Health care systems

Fact checks related to the infrastructure of health care and potential impacts of privatisation

1 September 2023

A patient did not wait in A&E for 36 days

FOI information obtained by Labour contained errors, which made it appear that a patient had waited continuously in A&E when in fact they left the hospital and returned the following …

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A patient did not wait in A&E for 36 days
17 July 2023

It does not cost the public £500,000 to train a doctor

It may cost nearly half a million to train a surgeon, but not any doctor, as the former health minister also said. It also does not look likely that almost …

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It does not cost the public £500,000 to train a doctor
11 July 2023

No clear evidence of a significant fall in average waiting times

The health minister Maria Caulfield said that NHS England waiting times were falling “drastically”. The latest data does not support this.

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No clear evidence of a significant fall in average waiting times
23 May 2023

Can pharmacists prescribe medicines?

The Pharmacy First service will mean people in England can get NHS prescription medicines for some conditions from a community pharmacy without seeing a GP. But some pharmacists can prescribe …

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Can pharmacists prescribe medicines?
23 January 2023

How many excess deaths are A&E delays causing?

Earlier this month the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimated delays are causing 300-500 deaths a week - but NHS leaders say they “don’t recognise these numbers”.

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How many excess deaths are A&E delays causing?
22 June 2022

RMT exaggerates money ‘wasted’ on PPE and NHS Test and Trace

Funding the NHS for years would cost far more than the total amount spent—let alone “wasted”—on PPE and Test and Trace during the pandemic.

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RMT exaggerates money ‘wasted’ on PPE and NHS Test and Trace
9 May 2022

NHS dentists are still operating in Somerset

A headline suggesting otherwise is not accurate. There is a reported shortage of appointments for new NHS patients, however.

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NHS dentists are still operating in Somerset
8 December 2021

Lorraine Kelly and her guests were wrong about Covid-19 patients

The majority of people in hospital with Covid are vaccinated—but early reports suggest that the majority in intensive care are unvaccinated.

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Lorraine Kelly and her guests were wrong about Covid-19 patients
13 October 2021

Daily Mail report on GPs seeing fewer patients on Fridays needs more context

There are some important caveats to figures showing GP appointments drop off later in the week.

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Daily Mail report on GPs seeing fewer patients on Fridays needs more context
11 March 2021

Has the NHS had its budget reduced by £30 billion?

Labour claims that the Budget took £30bn out of day to day health spending, this is true if you include the withdrawal of last year’s Covid money.

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Has the NHS had its budget reduced by £30 billion?

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