Shropshire Council’s health team is undertaking a survey of local needs across the county. The survey asks about what people value most in their local areas, health services, youth provision, volunteering, road repairs, education, public transport and much more. It also seeks to assess how satisfied people are life and whether they would like to be involved in decisions about their area. I hope people will spend around 10 minutes completing the questionnaire. If we don’t tell people what our needs and views are, we get and keep the services we need. This is survey for all adults not just those with long term health conditions. Take part in the survey…
Tag: health
The NHS crisis escalates across the country, including in Shropshire
The news in this week’s media on health is bleak. Yesterday, the president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine said that a bad flu season was piling pressure on to services that were already critically overstretched. He claimed that somewhere between 300 and 500 people are dying as a consequence of delays and problems with urgent and emergency care each week. The British Medical Association said pressure on the NHS is “intolerable and unsustainable”. The Society for Acute Medicine said “urgent action” is needed to bring the health service back from the brink. The head of the NHS Confederation warned senior medics are reporting the “toughest winter they’ve ever dealt with”. The Liberal Democrats have called for the NHS to declare a national “major incident”, as has the Society for Acute Medicine. The Lib Dems have also called for parliament to be recalled to discuss the crisis this week […]
Ambulance waiting falls slightly locally as deaths increase and the NHS strains
Ambulance performance in Shropshire, and in many areas of the country, has been unacceptable for too long. Ludlow health campaigner and town councillor Darren Childs has recently detailed his second experience of not being able to get a 999 ambulance promptly when needed. Susan told her story to me after being classified as a Category 1 emergency in South Shropshire a few days ago. BBC Shropshire reported earlier this week that in 2020 one person died because of ambulance delays in the county. This does not include deaths before the ambulance arrived. In 2021, the number of deaths rose to 22. In first nine months this year, there have been 37 deaths. A new system was introduced at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) two weeks ago. Patients arriving by ambulance are transferred to Ambulance Decision Area for continued assessment and treatment before being admitted to A&E and the hospital. If […]
It’s getting cold out there: keep warm and spare a thought for rough sleepers
It’s turning cold out there. Temperatures in Ludlow are expected to fall to minus 3°C overnight, minus 4°C later in the week before warming slightly from the weekend. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has also issued a Level 3 Cold Weather Alert until 12 December. It’s double duvet time. The UKHSA has urged people to keep warm: “If you have a pre-existing medical condition, you should heat your home to a temperature that is comfortable for you. Try to heat the rooms you use most, such as the living and bedroom, to at least 18°C if you can and keep your bedroom windows closed at night.” That’s a message that has been echoed Age Concern locally.
All I want for Christmas is… Not to step in dog poo
The mornings get light later. The nights come in earlier. It’s a sign that Christmas is approaching. It is also the time when dogs leave presents that their owners don’t clean up because they think they can get away with it in the dark. It is the time of year we end up walking on unwelcome presents because its dark. Of course, dog poo is not just for Christmas. In this town dog poo seems to be for life. There are appalling habits. Poo in the middle of pavements. Poo in people’s drives. On verges. Children’s play areas where dogs are not allowed. Linney Park. Poo right next to waste bins. When poo is bagged up, it is too often dropped nearby. Put on benches where people eat. Even hung off trees like some sort of horrific Christmas bauble. Who do they think clears this mess up, the poo fairies? […]