In the time I’ve been muse-less, and as such on a blogging hiatus, the world has kept turning…
 
The NHS
Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan made a few comments about the NHS and a bit of Twitter-storm followed, which has meant that the Conservatives are having to vigorously defend their position on the health service. Though it pretty damn obvious that everyone supports the principle of universal healthcare free at the point of use – they just think that the instititution of the NHS needs reforming to properly do its job.
Labour have been …

“That’ll be £20 please.”
Well, it will be if this idea gets put into practice:

Patients should be charged £20 to see a GP in a bid to limit demands placed on the health service, a centre-right think-tank says.
The Social Market Foundation said forcing people to pay a fee for an appointment could help the NHS cope in the tight financial times ahead.
The group said it would not breach the values of the NHS as charges already applied to dentistry and prescriptions. (BBC)

No no no no no. Doctors are different to dentists; …

Rupert Grint – who plays Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter movies – has had to stop filming for a few days after catching swine flu. He has now recovered from the “mild bout” of the disease and returned to work filming the Deathly Hallows Harry Potter films.
I’m really not surprised he caught it – and rather more surprised that there have been no others from the film. After all, Leavesden Studios where the filming takes place is in Watford – which has been declared a swine flu hot spot.
The …

Raising awareness of male cancer. Yes, that’s the reason, of course…

The Chief Medical Officer needs to know when to keep his gob shut. To say something that can be trailed even by the BBC as

It is too early to assume the swine flu outbreak is a mild infection just because no-one in the UK has died, England’s chief medical officer says.
Sir Liam Donaldson warned against complacency because flu viruses could change character “very rapidly”.

It’s just playing into the hands of the fearmongering tabloid journalists. These few comments, which are actually relatively bland if you read the actual comments, were always …

I love the media response to swine flu – it’s hilarious. First they tell us that we’re all gonna die, then they tell us off for pulling a sickie if have flu-like symptoms. But one newspaper, in a feat of supreme doublespeak, manages to doi both at the same time! Go on, guess which one!

Of course it was the Daily Fail. Who else could manage to incite fear in the same headline as berating anyone who took time off work because of that fear? Only a Daily Mail hack.
This graph …

Today’s prize for statement of the bloody obvious goes to Local Authority Coordinators of Regulatory Services (Lacors) who have found that doner kebabs sold in the UK contain “shocking” levels of salt, fat and calories, concluding:

The level of saturated fat and salt in some is a serious cause for concern.

and that they

would never consider kebabs part of a calorie-controlled diet.

It’s a kebab, people. It is supposed to be extraordinarily bad for you. That’s why drunk people crave them – because they’re greasy and filling. And that’s usually the only time …

Yesterday was what is commonly known as "Black-Eye Friday". Final Friday before Christmas – so lots of office parties, several last days at work before Christmas shut-downs, it becomes one of the biggest "nights out" of the year. With the predictable effect on people going out and drinking, and then doing what people unfortunately do when they’ve had one Bacardi Breezer too many.
That’s those that are able to still have co-ordination after drinking too much. The rest end up sat on the pavement feeling (and generally looking) very sorry for …

Patients are using private hospitals at the expense of the NHS. However, this is a good thing. Despite the claims by doctors this is “losing” public money to the private sector:

This is money that is being lost from the NHS.
That can compromise services and patients should be told that by going private in this way they are potentially putting care they may need in the future under pressure.

They really aren’t understanding the issue, are they? This money isn’t being “lost”, it’s being spent in a more efficient way.
When they go …

The death of this girl enabled five others to live. Her heart, a lung, liver, and both kidneys were removed, with the consent of her parents, and transplanted. Five people are alive thanks to her.
This is why I support presumed consent of organ donation. When you die, you no longer have any use for your organs. And if you really don’t want them to be used after your death – for whatever reason – then you can opt out.
Presumed consent would save lives. It would mean that organs could be …