An exultant article from the grinning director of the Independent Healthcare Provider Network (IHPN) David Furness in the October issue of Healthcare Markets magazine reminds readers that the dire situation of the NHS has … Read more
Hospitals
The Guardian reports that there are concerns that long NHS waiting times caused by the coronavirus crisis are exacerbating pre-existing health inequalities and creating a “two-tier” system, as more people turn to … Read more
An investigation by The Times has found that medical companies have charged the NHS inflated prices for ventilators. The government paid Excalibur Healthcare Services £135 million to supply 2,700 ventilators, … Read more
A series of contract awards, which total £1.6 bn, published for the first time shows that Circle Health and Spire Healthcare were handed the largest contracts to provide extra staff … Read more
HSJ reports that private hospital providers have been asked to apply to a new procurement framework worth up to £10bn, from which NHS organisations will purchase additional capacity for up to … Read more
Mental Health Services The NHS has a large number of contracts with private providers for mental health services, both residential and in the community. The last few years have seen … Read more
The latest available NHS England figures (September 3) show that of available beds open overnight, an undifferentiated 110,000 beds of all types (general and acute, mental health, maternity, Learning Difficulties) were … Read more
A report from the organisation for NHS managers, NHS Providers, warns that the increasing use of private sector hospitals to look after patients with complex learning disabilities has left patients at risk … Read more
Over £1 million has been spent so far on developing a Business Case for centralising pathology services in Lancashire covering four NHS trusts, according to information released under the Freedom … Read more
A £5 billion deal to extend the use of the private sector to treat NHS patients is being blocked by the Treasury according to reports from inside the NHS. The … Read more
NHS England is to enter into a historic deal with the private sector to provide thousands more beds, extra ventilators and additional staff as the health service attempts to fight against the … Read more
A patient safety inquiry has been launched after the IT company, Cerner, a private contractor, failed to send more than 28,000 pieces of confidential medical correspondence to GPs, according to the … Read more
After a wave of industrial action, facilities workers at Imperial College Healthcare NHS trust are to be brought back in-house, meaning hundreds of outsourced cleaning and catering staff will be … Read more
Synlab has been announced as the preferred bidder for a 15 year pathology contract worth £2.25 billion covering a large part of central and south London. The German company has … Read more
The Independent reports that the number of British people choosing to pay for private hospital surgery has soared with the total amount spent doubling in six years to £1.1bn. According … Read more
HSJ reports that NHS England and Improvement have allocated millions of pounds to outsource elective and diagnostic work to the independent sector, in an attempt to keep waiting lists down during … Read more
The Sunday Mirror revealed that NHS cancer care and kids’ treatments are up for grabs, in contrast to Boris Johnson ’s repeated election campaign denials. Among the service contracts being offered are … Read more
On a live radio interview, Dominic Raab was forced to admit co-authoring a pamphlet advocating increased privatisation in the NHS. The Foreign Secretary appeared as one of five authors of … Read more
One: Matt Hancock, Michael Gove and others have been travelling the country repeating the claim that the Johnson government has launched “the largest hospital building plan in a generation, with … Read more
Maryfield Court, a private mental health hospital, has been rated “inadequate” and put into special measures by the Care Quality Commission. The hospital in Manchester is used for NHS patients … Read more