British health boss in trouble

The political career of health secretary Patricia Hewitt is lying on a trolley in some dark hospital corridor, very probably labelled “Do not resuscitate”. In a couple of weeks, Dr Brown is expected on his rounds to put Hewitt out of her misery. But until then she must put up with the pain. She’s already been attacked in recent weeks by midwives and junior doctors. Last week hospital consultants joined the fight by accusing Labour of crippling the health service.

Dr Jonathan Fielden, chairman of the British Medical Association’s consultants committee, said the service had been harmed by botched reforms. “Political meddling has brought the NHS to its knees,” he told the association’s annual consultants’ conference. He was speaking despite an announcement by Hewitt that, as a patient, the NHS was showing a modest recovery. After running up debts of 547m last year, the latest accounts showed a 510m surplus.

How has this been done? According to NHS figures, 17,000 jobs have gone in the past year and training budgets have been trimmed. And, according to critics, the cuts are endangering the government’s drive to cut waiting lists. “Half a million hospital patients could be waiting more than a year for treatment,” The Times reported.

Andy Burnham, the health minister, defended the government’s record, saying all but eight trusts have reduced waiting times. Not everybody does so badly. There is one area of the country where 98% of patients are treated on time. That’s Leicester – whose MPs include Hewitt.

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Australia: Ambulance Service in crisis -- pleads for volunteers

As is so often the case with government "services", more funding simply leads to worse service -- with the extra money just going to an ever more obstructive bureaucracy. The Queensland Ambulance Service is a prime example -- perhaps even worse than Britain's "National Health". There was very little controversy about the ambulance service when it was funded by private subscription but since it was "socialized" a few years ago, the complaints have never stopped

The Queensland Ambulance Service desperately wants help. It is asking for volunteers to pull people out of car wrecks and drive them to hospital in an ambulance. The extraordinary plea came days after the State Government promised $50 million and 250 new paramedics for the trouble- plagued service. The ambulance volunteers also will be expected to do basic first aid. They will need no particular skills - but will receive training and uniforms.

Opposition Leader Jeff Seeney said the calls for emergency drivers made a mockery of Premier Peter Beattie's claim that the state had the world's best service. "It is clear the Premier's promise was as hollow as every other promise he's made on health, water, electricity and roads," he said.

Last month Sunday Mail reports revealed frontline anger at roster reform, excessive hours, lack of staff, vehicles and equipment, and lack of management support. As Emergency Services Minister Pat Purcell boasted of improved service, the officers in stations near Gladstone pleaded for help.

An advertisement in Wednesday's Calliope Shire newsletter read: "Wanted- Emergency Ambulance Drivers. The role includes emergency driving to hospital, extrication of patients from vehicles and residences..."

The above story by DARRELL GILES appeared in the Brisbane "Sunday Mail" on June 10, 2007

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For greatest efficiency, lowest cost and maximum choice, ALL hospitals and health insurance schemes should be privately owned and run -- with government-paid vouchers for the very poor and minimal regulation. Both Australia and Sweden have large private sector health systems with government reimbursement for privately-provided services so can a purely private system with some level of government reimbursement or insurance for the poor be so hard to do?

For more postings from me, see TONGUE-TIED, GREENIE WATCH, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH, FOOD & HEALTH SKEPTIC, GUN WATCH, EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS, DISSECTING LEFTISM, IMMIGRATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL and EYE ON BRITAIN. My Home Pages are here or here or here. Email me (John Ray) here. For times when blogger.com is playing up, there are mirrors of this site here and here.

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