I Recognise these Constraints

April, 23, 2020 | 6 Comments

Comments

  1. Frank Atherton’s letter is completely bizarre. As the Chief Exec he almost gives a nudge and a wink for you to tackle the problems he actually acknowledges as serious- and is responsible for – or is he trying to be patronising? So odd. Neither of them seem to care what a terrible mess the services in N Wales are in. In other situations surely an urgent response to what you outlined would have been called for. And not the farce of ‘Special measures’.

    Are they really ‘decent’ men? If they hadn’t been made aware of the issues and made mistakes maybe – but they had been clearly informed and left both patients and staff in the lurch.
    Gethin shows his inability to tackle issues openly by the fury he unleashed against a member of his own party recently who was asking awkward questions instead of towing the line.https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-52385006 He is not someone who works collaboratively https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-whitehall-takes-charges-of-tests-after-row-between-england-and-wales-11966406
    The labour party is a close group of cronies in a small nation of people in ‘top’ positions who all know each other – it’s not a healthy situation as far as speaking out is concerned It is worrying that these two men are in charge of the Covid 19 crisis in Wales.

  2. “My suggestion would be for you to continue to engage with others who share similar views; collective analysis and advocacy are more likely to change systems than individual efforts.
    …..I note that you have also copied the letter to your Chief Executive and Medical Director and I will look forward to seeing their response to the service-orientated issues that you have raised.”

    How is it when faced with overwhelming evidence of harm and a brilliant cogent listing of the facts, this same old same old offensive blithering nonsense is rolled out!
    Even the little people like myself get the same short shrift response when trying to raise the alarm. Oh look you are only one (individual) person who are you to think you can change anything. Next please. Oh and by the way I have many men who are on an ssri.

    What part of ‘these drugs are killing people’ don’t they understand.
    Why is it people in high positions are unable to think for themselves?

    It reminds me of the Abbot and Costello ‘Who’s on first’ sketch. Who is in charge? And who can do something?

    Cant wait to read the next installment.
    Its got me trying to guess what or how Gething will respond.
    Maybe he will make the insulting and highly offensive comment that ‘these drugs have helped millions blah blah blah’.
    Maybe it will be the normal doctor hubris in blame the patient blah blah blah,
    Maybe he will refer to others opinions or simply respond with deafening silence.

    Well if he does choose to respond one thing is for sure (just going from my own limited experience),
    1. it will be with a lack of logical coherence,
    2. it will contain delusional thinking, and
    2. there will be a strong reliance on blither…..
    but I don’t know so much so lets wait and see …….. I am on the each of my seat!

  3. H-bombs are dropped, A-bombs are dropped. It feels like D-day …

    To the ‘Letter’ … ‘on behalf of Andrew Witty’ …

    Where there should have been scientific objectivity there has been voodoo medicine; patients who have sought care have had their trust abused. Seroxat has turned mild stress into suicidal despair, and in many cases a passing anxiety has become a lifelong addiction, leading to self-harm, suicide and even murder. Those who have long questioned the safety and efficacy of Seroxat were ridiculed and undermined by the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline.

    Two years ago, GlaxoSmithKline wrote me a letter that contains very little that is truthful apart from the date. We know that its spokesmen made preposterous claims on “Panorama”, and the letter states: The safety and efficacy profile of Seroxat has been confirmed through clinical trials involving thousands of individuals and the experience of tens of millions of patients over the 10 years the medicine has been available. 112 The letter does not mention the number of reports that GlaxoSmithKline has disregarded, ignored or, as happened recently, actually suppressed.

    https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/2004/feb/23/seroxat

    David Healy gave evidence to the regulatory body, when it investigated Seroxat last year, and there is a rather bizarre story to tell about what happened. About nine months before, Dr. Healy had applied for a meeting with the regulatory body. When the meeting eventually took place, he was surprised that no one questioned the evidence that he gave to the regulatory body, although he was a long-time critic. Although some agreed minutes were supposed to be prepared, they were never sent out because many of the members of that committee had financial and other interests in GlaxoSmithKline and in other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. That is a deplorable situation.

    Reply by James Shannon (JS), GSK Chief Medical Officer, on behalf of Andrew Witty

    June 14, 2013

    Dear Christopher Gent, Andrew Witty, and Patrick Vallance,

    Unpublished trials and misreported trials distort the public medical knowledge base and undermine the basis for rational use of healthcare interventions.

    https://study329.org/correspondence-with-gsk/

    ‘Vaughan Gething – Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament drops F bomb on his colleague off mic!!’

    To the letter

    In adolescent mental health, the standards are pushing children toward drug treatments even though we know that pretty well every single trial has been negative. We end up with drug options because wisdom and other non-drug options are not readily evaluated through RCTs and as a result sensible options don’t make it into the standards.

    The selling of antidepressants for teens promised a public health benefit – less crime, alcoholism, substance abuse, divorces, career failures, suicides. But in fact these drugs increase suicidal events, alcoholism, violence, divorce rates, and career failure.

    It is not going to be you alone who can get us back to a position where there is some recognition that a significant part of the medical brief is being able, among other non-drug options, to deploy poisons to good purpose, and that to do this safely a service needs good and committed people, in an ongoing relationship with the people they poison or mutilate.

    cc. Guto Bebb MP, G Doherty, Professor S Wessely, Dr C Thorpe.

    H-bombs –

    https://rxisk.org/welsh-and-scottish-petitions-on-antidepressant-dependence/

    A-bombs –

    http://www.parliament.scot/GettingInvolved/Petitions/PE01651

    http://senedd.assembly.wales/mgIssueHistoryHome.aspx?IId=19952

    Daily Press Briefing – Matt Hancock and Patrick Vallance – plugging Sanofi/GSK vaccine …

    Speaking ‘Volumes’ …

  4. Living in North Wales and having recent experience of ‘the system” using their own interpretation of matters raised, I wouldn’t expect too much from them in the next instalment!

  5. HomeNewsPoliticsNHS
    The health board that’s been failing the people of Wales for four years
    Betsi Cadwaladr has been in Welsh Government special measures since 2015 and signs of improvement are scarce
    ByRuth MosalskiPolitical Editor

    06:15, 16 JUN 2019

    On June 8, 2015, a written statement appeared on the Welsh Government website and was circulated around AMs.

    In 263 words, the Welsh Government’s health minister announced that the Betsi Cadwaladr “should be placed in special measures” due to “serious and outstanding concerns…over some time”.

    Four years on, the person who made that statement, Mark Drakeford, is now First Minister and the health portfolio is held by Vaughan Gething.

    In a recent Senedd debate, Welsh Conservative leader Paul Davies said: “The reality on the ground is that whilst report after report criticises both the health board and the Welsh Government, real people in north Wales are simply not receiving the care they need and deserve”

    Four years of interventions later, the Assembly’s public accounts committee published a report in May which said Welsh Government’s interventions have had “little practical impact”.

    Just days ago, Mr Gething said that “significant progress” would be needed for the health board to be taken out of special measures.

    A further report by Donna Ockenden, said there had been “insufficient change and learning at the Board to date in spite of the organisation being placed into special measures by the Welsh Government over three years ago”.
    During 2012, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) and the Wales Audit Office (WAO) said they had growing concerns in relation to the health board’s governance.

    And, in June 2015, it was placed in special measures
    An action plan was drawn up, and Welsh Government gave the board until April 2018 to make progress.
    It failed to do so.
    They are still failing to “see the improvement expected,” according to AMs.

    There have been a number of changes in terms of leadership.

    In a joint statement, Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board Chairman Mark Polin and Chief Executive Gary Doherty said they welcomed Welsh Government support.138304427511

    Update on Gary D.
    Health board boss gone as chairman says things need to get better quicker
    Gary Doherty has been chief executive of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board since 2016
    Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, which runs health services in North Wales, has announced that Gary Doherty is standing down as chief executive of the board this month.

    The health board has been in special measures since 2015, with Mr Doherty in charge since 2016.

    In a statement, Mr Polin said: “Gary Doherty is leaving his position of chief executive this month to take up the role of director of integration at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NH
    “The board recognises that we need to accelerate the pace of change and it is now time for someone else to lead the next phase of our journey of improvement.

    “I would like to thank Gary on behalf of the board and all staff for his hard work and we wish him the very best for the future.

    “https://www.ombudsman.wales/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Betsi-Cadwaladr-Annual-Letter-2016-17.pdf

    Today 24.04/2020 on the BBC News – Betsi Cadwaladr has failed to give accurate information of deaths from Covid.

  6. -betsi-cadwaladr-whistleblowing-report-must-be-shared- 19/09/2019

    The investigator himself described writing the report as a mammoth task. 32 individuals contributed – many at significant risk to themselves – regarding a systemic concern about poor services to children.

    “There is significant concern regarding the careless waste of staff resources as well as a blind, target-driven culture where managers’ interests trumped the interests of children and families. This is no run-of-the-mill HR concern, it is a clinical governance issue.

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