All articles by *Mark Gould – Page 7
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A&E services unaffected by doubling of calls to NHS Direct
Calls to telephone helpline NHS Direct doubled between its first and second years of operation - but there is no evidence that it is fuelling demand on emergency services, according to a survey launched today.
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Closed to argument
Another round of mergers is imminent - and that's before PCTs even get their feet under the table. Mark Gould wonders why managers are hell-bent on doing themselves out of jobs
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Bottomley challenges Milburn on 'dire' NHS
Former Conservative health secretary Virginia Bottomley says the NHS in her West Surrey constituency is in a 'dire' state and has called for health secretary Alan Milburn to see the extent of bed blocking and trolley waits for himself.
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'Prudence, don't leave me'
The chancellor's lady friend will be upset by predictions that the brave new NHS reforms will bring soaring deficits, writes Mark Gould
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Split over future funding as £200m deficit looms
Managers' and doctors' leaders have split over the need for a fundamental re-think of NHS funding in the face of a £200m-plus deficit.
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Nowhere plans for nobody?
Consultation on PCGs' bids for trust status ends this month. But will PCTs generate the public interest their predecessors have lacked? Mark Gould reports
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Defence medicine hit by crisis of confidence
Constant change and lower rates of pay than the NHS have destabilised defence medical services and caused serious problems for trusts, according to an influential committee of MPs.
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A jab in the dark
How would the NHS cope with a quarter of the population ill or dying from flu? Mark Gould reports on the Department of Health's contingency plan for the next flu pandemic, which experts believe is on its way shortly
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Package deals with drug firms on horizon
Health commissioners will soon be able to enter into US-style package deals with pharmaceutical companies to tackle a range of conditions including asthma, diabetes and heart disease.
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NHS told to recruit 1,000 from New Deal
Managers have been given strict deadlines to recruit 1,000 unemployed people into the NHS after official figures revealed a poor uptake of the New Deal welfare-to-work scheme.
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The sky's the limit
The AA's campaign for a national network of air ambulances could mean the service has to raise more cash than ever before, writes Mark Gould
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Welcome for report despite 'soundbite' summary
Managers have welcomed an independent report into Glasgow's Victoria Infirmary while criticising its summary as 'couched in soundbites'.
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Dobson will identify top executive talent
Health secretary Frank Dobson wants to create a national system for identifying and recruiting a 'cadre of highly-trained professionals' for some of the most demanding chief executive posts in the NHS, it was revealed this week.
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Hillingdon strikers win reinstatement
A three-year dispute at Hillingdon Hospital has ended with an industrial tribunal ruling that 25 Asian domestic and catering staff, sacked for refusing to take cuts in pay and conditions, should be reinstated and paid compensation totalling almost 300,000.
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NHS Direct 'will need 15,000 more nurses'
The new deadline of December 2000 for extending NHS Direct, the government's nurse-led telephone helpline throughout England is 'challenging but feasible' according to one of the scheme's advisers.
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Calman questions screening needs
Chief medical officer Sir Kenneth Calman used his final annual report to question the value of some of the 100 screening programmes in place across the NHS.
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Mixed-sex wards advice is attacked
Campaigners calling for an end to mixed-sex wards in psychiatric units have attacked advice on new builds issued by the NHS Executive.
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Antibiotic resistance 'critical' as pressure affects hygiene
Pressure on hospital beds and changes in cleaning contracts have contributed to the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, a government report has concluded.
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Dobson sets winter pressures deadline
Health authorities and trusts have been given just four weeks to detail plans for dealing with this year's winter pressures.