A new national uniform and a dress code are being introduced for NHS staff in Scotland. In a bid to make staff more readily identifiable and fight the risk of hospital infections a new set of clothing guidelines will be introduced from next year. Clinical staff will be dressed in shades of blue whilst support [...]
Disappointing statistics have been released which show that life expectancy, and the quality of that life, is lower in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK.
Life expectancy (LE) estimates how many years a person might be expected to live. Healthy life expectancy (HLE) is an estimate of how many years they might live in ‘good’ health. [...]
Much to the disappointment of the government it would appear that the ban on smoking in public places has not encouraged smokers to quit after all. A new report has shown that , in England, the number of female smokers has remained constant at 21% and for men the figure has actually increased from 23% [...]
It seems that Scotland is handing over £25.7 million each year to pay for the heroin substitute, methadone. This ‘treatment’ does not stop the users from being drug dependent, it just gives them a fix for free on the NHS. This is a pointless use of taxpayers money. Why on earth is this money not [...]
A new report titled, the Lancet Study, by authors from Leicester University, has found that the health of Europeans over the age of 50 varies wildly between countries, even if the country has longer life expectancy rates.
Research published in the medical journal Nature Reviews Drug Discovery, claims that cancer drug research is entering a “new era” which will mean more successful drugs for patients.
However Cancer Research UK called for pharmaceutical firms and academics to be more open about the drugs that don’t make the grade.
Greater knowledge of how cancer’s biology means [...]
The giant pharmaceutical company, AstraZeneca, has released the results on trials of its cholesterol busting drug, ‘Crestor’. The drugs giant claims that the statins-based drug can cut heart attack and stroke risks in people with normal cholesterol.
On first reading that sounds like good news, but why would people with no cholesterol issues need to prevent [...]
I spoke to someone yesterday who works for a private company which is in league with the NHS. With the introduction of top-up payments for healthcare the staff have already been told to start ‘advising’ patients on the availabilty of ‘better’ products that they’ll be able to buy, if they have the wherewithal to pay.
These [...]
It is Cancer Awareness Month and the issue of whether cancer patients should have to pay privately for drugs is in the news.
If they do pay, should that then stop them from receiving NHS treatment. Is it right that wealth should be the deciding factor in the length of life? NHS Trusts say that they [...]
It’s seems to be the case that every month introduces us to some new cure-all superfood. Now supermarkets are stocking up with “superwine” made from [so called superfood] pomegranates in the Middle East.
Does this mean that you can feel self righteous, smug and super healthy at the same time as you sink under the table?
