NHS Job Shop: “Working for Health” in Kentish Town. Closed. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Independent reports that the NHS “MOT” health check to spot signs of illness only has marginal benefits, citing a Department of Health-funded study has found. Experts found the programme only prevented the equivalent of one heart attack or stroke for every 4,762 people who attend a health check in a year. The scheme, which sees people aged 40 to 74 invited for a check with their GP every five years, is reported to cost around £300m per year.
It’s no real surprise that the study is once again highlighting ineffective use of scarce resource in the NHS. This blog has long argued for the replacement of the NHS with a best practice public health service.
However, a few words of warning are appropriate. Junior doctors, and older UK voters leaning towards Brexit, need to reflect on the savage cuts to the NHS that would follow a Brexit. With an extreme right wing government in the UK and economic chaos, healthcare would be quickly privatized with insurance policies offering limited cover. Boris Johnson would be forced to remove the safety nets of modern Britain – it’s back to the poor houses of the Victorian era.
Thoughts?
Dr Alf's Blog 
Dr Alf, in this piece from the Independent, gives us an interesting take on the NHS which I agree with him, needs to be replaced with something that is fit for purpose.
The Daily Express tries to argue that remaining in the EU followed by TTIP will cause the NHS to be privatised.
I think that both the Independent and the Daily Express are incorrect on this matter; the NHS is already £20 billion GBP in the red, as Stuart Steven its Chief Executive knew last year when he went cap in hand to Cameron and Osborne asking for £16 billion GBP. They sent him packing but did agree £8 billion GBP whilst telling him to find the rest from efficiency savings. As usual they “rolled over” when they were faced with Steven’s special pleading rather than telling him to start reforming.
The Junior doctors saw this and have been emboldened to intensify their strike action to include emergency cover – this is an act which is against the Hippocratic oath and represents industrial misconduct in my view. Jeremy Hunt needs to conscript former military doctors and fire the junior doctors en mass as Ronald Reagan did with the air traffic controllers in America and then he and the Transport Minister needs to take on the public sector trades unions with de-recognition, a switch to automated tube trains and a law to outlaw strikes in essential public services (transport, teaching, nursing, medicine, radiology, surgery as initial examples).
At this stage in the political process the gains made by Margaret Thatcher’s Trades Union reforms need to be built on, not thrown away.
Whether we remain in the EU or leave it NHS reform is essential as is welfare reform, especially of Personal Independence Benefit rules, which are riddled with fraud, plus the need to merge costly Adult Social Care into the NHS.
None of this is a “Bridge too far” but it is clear that in his last days David Cameron wants to ease his way into his new job with as little trouble as possible so that his protege and fellow Bilderberger, George Osborne can similarly ease himself into the Prime Ministership.
Closer to 2020, this sort of action will be impossible, but now, it is not only possible but vitally essential for the good of the country.