Government accused of crippling social care sector as waiting lists set to double by November

Government accused of crippling social care sector as waiting lists set to double by November

Borough news, health and social care
Oldham Liberal Democrat Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE has criticised the government for leaving social care services to fend for themselves as waiting lists swell. 600 people per day are joining the list of people waiting to be assessed for care and support in England. A survey by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) suggests that almost 300,000 people are now waiting for an assessment of their needs by social workers, an increase of 90,000 (44%) in five months. Councillor Sykes said: “The government is leaving social care services £10 billion short and expecting already stretched councils to plug the gap. Social care waiting lists are getting out of control and with price hikes and a hard winter ahead, things are only going to get worse. The…
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Patients rushed through GP appointments in “postcode lottery”

Patients rushed through GP appointments in “postcode lottery”

Parliamentary news
Well over a quarter of GP appointments are taking less than five minutes in some parts of the country, new analysis by the Liberal Democrats has revealed, raising fears that many patients are not being seen for long enough to properly assess them. The Liberal Democrats said the figures showed a “stark postcode lottery” with people in some areas struggling for weeks to get an appointment only to be rushed through in a matter of minutes. NHS figures show that across England as a whole, around one in five (22%) of the 16.6 million GP appointments in April lasted five minutes or less. Only half of appointments across the country lasted longer than 10 minutes. However, in some areas the numbers of GP patients being rushed through rapid appointments was…
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Dentist shortage “time bomb” revealed as one in eight nearing retirement

Dentist shortage “time bomb” revealed as one in eight nearing retirement

Parliamentary news
One in eight (13%) NHS dentists are approaching retirement, at a time when NHS dental appointments are scarceTop 10 worst areas for NHS dentist retirement timebomb includes rural areas cut off from health servicesLiberal Democrats have warned of a NHS dentist “retirement time bomb” facing local communities One in eight NHS dentists are approaching retirement, research by the House of Commons Library commissioned by the Liberal Democrats has revealed. The party warned the figures show the dentist shortage crisis could soon get worse, especially for rural communities. The data reveals that 3,416 dentists who carry out NHS work in England are over 55 years old and therefore close to retirement. This amounts to 14% of the 23,733 dentists carrying out NHS activity in 2020/21. The figures also show the number…
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Heart attack patients facing hour wait in ambulance wait times crisis

Heart attack patients facing hour wait in ambulance wait times crisis

Parliamentary news
The Liberal Democrats have blasted the Conservative Government for presiding over an ambulance waiting time crisis “spiralling out of control”, as shocking new figures show that people across the country are facing increasingly dangerous delays for medical help. A Parliamentary Question tabled by the party’s health spokesperson Daisy Cooper has uncovered the shocking news that people up and down the country, in need of emergency medical attention, are waiting almost twenty minutes longer on average than they would have two years ago. The Liberal Democrats are calling for emergency action to be taken in the upcoming Queen’s Speech to address the crisis and give paramedics and handlers the support they need. This includes urgent investment in A&E departments and a new Community Ambulance Fund, as well as a review of…
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GP postcode lottery worsens with just one family doctor per 2,200 patients

GP postcode lottery worsens with just one family doctor per 2,200 patients

Parliamentary news
The number of patients per GP across England has grown to over 2,200, shocking new figures have revealed, as some areas suffer from a growing postcode lottery. The analysis by the Liberal Democrats, based on research from the House of Commons Library, has exposed the growing shortage of family doctors that is leaving people in many areas struggling to get appointments. Since June 2017, the number of fully qualified GPs excluding trainees has fallen by 1,343, despite a government promise to hire an extra 6,000 GPs by 2024. Over the same period, the number of registered patients has soared by over 3.1 million, as growing demand puts pressure on overstretched local health services. It means the number of patients per GP has risen from 2,007 in June 2017 to 2,217…
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‘Horrific’ cancer wait times revealed

‘Horrific’ cancer wait times revealed

Parliamentary news
New research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats from the House of Commons Library has shown huge disparities in cancer care across England revealing a horrific crisis right across the country. This winter, from November 2021 to February 2022 almost 195,000 patients waited longer than two weeks to see a consultant after an urgent cancer referral from their GP. The NHS target is for 93% of patients to be seen within this time but across England nearly a quarter of people don’t see a consultant for that urgent appointment. Similarly in the same time period only 1 in 7 of people received a cancer diagnosis after 28 days from an urgent referral by their GP and almost 40,000 patients waited longer than 2 months (62 days) to start treatment from their…
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‘Postcode lottery’ on children’s mental health revealed

‘Postcode lottery’ on children’s mental health revealed

Borough news, health and social care
Children in Oldham get £63.90 spent on them, compared to £165.20 in the Isle of Wight Shadow Health and Social Care Cabinet Member Louie Hamblett has condemned the postcode lottery which means that children in Oldham get almost two thirds less spent on their mental health than children on the Isle of Wight. The Liberal Democrats are putting a Private Members’ Bill forward to Parliament today to force the Government to report strict figures on waiting times for assessment, treatment and referrals, as well as a breakdown of where money is being spent on children’s mental health. Liberal Democrat Councillor Hamblett said: “Any parent wants to ensure that their children get the best treatment, and a fair turn. That children in Oldham get so much less spent on their mental…
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Javid out of ideas on NHS reform

Javid out of ideas on NHS reform

Parliamentary news
Responding to Sajid Javid's speech at the Royal College of Physicians, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: “Sajid Javid has failed to put forward a credible plan to recruit the staff needed to tackle the 6 million people now waiting for treatment and the further millions who are struggling to get a GP appointment. “Offering patients a so-called “choice” to travel hundreds of miles away from home and loved ones for a delayed operation when they’re scared and in pain and then selling that as reform is baffling. “And if Javid thinks an app on a phone will save the day, then he really is completely out of ideas.” Studies of the benefits of video calls have shown only minimal benefits, compared with traditional phone calls or in…
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NHS waiting lists: The Conservatives are playing with people’s lives

NHS waiting lists: The Conservatives are playing with people’s lives

Parliamentary news
In reaction to new NHS waiting list figures being over six million people, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson, Daisy Cooper MP commented: “NHS waiting lists were already at crisis point before the pandemic and now they’re off the charts. “This Government has brought the NHS to breaking point and the public isn’t fooled: the Tory attempts to rehash old cancer targets, and pretend it’s all down to the pandemic just won’t cut it. “After years of driving our health and care services into the ground, the Conservatives need to come up with something better, or it’ll cost people’s lives.”
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Javid Statement reveals ‘years of suffering’ ahead

Javid Statement reveals ‘years of suffering’ ahead

Parliamentary news
Responding to Sajid Javid’s statement to the House of Commons on the government‘s proposals to tackle the backlog in NHS treatment, Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said: “Patients waiting for treatments in fear and pain have just been condemned to years of suffering with years-long waiting times ahead. “The Government has no idea how upsetting this will be to millions of people and clearly has no idea how to bring waiting times down. “Patients needed to see an ambitious plan to recruit the doctors, nurses and other staff our NHS desperately needs - instead all they got was a poxy waiting lists website. The government should hang its head in shame.”
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