Junior Doctors organized nationwide strike action last week
At talkhealth we like to keep up to date with what’s going on in the world of health so that we can keep you updated and keep the health conversation going. This week’s brought a number of high-profile health stories right to the top of popular news coverage, so we thought we’d let you know what’s been going on and give you a chance to tell us what you think about some of the stories of the moment.
Firstly, there’s the very sad news that at least one man has been left ‘brain-dead’ by a drug trial in France. Up to three more may have also sustained brain damage, and a number are being kept in hospital in a ‘stable condition’.
Secondly, the debate about junior doctors’ contracts rages on. Doctors continue to disagree with Health Minister Jeremy Hunt’s attempts to redefine their normal working hours. Currently, junior doctors get extra pay for any work they do over the weekend, and after 7pm on a weekday. Under the proposed new contracts, they’ll only get extra pay after 10pm on weekdays and after 7pm on a Saturday. The dispute finally resulted in mass strikes last week.
The NHS has announced plans of a ‘Sugar Tax’
Finally, there’s the interesting news, released today, that the NHS is going to start imposing a ‘sugar tax’ in its cafes. They’ll phase in a 20% ‘tax’ on all sugary drinks in their cafes over the next few years, in the hopes of reducing the amounts of added sugar consumed in hospitals, and encouraging others to follow their example. It’s been suggested that this simple tax could raise £20 – £40 million per year. This has come only a couple of weeks after Prime Minister David Cameron said that he would consider implementing a national sugar tax to combat what he called an ‘obesity crisis’.
Should there be a national sugar tax? Do you side with the doctors in their strike action? What do you think about the situation in France? Share your thoughts in the comments section below and let’s talkhealth!
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In a way I do agree with the sugar tax but on the other hand it is not fair on people like myself who are not over weight and enjoy the odd sugary things. I don’t think added tax on it will stop people buying it its like when cigarettes and alcohol go up people still buy them its just another way for the government to get more money.
on January 22, 2016 at 9:59 pm SHIRLEY HICKINBOTTOMThanks for replying, Shirley!
That’s an interesting point. Do you think it would be wrong for the government to raise funds by taxing sugar?
on January 25, 2016 at 4:46 pm talkhealthI agree that there should be some sort of tax on sugary products but is the money made from it directly going to the NHS ? as are service at present is diabolical and really needs a total overhaul as well as additional funds. The war on doctors working weeks and wages is only adding more fuel to a Nhs system which is already nearing explosion. We need someone to actually make changes to ensure the Nhs is safe for patients and staff ( we don’t want overworked staff, as that can cause human error.we also want staff to be able to treat patients as people not just a number). Also waiting times be it for Ambulances, A and E and actually operations that people need not just as emergencies needs to be addressed. Our service is failing too many people. It is lives that we are screwing up, something needs to be done and I would love to be the one with answers and from what I have witnessed and experienced there are so many back office workers that the face to face element of health care is rarely visible. People want to be seen and made well it sounds simple but money and time is a major issue. We need to go back to the basics, we need places where people can recover ( they don’t require medical treatment just Tlc before returning home). Years ago there used to be hospitals or homes that provided this service where are they now? Why are we not using this as a way to relieve pressure on beds in hospital so that we don’t shut our doors to those people on waiting lists awaiting surgeries – they have lives that they want to live. Why are doctors surgeries only open Monday /Friday 8-6 working people quite often struggle to get appointments and don’t want to use the out of hours service for routine checkups. It’s so hard to get an appointment with your GP at the best of times that if you manage to get one you rarely have any choice to what time or day.I agree that Medical staff(Drs,nurses and everyone else that works in the industry) should not be overworked but Drs are on a good Salary as they are professionals but surely they realised when going into this service people can be ill 24/7 365 days a year . Illness doesn’t clock watch it can happen any time as can being hit by a bus for example.
on January 24, 2016 at 5:21 pm SandraThere is no consistency between hospitals on what good looks like, as I said we need to start back as basic level – caring for people. Do we need so many people behind the scenes as it seems that frontline staff have a lot of paperwork to complete themselves. Why are Consultants able to do NHS ops and have private patients in the same hospital, I personally waited 104 weeks for surgery ( NHS waiting list was 26weeks) yet my consultant was able to do it on his private list in the same hospital if I had the money. ( although I work I couldn’t afford the op). However one of the many reasons my op was delayed was dye to lack of beds ( um bye if I had money there was a bad) seems to me there is a conflict of interest here – any other business would have been investigated but the NHS seems to feel it is above that. Patients have just become a pawn in there system and thus seriously needs to be rectified.
Thank you very much for your reply, Sandra.
It’s interesting to read your opinions and your suggestion that these problems are in some ways linked. As far as the plans go at the moment, the profits NHS’s own ‘Sugar Tax’ will indeed go back into the NHS. It’s interesting to wonder, though, where the money will go if the government implements a nationwide tax.
It’s also interesting to read that from your perspective these problems are in some ways linked, and that the real problem lies in the organization of the NHS. Presumably, then, you think it’s true that doctors’ contracts should be renegotiated? We’d love to hear more of your thoughts!
on January 25, 2016 at 4:44 pm talkhealth