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This week, guest author Hannah Afsar takes us through the week’s most important heath stories in the UK.
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Junior doctors planned to strike for 3 days
Global obesity to cost $4.32 trillion by 2035
NICE backs the use of 8 mental health online therapies
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Junior Doctors 72 hour walk out from the 13th of March 2023
What ?
The difficulties facing the NHS continue as strikes rumble on a quarter of the way into the new year. The most recent healthcare division to strike for better pay and working conditions are junior doctors, who are taking industrial action for from the 13th -15th of March. We have written in more detail about the junior doctors strike in our previous blog.
Why?
Junior doctors are overworked and underpaid. Their salaries have decreased by 26% when compared to those of their predecessors in 2008. With the increase in cost of living and rising inflation, junior doctors are increasingly facing financial instability. This is of course on a background of long hours, minimal resources and poor working conditions. The strike aims for full pay restoration to recoup the above losses – this represents a pay increase of up to 35%.
How (does this affect you)?
As a patient, your appointments may be affected. All areas of the NHS are going to be without junior doctor staff, including A&E. To ensure the safety of patients, consultants and non-junior specialist doctors will cover posts normally attended by junior doctors. Read more in our previous blog about this issue.
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Consultants planning to take industrial strike action
What?
A recent BMA-led ‘consultative enquiry’ with UK NHS consultants has seen 86% of consultants vote in favour of strike action on a turnout of 61%, over the threshold required. This is not a strike ballot, but instead represents a ‘temperature check’ of the mood of consultants in the NHS. Strikes are being discussed, with the government being given until the 3rd April to begin meaningful negotiations with consultants over pay.
Why?
Similar to junior doctors, since 2008 consultant doctors have seen a real-terms 35% decrease in pay. This takes into account inflation and increased cost of living. Disputes over pensions have also arisen due to the high tax bills consultants face due to caps on pension fund limits. Consultants are choosing to work fewer hours to avoid these pension-related taxes, placing further strain on an already-stretched health service.
How (does this affect you)?
A consultant is a doctor who has completed training in an area of medicine, and is employed by a hospital to deliver services there. This may be hospital or clinic medicine, surgery, psychiatry or many other specialties.
They have clinical responsibilities and administrative responsibilities in managing SAS (specialist doctors with similar experience to consultants, but often without management responsibilities) and junior doctors. In the event of a consultants strike, specialty clinics, operating lists and department meetings would be forced to delay or cancel peding the end of strike action. This would worsen an already large backlog of appointments and procedure waiting lists. A total consultant strike would be highly difficult to provide safe cover for, given a consultant is necessary for supervision in all clinical scenarios. This may be from home via mobile, or on site. Details would be shared if strikes are indeed planned.
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Obesity to cost $4.32 trillion globally by 2035
What ?
It is predicted that approximately 4 billion individuals (51%) will be medically classified as obese/overweight by 2035, with the estimated global economic cost reaching $4.32 trillion by this date. This equates to roughly 3% of global GDP, a figure comparable to the economic cost of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Why?
Obesity levels in general are rising, with childhood obesity levels predicted to rise drastically (100% in boys and 125% in girls). Worryingly, childhood rates are increasing faster than that of adults. Additionally, researchers suggest that children who were obese are 5 times more likely to become obese adults leading to long-lasting impact on personal and public health.
The popularity and accessibility of highly processed foods and foods that are high in sugar have contributed heavily to the increase in obesity rates. People may often be more inclined to purchase unhealthy and/or processed food as the higher cost of fresh fruits and vegetables prevents many families being able to afford a ‘healthy’ diet. A less healthy, but quick and easy, dinner for a working family is often preferable to meals regularly made from ‘scratch’ with fresh ingredients.
There is also a lack of emphasis in educating young children and even adults on the importance of an active healthy lifestyle. It is important to mention that not all obesity is due to lifestyle and can be due to psychological, genetic or physiological challenges/diseases. The economic cost is in no way a reflection of blame on any obese individuals, but is a reflection of our shortcomings as a society.
How (does this affect you)?
The economic impact may not directly affect you as a reader in the short term. However, obesity is a condition that leads to high health costs. When we all pay for the same health service, eventually this cost starts being felt when more money is spent on health, away from other necessary services.
Of course, becoming overweight may impact your lifestyle. Obesity has been linked with many conditions including type 2 diabetes and stroke. The World Obesity Federation has called for comprehensive national action plans following the release of WHO guidelines which now suggest doctors screen regularly for obesity at the primary care intervention stage (GP).
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NICE backs the use of 8 mental health online therapies
What?
In recently released guidance, NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) have recommended eight online therapies for anxiety and depression which are hoped to reach up to 40,000 potentially eligible patients. These patients would need to be formally assessed by an NHS therapist in order for the therapy to be recommended.
Why?
For first time referrals to mental health services, average waiting times can be 6 weeks or more. GPs will be able to see patients more quickly than this figure, but the bottlenecks come at receiving long-term mental health care after an initial assessment. Mental healthcare is and continues to be drastically underfunded and under-resourced in the UK.
The above 8 online therapies have the potential to reduce the time taken for people to receive help and in turn decrease pressure on the NHS.
How (does this affect you)?
The online therapies follow principles of cognitive behavioural therapy. This describes an approach that focuses on talking as a form of therapy. CBT involves discussing ways to manage problems and symptoms by altering patients’ thought processes and behaviours in order to make positive psychological progress. The treatments are aimed at individuals with depression, anxiety, PTSD and body dysmorphia.
CBT has proven results in anxiety and depression. The question is whether patients will see benefit without a trained human therapist leading their sessions. Questions also arise about whether patients will continue treatment without external encouragement e.g. a therapist.
On the other hand, this may mean that mental health support is more widely available for the general population. While waiting lists for traditional mental health support continue to grow, surely an innovative stop-gap like official NHS-backed only talking therapies should help to tide things over in the meantime…?
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As always, best wishes from myHSN!
