Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, has called for clarity over upcoming NHS Lothian infrastructure projects.
Last month (w/c 14th December) it was announced that the Scottish Government was withdrawing £45 million funding for a new Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion hospital. An initial agreement for the new hospital had already been agreed and a business case submitted in May 2019.
In a Written Answer from the Scottish Government this month, Lothian MSP Miles Briggs, was informed that an Initial Agreement, IA, had been submitted from NHS Lothian for a new Edinburgh Cancer Centre and a decision would be made this month (December) by the Capital Investment Group, CIG, based on the strategic case.
The new Edinburgh Cancer Centre would provide services for Cancer patients across the South East of Scotland.
At the start of this year, prior to Covid-19, it was announced that plans for a new Edinburgh Cancer Centre would be delayed to 2030 from the original planned date of 2025. The Scottish Government committed to investing £20 million in the current Edinburgh Cancer Centre to keep it going until the new Centre is ready.
Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said:“The confusion around new NHS Lothian infrastructure projects is extremely concerning and clarity is urgently needed on what projects are being funded.
“We are in desperate need of a replacement Edinburgh Cancer Centre, which will benefit the whole of the South East of Scotland, and is expected to be another decade before it is ready.
“The wait for routine eye treatments, such as for Glaucoma, are already incredibly long in NHS Lothian and patients deserve better than being short changed by SNP Ministers.
“I will hold SNP Ministers to their word to get these essential projects in NHS Lothian funded.
“SNP Ministers have underfunded NHS Lothian for the last 10 years. We need to see the health board receive their fair share of health funding in the upcoming budget.”
Figures obtained by the Scottish Conservatives have shown that 1,219 ambulance journeys between St. John’s hospital Children’s ward and Edinburgh Royal Infirmary took place between September 2016 and August 2020 – an average of 25 journeys a month over the four year period.
In October this year (2020) NHS Lothian announced that St. John’s was reintroducing a 24/7 children’s ward, following years of a reduced service.
An extensive recruitment drive led to the recruitment of two consultants one locum and increased availability of Advanced Paediatric Nurse Practitioners.
Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, previously welcomed the recruitment of doctors and nurses, so that a 24/7 service could resume, but warned that any future recruitment challenges must be dealt with well in advance.
Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said:“I am delighted that 24/7 paediatric services have resumed this year at St. John’s hospital and it is a credit to the people of West Lothian who campaigned tirelessly to get these services reinstated.
“Far too many young patients and families have had to make the twenty miles trip to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary over the last four years .
“It is important that the workforce at St. John’s hospital is properly managed and any recruitment challenges are sorted far in advance so that we don’t go back to a situation where young patients are having to travel into Edinburgh to be taken care of.”
Education, flexibility, training and risk assessment are some ways that employers up and down the country can provide support to diabetic employees.
Health and safety experts at CE Safety have revealed actionable steps for employers to ensure that they have the correct workplace procedures to deal with a diabetic emergency.
It is World Diabetes Day on November 14th, prompting CE Safety to offer guidance about first aid and diabetes in the workplace. With 4.8 million people in the UK living with diabetes, employers should be clued up and support staff who have the disease.
This is especially important in the time of Covid-19, as research has revealed that people with diabetes are at greater risk of dying from the virus. People with diabetes should be taking steps to look after themselves to avoid complications, such as maintaining healthy blood sugar targets and staying fit and healthy.
It is a basic minimum standard to ensure workplaces are risk assessed and suitable for diabetics.
A spokesperson for CE Safety says: “Diabetes is a lifelong serious condition and involves having to control the blood glucose levels in the body to stop it getting too high, which can be dangerous. Among the different types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2 are the most common.
“Huge efforts to raise awareness about the chronic condition are being made around the globe, and not without reason. The statistics on people who already have the disease are stark enough, however, experts also believe there are more than 13 million people in the UK who are at risk or already have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes.
“The team at CE Safety deliver health and safety training in the workplace and feel passionate about ensuring every place of work has the correct procedures and policies to look after their staff.”
Here are practical steps for business owners to support employees with diabetes:
Open up the conversation
Allowing the conversation to open up, and having an honest chat around diabetes can help in a variety of ways. It can improve the mental health and wellbeing of the employee; remove any discrimination; employers can gain an understanding of how staff are coping, and provide a forum to outline initiatives and measures which everyone gains from.
Educate yourself on the disease
There are alarming numbers of people out there who don’t even understand the disease they’re living with, so it’s unlikely that employers without diabetes will fully understand it. There are many resources out there so a quick read will give you a lot of insight. For example, did you know that there’s a link between diabetes and depression?
Be flexible
Understanding what your staff with diabetes need, means you can then put measures in place to help them. Be accommodating for attending healthcare appointments for starters, but also support them around working hours, any modified equipment they need or simply show patience for when the disease becomes debilitating. It’s not easy to balance work with managing a disease.
Provide privacy
Staff with diabetes may need to take injections of insulin or check blood sugar levels throughout the working day. Give them a private and clean space to do this, which will provide peace of mind and inclusivity, and even reduce stress.
Revisit working practices
Do your terms allow for assessing a worker on an individual basis? For example, some employees may benefit from flexible working patterns or a higher level of sick leave. Diabetes can cause short and long term complications, so factor this into any relevant policies.
Train your staff in first aid
Your workforce should know what to do in an emergency situation, but do they know what to do in a diabetic emergency? Pass on the information you have gathered.
Do a diagnostic diabetes risk assessment
Get the overall picture of your workforce. Understand the full health picture of your staff, then you can take steps towards pinning down your approach, ensuring the workplace is prepared, safe and supportive to those who need it.
Look at your company culture
As well as supporting people who already have diabetes, there are many improvements employers can make to do their bit in eradicating the disease. We know there is plenty that can be done to avoid getting type 2 diabetes. Promote healthier choices in available food and drink, encourage work-life balance and exercise, and have policies around mental wellbeing.
Stop sitting down
A study in the journal Diabetologia discovered that people who sit still for long periods of time double the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, even if they exercise too.
The NHS says many adults in the UK sit for about nine hours a day, and that living a sedentary lifestyle is linked to obesity, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer and early death.
Because many people spend hours sitting at a desk while at work, employers should be finding ways to reverse this problem. For example, encourage people to take the stairs, set reminders to stand, create standing workstations, go for a walk while speaking on the phone or regular coffee breaks.
For further information on diabetes and first aid, please see –
Early pay rise of at least £2,000 to every NHS worker is needed
Health staff across the UK – including nurses, paramedics, cleaners, domestics and porters – have embarked on two days of campaigning to urge the government to give an early, significant pay rise of at least £2,000 to every worker in the NHS.
Staff in UNISON branches based in NHS hospitals, ambulance stations and clinics will be using social media and taking part in socially distanced events to press home the message that health workers deserve much more than applause for their efforts during the pandemic.
Health workers know the public backs an early NHS pay rise, but now want to see the government show its appreciation for staff by bringing forward the pay rise due in April.
UNISON’s pay claim – delivered to Downing Street last month – would see every NHS employee receive an increase of at least £2,000 by the end of the year.
This early wage increase – equivalent to around £1 an hour extra for all staff – could give ailing local economies a much-needed boost as workers spend the extra money in their pockets on the high street, says UNISON.
With the arrival of autumn, and the increasing rates of infection, UNISON believes now is the perfect time for the government to show the high regard in which ministers say they hold NHS staff.
UNISON head of health Sara Gorton said: “Infection rates are rising in care homes and out in the wider community, and hospital admissions are on the up.
“The pressure on staff is beginning to build again, as the NHS tries to open services shut earlier in the year and deal with the backlog of cancelled appointments and operations.
“That’s why now would be the perfect time for the Prime Minister and Chancellor to show they can do more than clap for NHS staff, and demonstrate their appreciation in a much more practical way.
“Boris Johnson’s pie in the sky plans for any time, any place, anywhere ‘moonshot’ testing would cost a mindboggling £100bn. An early pay rise for NHS staff would be a tiny fraction of that and would make a huge difference to individuals and the services they help provide.
“Investing in the NHS and its incredible workforce is a must for the government. It would help the health service tackle the mounting staff shortages that were already causing huge problems even before the virus hit.
“An early pay rise would also be the country’s best way of saying a heartfelt thank you to every single member of the NHS team.”
The Scottish Conservatives have called for the Scottish Government to publish a plan outlining how they will clear the backlog of operations created while the NHS concentrates on Covid-19.
The call comes as the latest figures show that the number of planned operations for March this year in Scotland has fallen over 30% compared to March last year.
In addition, the number of cancelled operations for the same month has almost doubled to 15% compared to March 2019.
The Scottish Conservatives have said that it is understandable that the NHS has been prioritising Covid patients but the Scottish Government must outline a plan to clear this backlog and ensure there isn’t any avoidable suffering beyond the pandemic.
3,429 operations were carried out in NHS Lothian during March 2020, a decrease of 1,875 from 5,304 in March 2019 – a decrease of 35%.
The percentage of cancelled operations has more than doubled compared to March 2019, with 21.3% of operations cancelled in March 2020, compared to 9.9%.
Miles Briggs, Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary said: “Our NHS has rightly diverted time and resources to tackling Covid-19 and we wouldn’t expect anything else.
“But the dramatic reduction in hospital operations is not without cost and must be reversed as soon as possible.
“The Scottish Government must put a plan in place to clear these operations or Covid could cause even greater suffering.
“Prior to the Covid-19 outbreak SNP Ministers were failing to meet their own waiting times targets.
“It is clear that for many patients the wait to get the treatments and operations they need is going to be significantly longer.
“I am enormously grateful to everyone working in our NHS right now – the Scottish Government must plan now so doctors and nurses can continue to save lives now and in the future.”
The saga of Edinburgh’s new Sick Kids hospital is set to be extended again – after health secretary Jeane Freeman admitted the latest timescale was “under review”.
The facility, which is now eight years late, was supposed to finally open in the autumn.
However, Ms Freeman admitted in a parliamentary answer on Friday that the handing over looked set to be held up again because of coronavirus pressures.
Ms Freeman said: “NHS Lothian is working closely with IHSL to ensure delivery of the programme as close to the timeframe of a full handover in Autumn 2020, but this timeframe is now under review. A refreshed programme is likely to be available during the second half of May and I will of course keep Parliament updated.”
Shadow health secretary Miles Briggs said while this particular delay may be understandable given the Covid-19 crisis, it could have all been avoided had the SNP hit any of the previous targets for opening.
The much-needed facility has been plagued by problems, meaning staff and patients have been forced to continue to use the ancient building in the Sciennes area of the city, which the health board itself has acknowledged is no longer fit for purpose.
Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary Miles Briggs said: “Obviously with the current situation it’s inevitable there will be delays with almost all projects of this nature.
“What wasn’t inevitable was the SNP’s failure to get this hospital open in anything like the timeframe initially set out. This vital hospital – which was commissioned, planned and built by the SNP – was meant to open in 2012.
“It should currently be open, thriving and assisting our dedicated NHS staff with the coronavirus battle. Instead, it lies empty while the rest of the hospital estate is placed under immense pressure.
“Families across the east of Scotland will not forget the SNP’s spectacular mismanagement of the Sick Kids project.”
The upcoming 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan is a once in a lifetime event with over 1.8 million fans expected to attend
Most fans will not be aware of deadly conditions such as Japanese Encephalitis, Tick Borne Encephalitis and Rabies Enchephalitis which occur across south-east Asia and the Pacific Islands.
Rugby legend, John Bentley is supporting a campaign encouraging fans to be fully prepared in plenty of time before the games
With a month to go until the Japanese Rugby World Cup 2019, both fans and players will be in full preparation mode, with the event expected to attract the largest ever number of foreign fans. More than 600,000 of the 1.8 million available tickets expected to be held by international fans making the journey to Japan.Continue reading Rugby star issues health warning ahead of World Cup
