory medications as they don’t suit me, although they would be first line normally. I also take paracetamol every four hours, every day. I use a lot of Voltarol and I wear a compression glove all the time, which seems to help. I also have steroids sometimes to help.
I have finally managed to get an appointment with the spinal team, and I see them next week, after I return. I’m told they will probably advise a steroid injection into my spine, and that the waiting list is only two months since I’m considered healthy enough to go on the NHS to the private hospital, otherwise it will be a four month wait to go to the main hospital. If the injection is helpful and eases the pain then the next step is spinal surgery, but I’ve no idea how long the wait for that will be.

My point is that if our health service operated as it should, all those preliminary tests could have been done in a matter of a few weeks, but because of all the waits, it’s taken a whole year just to get to this point. It’s simply unacceptable, as I wake up with pain, and go to sleep with pain, every day. I’ve never mentioned all this has been happening in my life on Gransnet before. I’ve tried to get on with my life and manage my pain as best I can.

But it’s worse if you have cancer and are waiting. It’s all just so unacceptable.

I hate moaning about the NHS as it has saved my life a few times, as a child, and more recently when I had Covid and when I had Clostridium Difficile. And two of my babies lives were saved in NICU when they were born. I have much to be grateful for with our NHS. But I wish I could get my pain sorted out.

Iam64

what the tories have done is an absolute scandal

The devastation of our NHS including mental health, drug/alcohol services along with the 20,000 experienced police officers they made redundant, the swathes of experienced social care managers/workers, the disdain with which ministers speak of teachers in state schools and much much more - we live in a broken country led by an arrogant group of people with inflated views of their own importance.

Very sadly, I agree. Broken Britain!

It is a scandal cossy, I agree. The underlying reason is undoubtedly lack of taxation income to fund public services (if the Tories cared about them) and that is caused by lack of UK business productivity which the Tories - with all their business contacts - have failed to improve for the 14 years they have been in power. Hunt is planning to strip yet more money out of public services in order to produce an election-friendly budget. Labour will inherit a terrible economic situation.