UK NEWS

BROWN PLANS CONSTITUTION FOR NHS

Tuesday January 1,2008

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Gordon Brown said he wanted to see a health service that "concentrates on care as well as cure" as the NHS entered its 60th year.

The Prime Minister said he wanted to see improvements in the service that would help make it "personal to needs of the patient".

Mr Brown was speaking during a visit to Wexham Park Hospital in Slough, Berkshire where he thanked staff for working over New Year and praised their "tremendous" efforts.

He spent an hour talking to patients, doctors, nurses and support staff and was accompanied by his wife Sarah, Health Secretary Alan Johnson and local MP Fiona Mactaggart.

Mr Brown had earlier signalled his intention to press ahead with a constitution for the NHS in a New Year message to staff.

Speaking of his hopes for the 60th year of the NHS, the Prime Minister said that he wanted to see patients get check-ups quickly, have regular screening where necessary and be given advice on their health.

He said: "I want to see support and advice in the community as well as in hospital.

"There will be changes in the health service over the year. We will meet our 18-week target, there is improved cleanliness in hospitals and also wider access to GPs.

"The most important thing this year will be moving from a health service that concentrates on cure to one that also concentrates on care.

"I want a health service that in the next 60 years is more personal to the needs of the patient."

MORE SOUNDBITES....

01.01.08, 1:41pm

without the bite, as ever, Mr Brown.
We are very sick of hearing all your nonsensical, unworkable ideas. One mad scheme after another - more bureaucracy, more money wasted, more quangos, all to no effect. You and your lot of incompetents are totally out of touch with the voters.
My New Year resolution is to get rid of Brown and Labour. They have had 10 years to do this nation irreparable damage.

• Posted by: Peter1 • Report Comment

MR. BEAN STRIKES AGAIN

01.01.08, 1:13pm

Fatman Mr Bean can only criticise this nations health when he loses weight and looks fitter himself .He really is looking to save money after wasting the pulics money through his gross incompetence .The national health service should only be available free to those that have paid into it NOT all the immigrants including those from Europe.I bet this new health constitution does not apply to Scotland.Just what has the English done to Mr Bean to deseve such hate? We need desperately to get rid of this bunch of mediocre politicians. PS When is a newspaper or political party going to challenge Mr Bean over the billions of pounds he has lost selling half of our gold reserves.

• Posted by: JimGreen • Report Comment

WHAT

01.01.08, 12:20pm

An ugly,ugly man is Gordon Clown.

• Posted by: rozipoz • Report Comment

NHS REFORM

01.01.08, 12:13pm

The idiot Broon has still not grasped the pack that the umpteen NHS re-organisations since NU labour came to power are the prime reason that the NHS does not work as well as it should in spite of the vast amount of money spent..
Each change means staff moves, re-allocation of offices, labels, stationery closing some departments, re-opening others etc.
This government, none of who have apparently run as much as a whelk stall in the real world need to take advice from people who have.

• Posted by: exnomad • Report Comment

BROWN PLANS CONSTITUTION FOR NHS

01.01.08, 11:19am

Gordon Brown has signalled his intention to press ahead with a constitution for the NHS in the health service's 60th year.

Why the Hell do we need a Constitution ? Was'nt Britains Health Service once the envy of the World ?

The current problems are all down to Government Interference, Lack of proper funding for FRONT LINE NHS WORKERS. Targets and NHS Trusts (with the obvious Post Code Lotteries) that have allowed the NHS to degenerate to the "sub prime" standards we experience today.

All that a constitution will do is to give the Government a better stage to employ "Plausible Denyability" and to shift the blame whenever another Crisis arises in the NHS.

• Posted by: EmperorMing • Report Comment

STOP THE NAMBY PAMBY SERVICES

01.01.08, 11:11am

NHS is about saving lives, and quality of life to a point particularly if your in pain.

Not boob jobs, sex changes etc and all the other fad things that rob others from having the best cancer treatments.

Simplify it and make what's simple effective! Saving lives, ops and ensuring people are not in pain or die.

• Posted by: Alex • Report Comment