Healthwatch
@healthwatch.bsky.social
1.3K followers 990 following 3.4K posts
Sharing info and occasional comment on health and social care. Spent over 35years working in NHS, Charities, patient and public involvement, health care NGO and volunteering in Mongolia etc. Refugee from Twitter where column was Healthwatch@NHSWatch
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ottoenglish.bsky.social
All of this is being put out to placate the right wing press...

In the meantime, it's causing fear & confusion. As I understand it:

● this only applies to some people on skilled visas
● it's not "A level English" it's something called SELT
● much the same requirement exists elsewhere in EU
healthwatch.bsky.social
There is a huge hidden reservoir of chronic illness out there in the UK much of it undiagnosed- as every new diagnostic centre and screening programme proves. Build a new health care road and it immediately fills up with traffic.
Need to spend much more on public health and health education
healthwatch.bsky.social
Notice much sensitivity about use of HES data to link and monitor deaths by ethnicity
healthwatch.bsky.social
Seems to have declined for all age groups, including working age- though 0-24 appear a bit ‘sticky’. Would that be surprising really- healthier (and more cautious) people surviving the pandemic? Should catch back up given a little time. Will take your advice and have another look at methodology
healthwatch.bsky.social
Think excess deaths seem to have generally fallen significantly since 2023. Maybe because so many people with chronic illness and weaker immune systems died from the pandemic. Cause of death by ethnicity statistics seem to disappear altogether after 2019. Even recent studies rely on pre-Covid stats
Reposted by Healthwatch
alexankrah.bsky.social
But the stats sadly don’t tell us, what contribution COVID19 infection & an inflammatory disease is making to early mortality of people with diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Keloid Disorder. We don’t know if it’s one of many Oncovirus - & cancer linked?
healthwatch.bsky.social
Think the hospital Covid patients are largely elderly- so I am told. That would run with decision based on elderly having higher chance of being hospitalised with Covid. Is a JCVI paper on it. Elderly are vaccination group. My partner has not been vaccinated and is caring for Covid patients
healthwatch.bsky.social
Partner working shift in hospital mentions how there is shortage of isolation rooms for infectious patients. Also increasing number of Covid patients.
healthwatch.bsky.social
But likely to need a lot more care workers a lot sooner- say another 100,000 - 120,000 by 2030? If their assumptions are correct
healthwatch.bsky.social
Projected that social care will need 470 thousand more workers by 20240 but remains reliant on significant overseas recruitment while without wider reform of the sector and a government backed workforce strategy
www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/news-item/ca...
Care sector’s reliance on overseas workers increasingly risky
Natasha Curry responds to new analysis from Skills for Care.
www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk
healthwatch.bsky.social
UK gov report on health effects of climate change published late last year highlighted how the climate crisis is also a health crisis as flooding and heatwaves create conditions which heighten the risk from infectious diseases. So more pandemics and pressure on NHS
www.reuters.com/sustainabili...
Britain must urgently prepare for hotter temperatures, climate advisers warn
Britain must urgently prepare for global warming of at least 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by 2050, its climate advisers said on Wednesday, warning the country is ill-prepared for extreme weather that is already occurring.
www.reuters.com
healthwatch.bsky.social
‘A 2021 meta analysis across multiple longitudinal studies found that individuals with a strong sense of purpose had lower levels of inflammation, better cardiovascular health, and improved immune function.’
iai.tv/articles/a-l...
A life fully lived paradoxically reduces the fear of death | Dr Julie Hannan
iai.tv
healthwatch.bsky.social
A high number of false positives can lead to an inflated level of incidence as well as many more ’successful’ treatments that go with that. But on verge of becoming an area for major NHS investment in AI - Sunak, coincidentally, is an advisor to an AI firm, Anthropic.
healthwatch.bsky.social
It’s expensive management consultancy speak. No doubt a product of some highly paid private sector advisors embedded in the DHSC
healthwatch.bsky.social
Not going to happen in uk. At least not under this government. Not only unaffordable under current government financial constraints but also political suicide.
healthwatch.bsky.social
Could Labour come to regret renationalising railways and steel industry? Might have made a rod for their own back at time they are also pressed for cash while in not so distant future they will be ones blamed for late or cancelled trains and any steel plant failure or redundancies.