A slow hand clap for Andy McGovern, a London hospital nurse who has proposed that the Royal College of Nursing supports a £10 charge to visit a GP. On its own terms, the proposal is an unacceptable assault on the very foundations of the NHS: that it is free at the point of use. But the suggestion is so menacing because of where it originates from. The many enemies of the NHS – who have to be diplomatic, knowing that the NHS “is the closest the English have to a religion”, as Nigel Lawson once put it – will rejoice. “Aha!” they will think. “Now even the nurses are debating NHS charges, we have been given the political cover we need!”
Category Archives: mental health
A £10 charge to visit a GP would be just the start of a slippery slope for the NHS
We either let our NHS be trashed by the privatisers and cutters, or we defend a properly funded, publicly run, universal system that is free at the point of use
A GP with a patient. ‘This ideological assault is being accompanied by an actual attempt to dismantle and privatise the NHS.’ Photograph: David Sillitoe for the Guardian
Tragedy of Liverpool mum who died penniless after her benefits stopped
Distraught family say Annette Francis, who suffered from severe mental illness, was let down by the authorities
A mum-of-one suffering from severe mental illness died without any money after her disability benefits dried up.
Annette Francis, 30, was found dead at her Garston home two weeks ago, leaving behind 11-year-old son Kieron.
Her distraught family say Annette was let down by the authorities in the months leading up to her death.
At the time of the tragedy, Annette had spent six months without receiving a single penny in benefits, her aunt Ann Sorotos claims.
‘Critically unwell’ mental health patients sent home due to bed shortages
Survey by Royal College of Psychiatrists identifies series of problems with mental health services
Picture credit: Charlie Milligan
Mental health professionals are sending ‘critically unwell’ patients home because they cannot secure them hospital care due to a shortage of available beds, a survey by the Royal College of Psychiatrists has found.
The pressure on beds has also led hospital managers to tell doctors they will only accept patients who have been detained under the Mental Health Act – a process that imposes a series of restrictions on patients’ liberty – and refuse to take patients who agreed to admission voluntarily, the research found. Similar problems were reported by Approved Mental Health Professionals (AMHPs) in a survey published last year.
Under the Mental Health Act code of practice professionals have an obligation to seek the ‘least restrictive’ care possible for patients. In most cases a decision to detain a person under the Act requires agreement from three professionals, usually an AMHP and two doctors.
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