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Nurses And Doctors To Help Shape New Nhs-Milburn Unveils Task Force On Staff Involvement. Department of Health Press Release 98/088 Wednesday 11th March 1998

Frank Dobson Writes To All Nhs Staff - Health Secretary Seeks "Good, New Ideas For Doing Things Better". Department of Health Press Release 98/110 Tuesday 24th March 1998

In the public sector, with its complex thickets of rules and competing interests, the most important members of an organisation are the people who have learned to adapt a formal system to the needs of the public. Yet these old hands are the first to leave or to be pushed, like the senior doctors currently draining out of the national health service. Guardian, 10 January 2001.

Blair's £100m fund to head off revolt by GPs Nicholas Watt, political correspondent. Guardian Monday March 19, 2001

The NHS is short of doctors but the many qualified refugee health workers who could alleviate the shortage find it difficult to practise their skills. David Batty reports on initiatives to get refugee doctors into work Guardian Society Thursday April 12, 2001

Britain's top nursing leader has launched a vicious attack on Labour's recruitment of nurses, a centrepiece of its strategy to improve the National Health Service. Christine Hancock, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, denounced the use of tens of thousands of nurses from overseas as a 'World War I recruitment philosophy' which was just an 'easy, short-term solution' Observer Sunday May 20, 2001

100,000 NHS staff pledged 'university' places Guardian Society Tuesday May 22, 2001

Abused, threatened and trapped - Britain's foreign 'slave nurses' Recruiting campaigns to attract staff from abroad who can help prop up our stretched health service are condemning many to low pay and squalid living conditions, reports Anthony Browne Observer Sunday May 27, 2001
Peter Lindsay was arrested and, on flimsy evidence, became caught up in an inquiry into seven deaths. Martin Wainwright reports on the fight to clear his name - and asks whether, post-Shipman, doctors are operating in a climate of suspicion Guardian Society Tuesday June 5, 2001
The promise to improve maternity services followed repeated warnings from the midwives' unions of a vicious circle of staff shortages. Guardian Saturday June 16, 2001 Mothers to get one-to-one childbirth care Minister details £100m plan to recruit 2,000 extra midwives, but maternity organisations query whether chronic shortage can be remedied Guardian Saturday June 16, 2001
The hopes and fears of doctors and NHS managers are not as far apart as Malcolm Dean suggests ( July 11). We should not let this myth undermine their common purpose. Readers' letters Guardian Wednesday July 18, 2001
'There's no incentive to admit error, only to cover up' In an exclusive newspaper interview, Clare Dyer talks to Ian Kennedy, the law professor who headed the inquiry into the heart-surgery baby scandal at Bristol Royal Infirmary. Guardian Unlimited Tuesday July 24, 2001
Peter Mansfield gives children separate jabs for measles, mumps and rubella. That may not sound like such a big deal, but the authorities are furious - and he now risks being banned from practising medicine. Felicity Lawrence finds the maverick GP in fighting spirit. Guardian Unlimited Tuesday August 7, 2001
Nurses desert NHS for good life Growing crisis for our hospitals as 5,500 a year join the brain drain in search of better pay Anthony Browne, health editor Guardian Unlimited Sunday August 19, 2001
Social care staff: the basics David Batty Guardian Society Wednesday August 22, 2001
Social care staff: the issue explained David Batty Guardian Society Wednesday August 22, 2001
The Department of Health said last night it was being flooded with calls from foreign doctors wanting to work for the national health service. John Carvel Guardian Society Tuesday August 28, 2001
Agency nurses 'a risk to patients' Hospitals criticised for over-reliance on outside staff. James Meikle, health correspondent Guardian Unlimited Wednesday September 5, 2001

Alison Benjamin on the nurturing of local talent as a solution to NHS staff shortages Guardian Wednesday September 5, 2001

A quarter of GPs set to quit within five years Guardian Society Wednesday October 17, 2001

Healthcare assistants hope to benefit from NHS pay reforms that will reward staff for what they do, rather than for their job title. It is turning into a long wait, however. Guardian Wednesday October 31, 2001

The Liberal Democrats last night called on the Commission for Racial Equality to investigate claims that NHS hospital doctors from ethnic minority backgrounds are being fobbed off with "workhorse" jobs instead of being promoted to full consultant's status. Guardian Unlimited Wednesday November 21, 2001

As a medical career becomes less popular, where will new doctors come from? Report by John Crace. Guardian Society Tuesday December 4, 2001

NHS recruits 10,000 nurses. Guardian Wednesday December 12, 2001

Inflation-busting rise for GPs and nurses. Guardian Society Tuesday December 18, 2001

Old hands dominate list of new health authority chiefs. Guardian Society. Monday December 24, 2001

Union anger at delay in NHS pay reform Milburn battles with Brown over money for changes. Guardian Thursday December 27, 2001

GP shortage to worsen as young doctors switch to part-time work. Guardian Friday December 28, 2001

Why the NHS is suffering. Guardian letter Saturday December 29, 2001

Up to a fifth of emergency nursing jobs unfilled Guardian Society Thursday January 3, 2002

Just over a quarter of NHS executives now earn six figure salaries, with the top paying trust, in Hammersmith, west London, offering £139,000 a year to its management chief. Excessive salaries, bonuses and pay-offs constantly daze and amaze us, particularly if, as in parts of the private sector, they appear to reward failure as generously as they reward results. Guardian Society Wednesday January 30, 2002

'Reformers versus wreckers is the battle for this parliament,' Blair Speech by the prime minister, Tony Blair, at the Labour party local government and women's conference in Cardiff. Guardian Society Sunday February 3, 2002

Unions step up fight against 'wrecker' remarks. Guardian Unlimited Tuesday February 5, 2002

No 10 apology for 'wrecker' speech. Downing Street tries to dispel union anger over Tony Blair's comments about public service reform. Guardian Society Tuesday February 5, 2002

Nurse numbers up but NHS staff crisis still looms. Guardian Unlimited Tuesday February 5, 2002

The government's commitment to integrated working is symbolised by the creation in England of four posts of director of health and social care, replacing the eight regional offices of the Department of Health. Guardian Wednesday February 6, 2002

The Liberal Democrat health spokesman Evan Harris is calling for the repeal of a law that is preventing one of his constituents, a British doctor who qualified in Australia, from starting work today as a much-needed junior in an NHS hospital. Guardian Wednesday February 6, 2002

These wreckers only exist in the Blairite imagination. With no serious challengers, the prime minister needs to invent them. Hugo Young Guardian Society Thursday February 7, 2002

It is not only teacher agencies that need better regulation. Nursing agencies are also under scrutiny, with reforms in the pipeline, but they are fighting back. While the former have been in the spotlight over last week's court case involving the teacher cleared of having sex with two of her underage pupils, nursing agencies have been criticised on two fronts: poor standards and high costs. Guardian Wednesday February 13, 2002

NHS Professionals was hailed at its launch last year as an in-house solution to staffing problems. Carol Davis discovers doubts, teething troubles - and signs of success. Guardian Wednesday February 13, 2002

Increased prescribing powers for nurses. Guardian Society Tuesday February 19, 2002

Blair appoints NHS ambassador to woo foreign surgeons. Guardian Society Wednesday February 27, 2002

Training to become a doctor is a long road. After five years at medical school, junior doctors do a minimum of four years' further training to qualify as a GP, or eight years to be a hospital consultant. Observer Sunday March 3, 2002

Survey reveals patient mortality rates linked to poor organisation and procedures in hospitals. Guardian Wednesday March 6, 2002

Hospital support staff to keep NHS contracts under PFI. Patrick Butler Guardian Society Tuesday March 19, 2002

Cash reward incentives for NHS support staff. John Carvel Guardian Society Wednesday March 20, 2002

Government faces union challenge on NHS staff rights. Patrick Butler Guardian Society Tuesday March 26, 2002

Milburn endorses pay bill eating up NHS's extra cash. Sarah Boseley, health editor Guardian Thursday March 28, 2002

The British Medical Association yesterday identified more than 500 refugee doctors living in Britain who would like to resume a medical career if they could be helped to overcome barriers to retraining and registration. Guardian Society Thursday April 4, 2002

Psychiatric tribunals hit by staffing crisis David Batty Society Monday April 8, 2002

'No one wants to be a hospital pharmacist now. I suppose it's the pressure and the hassle' The speaker, who has asked not to be named, works as a pharmacist in a hospital in England. Society Tuesday April 9, 2002

End in sight for turf wars. Malcolm Dean Guardian Wednesday April 10, 2002

'Not only doctors and nurses work in the NHS. The rest of us are rarely acknowledged' Tiffany Barrett, a pharmacist in Bristol, finds the health service poor at saying, 'Well done' Guardian Society Wednesday April 10, 2002

'Paramedics and ambulance technicians are the forgotten heroes.' Nina Fox of Sawbridgeworth, Herts, is married to an ambulanceman whose pay and pension terms make her blood boil. Guardian Society Friday April 12, 2002

Wanted: 80,000 staff for NHS. · Extra GPs, nurses pledged : · Bank to aid hospitals. John Carvel, Michael White and Larry Elliott Guardian Friday April 19, 2002

Key points of the new contract for GPs. After intensive negotiation the British Medical Association and NHS Confederation have agreed new contract proposals for family doctors. Society Friday April 19, 2002

'Good news for patients, good news for GPs'. Patrick Butler Guardian Unlimited Friday April 19, 2002

GPs offered big shake-up in working conditions. Radical plan holds out prospect of better pay and shorter hours. John Carvel, social affairs editor Guardian Saturday April 20, 2002

UK accused of exploiting foreign staff. John Carvel Guardian Tuesday April 23, 2002

New posts signal change in health workers' traditional role. Adele Waters Guardian Wednesday April 24, 2002

Trusts set out stalls for German doctors John Hooper in Berlin Guardian Thursday April 25, 2002

Call to invest public services cash in people Simon Parker Society Thursday April 25, 2002

The writer, name withheld, is an operating theatre assistant in the Midlands. Surgical theatres are in a state of near anarchy nationally, with power struggles between theatre nurses and other grades of theatre staff the norm. I belong to those other grades, as an operating department assistant. Guardian Monday April 29, 2002

'As our scientists leave for the private sector, the NHS is subsidising ICI'. From a large hospital in England, a manager (name withheld) says a hidden crisis in pathology labs is threatening the NHS plan. Society Monday April 29, 2002

Union goes head to head with government over NHS pay. Patrick Butler Society Monday April 29, 2002

Health union pushes for big wage rises. Kevin Maguire Guardian Tuesday April 30, 2002

Healthcare workers have had to be flexible for far too long, says Geoff Martin. The government must now accept that service improvements can only be delivered if staff are reasonably paid. Society Tuesday April 30, 2002

More than 300,000 health service workers are to recieve pay rises of up to 6.5%. Our guide shows compares the highest and lowest salaries which workers will be offered and compares them with present pay scales. Liz Cummins Society Friday May 10, 2002

Auxiliary nurse Clare Hall had just one noble ambition: to comfort the sick. But in an NHS hospital, there's precious little time for caring. Observer Sunday May 12, 2002

Widespread abuse of employees in NHS is leading to nervous breakdowns and symptoms of post-traumatic stress, by Ben Summerskill, society editor Observer Sunday May 12, 2002

Plan to ban scandal hit managers from the NHS. David Batty Society Thursday May 23, 2002

'Care workers underpin the NHS... at just £5 an hour'. AK Pearce of south-east England says that health and social services are neglecting a group crucial to improving the system. Society Thursday May 23, 2002

Update: can they deliver on health? Last month we reported on a 'hit squad' being sent in to sort out failing Chase Farm hospital. Sarah Boseley Guardian Monday May 27, 2002

Family doctors working under "paid-by-results" contracts are earning more than £150,000 a year, according to leading medical accountants. Single-handed GPs in personal medical services (PMS), who have contracts negotiated locally with commissioning health bodies such as primary care trusts (PCTs), are employing locum doctors and nurse practitioners to carry out their NHS duties. The GPs are then free to do lucrative private work. Society Friday June 7, 2002

How nurse recruiting is tied up in months of red tape. After official apology for backlog, one overseas candidate's year-long experience highlights a widespread problem. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday June 10, 2002 The Guardian

Quick cure. Letter Monday June 10, 2002 The Guardian

Nurse recruited by NHS faces deportation. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday June 11, 2002 The Guardian

Cash rewards for NHS consultants. Patrick Butler Guardian Wednesday June 12, 2002

Q&A: the consultant contract. Senior hospital doctors are being offered significant pay rises in return for stricter controls over working practices, following the first major re-negotiation of the NHS consultant contract for more than 50 years. Patrick Butler explains the background. Guardian Wednesday June 12, 2002

U-turn on private consultant ban. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday June 13, 2002 The Guardian

Can the new NHS contracts make better team players of consultants? Only time will tell, writes Peter Davies. Society Comment Thursday June 20, 2002

Ensuring the NHS has enough staff to meet the demands of a modern health service is one of the key challenges facing the government. Guardian Friday June 21, 2002

NHS staff: the issue explained. Adam Geldman Guardian Wednesday June 26, 2002

Junior doctors 'forced to lie over working hours'. John Carvel, social affairs editor The Guardian Wednesday July 3, 2002

NHS shortlists 500 overseas doctors. David Batty Guardian Wednesday July 3, 2002

GPs set to agree new contract. David Batty Society Tuesday July 16, 2002

Cutting edge: Training nurses to perform routine surgical procedures could ease the burden on consultants and reduce waiting lists. Paul Dinsdale reports on a trailblazing scheme in Leicester. Guardian Wednesday July 17, 2002

Alarm as US woos nurses from NHS. Recruitment war puts at risk 'import' of hospital staff. John Carvel, social affairs editor Guardian Thursday July 18, 2002

Pharmacists. Lucy Ballinger Observer Sunday July 21, 2002

Doctors are notoriously ill-versed at breaking bad news to patients. But a new initiative is teaching them better bedside manners. Jo Carlowe Observer Sunday July 21, 2002

Good money thrown at the bad: Much of the Government's £61bn investment in public services will be wasted because of the mediocrity of UK managers. Simon Caulkin Observer Sunday July 21, 2002

Barred doctor got NHS job Former patients of a gynaecologist protested yesterday at his getting a NHS job within a year of being struck off for incompetence and neglect. Martin Wainwright Guardian Friday August 2, 2002

Salaries to replace NHS dentists' piecework pay in reform experiment. James Meikle, health correspondent Guardian Wednesday August 7, 2002

For most British families, the general practitioner is where the health service begins and ends. But, according to the British Medical Association, thousands of disenchanted young GPs hope to escape from an already understaffed branch of the profession - and in a survey, 66% of family doctors confessed that their morale was "low or extremely low". Meanwhile, GPs threaten to resign from the health service unless an acceptable new contract can be negotiated. Their resolution is unlikely to be tested. The BMA and the government are now negotiating within the "framework" of a new agreement. That is, however, only the beginning of a new order if the relationship between patient and doctor is to have a happy ending. In the first part of a three day series, Roy Hattersley travels to the rural practice of Kirkbymoorside to examine the state of primary care. Monday August 19, 2002 The Guardian

Overwhelmed system delays criminal record checks. Alan Travis, home affairs editor Tuesday August 20, 2002 The Guardian

Creating a new deal for doctors . In the final part of his three part series, Roy Hattersley examines the problems affecting the suburban surgery. Wednesday August 21, 2002 The Guardian

Public to drive 999 ambulances. Patrick Butler Guardian Wednesday August 21, 2002

Crisis in general practice. Thursday August 22, 2002 The Guardian

Hard-up students could have their debts cut in exchange for working in the public sector under proposals from a leading government thinktank. Polly Curtis Tuesday August 27, 2002

How nurses the NHS needs are entangled in red tape. Record number of overseas applications and installation of computer system cause registration chaos. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday September 9, 2002 The Guardian

There is a north-south divide in NHS dental care with people in the south of England half as likely to have access to services, according to the government's public spending watchdog. David Batty Thursday September 19, 2002

£10,000 lure for GPs to return to NHS. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday September 25, 2002 The Guardian

Midwives' leaders warned yesterday that the profession was suffering from its worst ever staffing crisis, with hospitals unable to fill hundreds of posts within three months of advertising the vacancy. John Carvel Social affairs editor Saturday September 28, 2002 The Guardian

PFI hospital's £97m equal pay bill could cost NHS billions. Felicity Lawrence Tuesday October 1, 2002 The Guardian

Government targets to boost the number of GPs and consultants won't be met unless compromises are made over the way doctors are trained. Diane Gray and Belinda Finlayson Tuesday October 8, 2002 The Guardian

The government is heading for failure in its attempt to recruit an extra 15,000 GPs and consultants to the NHS in England by 2008, the King's Fund, an independent health thinktank, says today. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday October 8, 2002 The Guardian

You highlight (Analysis, October 8) the difficulties in achieving the targets for NHS doctor numbers. But these targets are lower than those set out in the Wanless review, which sought an increase of 28,000 doctors by 2010 as compared to 2005. It stated that up to 20% fewer doctors would be needed if nurses were given the correct training to take on the work of doctors. But this in turn requires a programme of skill transfer and more nurses and health care assistants to be recruited. Adrian Towse, Office of Health Economics The Guardian Friday October 11, 2002

Revealed: one in four health employees is now a bureaucrat. Labour has failed to honour its pledge to cut red tape. Jo Revill Sunday October 13, 2002 The Observer

Health is first. Letter from Nigel Crisp Sunday October 20, 2002 The Observer

The government last night was preparing for the autumn of industrial discontent to spread to the NHS as hospital consultants voted to reject a 19% pay deal for fear that it would threaten their professional independence. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday October 26, 2002 The Guardian

The government will begin a crackdown on the "long hours culture" of junior doctors and transport staff today by seeking views on extending the European working time directive to 770,000 extra workers. Andrew Clark Thursday October 31, 2002 The Guardian

Q&A: the consultant contract. Senior hospital doctors in England and Wales have voted to reject a new contract that offers significant pay rises in return for stricter controls over working practices. Patrick Butler and Simon Parker explain the background .Thursday October 31, 2002

More work, more pay. Friday November 1, 2002 The Guardian

Backing in Scotland could lead to separate deal. Kirsty Scott Friday November 1, 2002 The Guardian

No more national deals for consultants. Leader Friday November 1, 2002 The Guardian

Following yesterday's surprise 'no' vote in the BMA ballot on proposed new contracts for senior hospital doctors, Dr Penny Dash speculates that this plays into the hands of Messers Blair and Milburn. Friday November 1, 2002

Ministers consider individual contracts for doctors. David Batty Friday November 1, 2002

Why consultants feel sick. Letters Saturday November 2, 2002 The Guardian

NHS 'plan B' creates junior consultants. Nicholas Watt Saturday November 2, 2002 The Guardian

Public service before self-interest. Leader Sunday November 3, 2002 The Observer

Now nurses demand large hike in pay. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday November 3, 2002 The Observer

Hospital doctors threaten strike. David Batty Monday November 4, 2002

Prescription for medics' pains. Malcolm Dean Wednesday November 6, 2002 The Guardian

Racism 'rife' in NHS merit awards to consultants. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday November 7, 2002 The Guardian

Ensuring that social services have enough staff to meet the demands of a modern care system is one of the key challenges facing the government. Monday November 18, 2002

Warning by BMA on growing shortage of family doctors. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday November 20, 2002 The Guardian

NHS 'university' plans unveiled. Polly Curtis Thursday November 21, 2002

£1.5m pay off for three NHS executives after trust reorganisation. Helen Carter Friday November 22, 2002 The Guardian

Q&A: the NHS pay deal - Agenda for Change, The health secretary, Alan Milburn, has announced a wide-ranging pay deal for NHS staff: Agenda for Change. Adam Geldman explains the background to the three-year negotiations. Thursday November 28, 2002

Overhaul for NHS pay. Simon Parker Thursday November 28, 2002

Alan Milburn, the health secretary, yesterday offered a phased 16% pay deal for 1.2 million NHS workers that will bring enormous benefits for thousands of the lowest paid. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday November 29, 2002 The Guardian

A healthy pay reform. The NHS enters the 21st century. Leader Friday November 29, 2002 The Guardian

'At risk' new NHS staff face HIV tests. Focus on those likely to come into contact with blood. Sarah Boseley, health editor Monday December 9, 2002 The Guardian

Government plans for the NHS are in danger unless it can recruit more older workers and encourage staff not to take early retirement, according to a new report. Friday December 13, 2002

Hospital doctors have signalled their continuing hostility towards government attempts to reform their working practices by electing as their new leader an outspoken opponent of the rejected new consultants' contract. Friday December 13, 2002

NHS staff should ignore the hype and look at the new pay deal for what it is - a small increase over the next three years and a bit more if you can get a fair hearing, says Geoff Martin. Monday December 16, 2002

Consultants set for showdown. Trouble looms as Milburn pushes for local deals. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday December 27, 2002 The Guardian

Q&A: the consultant contract. Senior hospital doctors in England and Wales voted to reject a new contract that offered significant pay rises in return for stricter controls over working practices. What happens next? Patrick Butler and Simon Parker explain. Friday December 27, 2002

The health secretary, Alan Milburn, faces another setback to his programme for NHS changes after it emerged that plans to restructure the pay of more than a million NHS workers are in "deep trouble" with the health unions. Tuesday December 31, 2002 The Guardian

Fifth of GPs want to quit. Falling job satisfaction threatens NHS crisis. Sarah Boseley, health editor Friday January 3, 2003 The Guardian

In the wake of the BMJ report into mass job dissatisfaction amongst GPs, doom-mongering must be kept in perspective, says Patrick Butler. Friday January 3, 2003

Too many unhappy GPs and teachers. Leader Wednesday January 8, 2003 The Guardian

Doctors to get US-style assistants. John Carvel and Matthew Baker Wednesday January 15, 2003 The Guardian

Training for some hospital consultants is likely to be cut by a year in an attempt to speed the recruitment and appointment of senior staff in hard-pressed hospitals. James Meikle, health correspondent Tuesday January 21, 2003 The Guardian

The health secretary, Alan Milburn, today unveiled a new package of rewards for consultants, including performance-related bonuses and paid sabbaticals. Thursday January 23, 2003

NHS consultants to be offered local deals. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday January 24, 2003 The Guardian

GP crisis leading to 'meltdown'. Matt Weaver Tuesday January 28, 2003

As more nurses go private to benefit from flexible hours and higher pay, the £600m cost to hospitals is sucking in cash earmarked for NHS reforms. Jo Revill Sunday February 2, 2003 The Observer

The four regional offices of health and social care are to be scrapped as part of a radical overhaul of the Department of Health (DoH), it has emerged. David Batty Friday February 7, 2003

Living with that shrinking feeling. Malcolm Dean Wednesday February 12, 2003 The Guardian

The UK should use the "hidden army" of trained refugees to plug gaps in NHS staffing rather than poaching nurses from abroad, nursing leaders said today. Tuesday February 18, 2003

The NHS is to import teams of surgeons, anaesthetists and nurses from South Africa in an attempt to reduce the waiting list for hip operations in north-west England. John Carvel, Patrick Butler and David Batty Wednesday February 19, 2003 The Guardian

Overseas staff keep NHS afloat. Patrick Butler Wednesday February 19, 2003

The new GP contract promises to increase doctors' autonomy and to improve the quality and range of care. Its cost may be the long-term relationship between patient and general practitioner. Friday February 21, 2003

Q&A: GP contract. Details of the biggest change in GP terms of employment since the NHS was founded were announced today, ending 18 months of spirited negotiation. Will this reverse a decline in morale and crisis in recruitment? David Batty reports. Friday February 21, 2003

Two health initiatives were reported yesterday - the first, a restructured GP contract, could revitalise primary care; the second, an expansion of foundation hospitals, is an unwanted diversion. Leader Saturday February 22, 2003 The Guardian

The government yesterday offered NHS family doctors a £1.9bn deal to increase the income of GPs' practices by a third over three years in return for fundamental reform. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday February 22, 2003 The Guardian

Shrinking number of psychiatrists sparks crisis. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday March 2, 2003 The Observer

Headhunt for NHS boardrooms. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday March 3, 2003 The Guardian

GP contract 'could boost pay by £22,000'. David Batty Monday March 3, 2003

Top brass and the NHS headhunters. Letter Wednesday March 5, 2003 The Guardian

Best GPs promised more autonomy. David Batty Wednesday March 5, 2003

Full text: Alan Milburn's speech. The health secretary's speech to the National Association for Primary Care. Wednesday March 5, 2003

At least 7,000 consultants will resign from the NHS if the government persists in refusing to reopen negotiations on pay and conditions, the British Medical Association warned last night. John Carvel Thursday March 6, 2003 The Guardian

The chief executives of 50 NHS trusts and other health bodies are being told to abandon their right to secrecy and disclose the size of their pay packets. James Meikle, health correspondent Friday March 21, 2003

Q&A: GP contract. Details of the biggest change in GP terms of employment since the NHS was founded have been announced, ending 18 months of spirited negotiation. Will this reverse a decline in morale and crisis in recruitment? David Batty reports. Friday April 4, 2003

Matrons are to be brought into hospital casualty departments in a bid to improve cleanliness and quality of care, the health secretary, Alan Milburn, announced today. David Batty Monday April 7, 2003

The government was today warned that it faces a "haemorrhage" of staff from the frontline primary care trusts that manage GP surgeries and commission treatment from hospitals. Simon Parker Friday April 11, 2003

Introduced in NHS hospitals two years ago, 'modern matrons' have become popular and are an apparent success. They reject the old Carry On image, but, as Christopher Middleton reports, Hattie Jacques would probably have approved. Wednesday April 16, 2003 The Guardian

Nurses gave overwhelming support yesterday to NHS pay reforms that will increase their average earnings by nearly 16% over three years. John Carvel Wednesday April 16, 2003 The Guardian

Some parts of Britain's national health service would "cease to function" without a massive and sustained influx of foreign nurses. This was the prediction issued by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) earlier this year as part of research into the current dependency of hospitals and care homes on foreign staff. Thursday April 17, 2003 Guardian Weekly

Family doctors were promised yesterday that no practices would lose money from an NHS deal designed to boost primary care by a third in three years. James Meikle Friday April 18, 2003 The Guardian

NHS hospitals are routinely putting patients' lives at risk by leaving them in the care of student nurses without support from qualified staff, the Royal College of Nursing warned yesterday at the start of its annual conference in Harrogate. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday April 28, 2003 The Guardian

BMA amendments to the new GP contract are designed to allay doctors' fears, but they may just add to the confusion, says Valerie Martin. Tuesday April 29, 2003

They feel overworked and undervalued, and private firms are muscling in on their territory; is a new deal the remedy for the country's GPs? David Batty Tuesday April 29, 2003 The Guardian

Soon you'll be able to get private healthcare at your local Tesco. Welcome to the new world of primary care, says Dr Penny Dash. Tuesday April 29, 2003

Patients are suffering because of a critical shortage of nurses, despite record public spending on the NHS, the leader of Britain's biggest nursing union warned yesterday. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday April 29, 2003 The Guardian

We are the solution. Letter Saturday May 3, 2003 The Guardian

More than two in every five newly-qualified doctors believed their medical training did not fully prepare them for their jobs, according to a new study out today. Friday May 9, 2003

Tens of thousands of people working with children in the NHS will not be checked by police, in an attempt to ease the growing chaos at the Criminal Records Bureau. At the same time, Ministers are preparing a multi-million-pound bail-out of the agency and the controversial private-sector contractor Capita that runs the CRB, The Observer has discovered. Martin Bright, home affairs editor Sunday May 11, 2003 The Observer

More than one in 10 of the new nurses and midwives employed in the UK last year came from developing countries in defiance of a government ban, according to figures published today. David Batty Monday May 12, 2003

As the BMA today stages a crucial conference to try to salvage a contract deal for GPs, critics claim it has lost touch with grassroots doctors. John Carvel investigates how things went wrong. Wednesday May 14, 2003 The Guardian

The future will be bleak for GPs if they reject the contract, says John Chisholm. Wednesday May 14, 2003

Family doctors are today poised to derail the government's plans for NHS reform by demanding that ministers renegotiate a controversial new contract that ties extra money to a GP's willingness to provide new services. Simon Parker Wednesday May 14, 2003

The GP contract could spell the end of the 'family' doctor, says Kailash Chand. Wednesday May 14, 2003

The leader of the UK's 43,000 family doctors today warned of "dire consequences" for the profession if they failed to back a new contract that would radically change GPs terms and conditions. David Batty Wednesday May 14, 2003

The NHS was plunged into crisis last night when GPs' representatives refused to accept a contract negotiated by their leaders which would have increased the income of family doctors by 26% over three years. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday May 15, 2003 The Guardian

The British Medical Association last night advised hospital consultants to begin a work-to-rule against the unpaid overtime that is required by the NHS to meet the government's waiting-list targets. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday May 16, 2003 The Guardian

Medics in a mess. Doctors need to strike a deal on pay. Leader Friday May 16, 2003 The Guardian

Hospital doctors and dentists get 3% rise. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday May 20, 2003 The Guardian

Review bodies

Senior hospital doctors are meeting at a special conference today to decide how to derail the government's attempts to implement the rejected consultants' contract locally. David Batty Wednesday May 21, 2003

Leaders of the NHS consultants in England voted overwhelmingly yesterday to ballot on industrial action if Alan Milburn, the health secretary, refuses to negotiate a new contract within three months. John Carvel Thursday May 22, 2003

New Consultant Contract: Draft Model Contract and Terms and Conditions. Department of Health

An ambulance driver speed-trapped at 104mph on a crucial transplant dash faces court in a test case with implications for emergency drivers across the country. Martin Wainwright Tuesday May 27, 2003 The Guardian. See Speed traps for ambulances sources. .

Family doctors in England earned on average nearly £82,000 last year, according to a survey by specialist medical accountants. Wednesday May 28, 2003

Police chiefs who decided to prosecute a medical transplant driver for speeding at 104mph defended the move yesterday as a way of ending legal anomalies over the NHS's vital organ-ferrying service. Martin Wainwright May 29 2003 . See Speed traps for ambulances sources.

The UK's 43,000 family doctors will be balloted next week on whether to accept a new contract that is widely opposed by the profession. David Batty Friday May 30, 2003

Doctors should dump their neckties to avoid spreading germs and bacteria that could infect patients with potentially lethal superbugs, a medical conference heard today. David Batty Friday June 6, 2003

The British Medical Association seems to have headed off a rebellion by family doctors against a new contract which will let them provide services traditionally confined to hospitals, according to a Guardian survey. David Batty Monday June 16, 2003 The Guardian

Consultants to ballot on go-slow after Reid rebuff. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday June 20, 2003 The Guardian

Threats of industrial action by consultants and cleaners highlight double standards rife in the NHS. Polly Toynbee Friday June 20, 2003 The Guardian

The British Medical Association today won the overwhelming support of family doctors for a new contract that will let them provide services traditionally confined to hospitals. David Batty Friday June 20, 2003

Q&A: GP contract. Family doctors have overwhelmingly supported a new contract that will let them provide services traditionally confined to hospitals. How will the biggest changes in their employment terms since the NHS was founded affect them and their patients? David Batty reports. Friday June 20, 2003

GPs voted overwhelmingly yesterday to accept a pay increase worth 26% over three years, in return for the biggest change in their working practices for at least 40 years. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday June 21, 2003 The Guardian

Patient victory. GPs show the way to consultants. Leader Saturday June 21, 2003 The Guardian

Consultants and contracts. Letter Tuesday June 24, 2003 The Guardian

Hospital chief awarded £200k for unfair dismissal. Tash Shifrin Wednesday June 25, 2003

Dr Reid's diagnosis. Now he must talk to NHS consultants. Leader Friday June 27, 2003 The Guardian

I have been a full-time NHS consultant for eight years and undertake no private practice. The proposed consultant contract offers me an increase in pay of around 5%, in return for an increase in contracted hours of 14%. You may consider this to be "phenomenally generous" (Leaders, June 27), I do not. Barbara Macpherson Glasgow Monday June 30, 2003 The Guardian

John Reid, the health secretary, offered an olive branch to NHS hospital consultants in England yesterday in an attempt to avert a threat of industrial action that could wreak havoc with the government's targets for cutting waiting times. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday June 30, 2003 The Guardian

Reid holds peace talks with hospital doctors. Patrick Butler Friday July 4, 2003

The prospect of industrial action in NHS hospitals in England being avoided improved yesterday when John Reid, the health secretary, offered "adjustments" in the proposed contract for consultants to calm their fear of management interference in clinical judgments. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday July 5, 2003 The Guardian

John Reid, the health secretary, made peace with NHS hospital consultants in England last night after their negotiators accepted his offer of a revised contract that will no longer oblige doctors to do non-emergency work during evenings or weekends. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday July 18, 2003 The Guardian

Q&A: the consultant contract. After months of bargaining, a new offer is being put to senior hospital doctors in England and Wales. We explain the background to the negotiations. SocietyGuardian.co.uk Friday July 18, 2003

Foreign nurses are being used as slave labour in private care homes after being lured to Britain with false promises of training to work in top NHS hospitals, the Royal College of Nursing warned last night. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday July 22, 2003 The Guardian

The NHS is heading for a staffing crisis on the wards because hospital managers pay too little attention to the needs of nurses in their 50s, according to research published today by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. John Carvel Wednesday July 23, 2003 The Guardian

Indecent exposure. Malcolm Dean Wednesday July 23, 2003 The Guardian

Junior doctors threatened legal action against the NHS yesterday after evidence that three out of four hospitals in England are failing to meet a statutory deadline for reducing working hours to a safe weekly limit. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday July 31, 2003 The Guardian

There are now more doctors and nurses working in the NHS than at any time in the past 15 years, the health secretary, John Reid, said today. Thursday July 31, 2003

A surge in recruitment by the NHS in England attracted 9,000 extra nurses and more than 1,500 extra doctors in the six months to the end of March, according to a staffing census published yesterday that puts the government within reach of its targets for expanding the health service by the next election. John Carvel Friday August 1, 2003 The Guardian

Radical solutions on staffing are needed if hospitals are to meet new regulations limiting the hours that junior doctors can work, researchers urged today. Friday August 1, 2003

Hard-pressed hospital doctors working at night have to waste up to a third of their time answering bleepers unnecessarily, hunting down missing x-rays and pushing patients on trolleys, a major new survey reveals. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday August 3, 2003 The Observer

Nurses could boycott NHS Professionals, the staffing organisation set up by the government in a bid to reduce agency nursing costs. Tash Shifrin Monday August 4, 2003

The health and safety executive intervened yesterday at a showpiece NHS hospital after it failed to address the problem of rising work-related stress among its 1,100 staff. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday August 5, 2003 The Guardian

Family doctors are becoming disillusioned with primary care trusts (PCTs), a coalition of medical organisations has warned. Tuesday August 5, 2003

Depressed GP found hanged was a perfectionist. Helen Carter Wednesday August 6, 2003 The Guardian

More than three-quarters of NHS hospital doctors plan to quit the health service before normal retirement age because of long hours, stress and depression, according to a survey of the profession published today. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday August 7, 2003 The Guardian

More flexible training and working practices are needed if the NHS is to recruit and retain much-needed doctors, a report said today. Friday August 8, 2003

Britain's NHS 'poachers' are making a world of difference. Overseas doctors and nurses are happy to be recruited to work in our hospitals, but leave their own countries short of healthcare. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday August 10, 2003 The Observer

'Mugabe says we are being stolen. All we want is better pay.' The brain drain has badly hit Zimbabwe's fragile health service. Andrew Meldrum in Pretoria Sunday August 10, 2003 The Observer

Stop poaching. We must respect Africa's health needs. Leader Sunday August 10, 2003 The Observer

Junior doctors working in hospitals are putting patients at risk of infection because work pressures stop them taking sick leave, research claimed yesterday. Thursday August 21, 2003 The Guardian

Many of the generation of Asian doctors who have long been propping up the NHS faced racism and slow promotion. Anita Pati takes their histories. Wednesday August 27, 2003 The Guardian

Prospects for a deal to end nearly a year of conflict between the government and NHS hospital consultants in England improved yesterday when the British Medical Association voted to put the latest pay offer to a ballot. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday August 29, 2003 The Guardian

Ministers have given the green light for private hospital corporations from the US and Canada to poach NHS doctors and nurses to staff 30 fast-track treatment centres that are to be set up in England under a scheme hatched in Downing Street. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday September 10, 2003 The Guardian

Off-centre policy. Leader Thursday September 11, 2003 The Guardian

Babies' lives are being put at risk in maternity hospitals because of a chronic shortage of midwives, according to research published today. Sarah Boseley, health editor Friday September 12, 2003 The Guardian

'Giving birth should be exhilarating. The staff crisis makes it a nightmare.' Cristina Odone's Diary Sunday September 14, 2003 The Observer

Doctors protest against a new diagnostic and treatment centre being set up near their hospital. Public sector unions vow to stop foundation hospitals. Are they trying to protect their services from destruction and their users from exploitation, or are they out to save their jobs, incomes and cushy working conditions? Wednesday September 17, 2003 The Guardian

Overseas nurses accounted for more than half the new professional registrations in Britain during 2001-02, the first time homegrown recruits have been outnumbered, a report commissioned by the Royal College of Nursing revealed yesterday. James Meikle Friday September 19, 2003 The Guardian

Thousands of hospital doctors will today begin voting on whether to accept a new contract which will improve their terms and conditions. Tuesday September 30, 2003

Q&A. Two-tier workforce. Patrick Butler Wednesday October 1, 2003 The Guardian

The NHS recruitment crisis sets a tough challenge for human resources managers - but some are winning the battle. Linda Jackson reports on the awards that recognise their efforts. Wednesday October 1, 2003 The Guardian

Initiatives put pay shake-up in jeopardy, nurses warn. Tash Shifrin Tuesday October 14, 2003

Accidents to NHS staff in England increased by 26,000 last year - causing workforce shortages and costing the health service £170m a year, a committee of MPs warned today. Wednesday October 15, 2003

A charge of speeding against an ambulance driver who was delivering a liver for a transplant patient has been dropped, it was revealed today. Friday October 17, 2003. See Speed traps for ambulances sources.

Hospital doctors in England have voted in favour of a new contract, the British Medical Association (BMA) announced today. David Batty Monday October 20, 2003

Q&A: the consultant contract. After months of bargaining, hospital doctors in England have voted in favour of a new contract, the British Medical Association has announced today. We explain the background. SocietyGuardian.co.uk Monday October 20, 2003

Hospital consultants in England have voted decisively in favour of the government's offer of a new national contract, raising basic salaries by about 15% and providing lucrative rewards for overtime that was previously unpaid. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday October 21, 2003 The Guardian

Q&A. European working time directive. Kendra Inman Wednesday October 22, 2003 The Guardian

Consultants are not the problem. Letters Friday October 24, 2003 The Guardian

The government today signed an agreement to bring South African healthcare staff to the UK for set periods. Helene Mulholland Friday October 24, 2003

Britain signed an agreement with South Africa yesterday in an attempt to stop doctors and nurses from South Africa's hard-pressed hospitals filling vacancies in the NHS. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday October 25, 2003 The Guardian

A psychiatrist who killed her three-month-old daughter and then committed suicide as a result of mental illness was a victim of stigma within the NHS, an independent inquiry concluded yesterday. James Meikle, health correspondent Saturday October 25, 2003 The Guardian

Almost 400,000 healthcare staff in England are to be quizzed in what is believed to be "the largest workforce survey in the world", launched today. Helene Mulholland and agencies Monday October 27, 2003

The consultants' contract fails to address doctors' conflict of interest, writes John Yates. Wednesday October 29, 2003 The Guardian

Oliver Robinson on improving the vital role secretaries play in the NHS. Monday November 3, 2003 The Guardian

The health secretary, John Reid, has given nurses new powers to prescribe medicines and called for "a new generation of entrepreneurial nurses" in a speech to chief nursing officers today. Tash Shifrin Friday November 14, 2003

Mental health reforms will prompt staff crisis, warn NHS bosses. Tash Shifrin Wednesday November 19, 2003

Proposals to reform mental health law to allow compulsory treatment and detention will create a massive legal log jam that could destabilise the whole mental health system and hugely exacerbate staff shortages. Wednesday November 19, 2003 The Guardian

Q&A: the consultant contract. After months of bargaining, hospital doctors in the UK have voted in favour of a new contract. We explain the background. SocietyGuardian.co.uk Wednesday November 19, 2003

A moving tribute was paid yesterday to hundreds of thousands of ethnic minority workers who form the backbone of the NHS by performing menial jobs spurned by others. Nicholas Watt, political correspondent Thursday November 27, 2003 The Guardian

Hundreds of failed asylum seekers have been found working in the National Health Service in defiance of the Government's crackdown on rejected claimants. Gaby Hinsliff, chief political correspondent Sunday November 30, 2003 The Observer

Up to one in three nurses believe they should be allowed to help patients end their lives, according to a survey which gives an insight into changing medical attitudes towards death. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday November 30, 2003 The Observer . This is different from compulsory euthanasia.

More than eight out of 10 family doctors are planning to opt out of providing care for their patients outside surgery hours, according to a survey published today. Tuesday December 2, 2003

It may appear that policeman are getting younger, but nurses are definitely getting older. A quarter of NHS nurses are over 50 while only 10% are under 30. In fact, around 20% of NHS nurses are eligible for early retirement, if they wanted it. Bill Saunders Monday December 8, 2003 The Guardian

The number of consultants working in Britain's hospitals is not increasing fast enough to match patient demand, a census showed today. Thursday December 11, 2003

The government was urged today to give more help to "hard-up" student nurses after research revealed that many are more than £10,000 in debt. Friday January 2, 2004

The big issue: The midwives crisis. Letters Sunday January 4, 2004 The Observer

Midwives face more abuse from patients and relatives than any other NHS staff group, according to a report published later this month. Hélène Mulholland Monday January 5, 2004

All senior hospital doctors across the UK have now voted to accept a new contract, the British Medical Association (BMA) announced today. David Batty Monday January 5, 2004

Q&A: the consultant contract. After months of bargaining, hospital doctors in the UK have voted in favour of a new contract. We explain the background. SocietyGuardian.co.uk Monday January 5, 2004

Enforcing new European rules on the maximum number of hours which junior doctors may work need be neither costly nor a burden on the health service, health minister John Hutton said today. David Batty Thursday January 8, 2004

Government plans to devolve negotiations on pay and other staff issues to NHS employers will benefit the health service, says Alastair Henderson. Tuesday January 13, 2004

Medical academics have accepted a new contract that could save the health service from a looming crisis due to a dramatic drop in teaching doctors. Roxanne Escobales Thursday January 15, 2004

The number of UK midwives has plummeted by almost half in just 12 months, new nursing statistics revealed today. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday January 21, 2004

If ministers really want to boost recruitment of nurses they need to stop supporting the sort of measures which hit them in the pocket or leave them with nowhere to live, writes Geoff Martin. Thursday January 22, 2004

A high-flying NHS manager who turned round the failing Chase Farm hospital in Enfield, north London, was forced out of his job yesterday because ministers feared it might slip back in this year's star ratings. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday January 23, 2004 The Guardian

Medical students could see their debts nearly double if top-up fees are introduced, the British Medical Association (BMA) warned today. Bernadette McNulty Friday January 23, 2004

Casualty departments around Britain are in danger of being overwhelmed by the number of patients turning up in the evening when thousands of family doctors stop providing after-hours cover this spring. Jo Revill, health editor and Robert Hanlon Sunday January 25, 2004 The Observer

More than 8,000 British nurses and midwives left to work abroad last year, while the number of midwives fell by half, according to the latest statistics from the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). Rajesh Deol Wednesday January 28, 2004 The Guardian

Sick or disabled NHS doctors and nurses working in the capital face harassment and discrimination from colleagues and patients alike, according to a survey unveiled today. Hélène Mulholland Tuesday January 27, 2004

Jonathan Asbridge, president of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, hits back at an accusation that his organisation is making people pay more "for the privilege of being allowed to work". Friday January 30, 2004

Universities are to be banned from charging top-up tuition fees of up to £3,000 a year for nursing and other health-related undergraduate degree courses. Rebecca Smithers, education correspondent Friday January 30, 2004 The Guardian

One of the UK's largest medical schools plans to develop a new cadre of doctor associates who treat patients after just two years of training in an effort to address the shortage of NHS doctors. The University of Birmingham school of medicine aims to create a new style of healthcare worker, based on the US physician assistant, to administer doctors' work and decide their priorities, sorting out the tasks that matter most from those that can wait. David Batty Monday February 2, 2004

The National Health Service "university" today announced Warwick University will be its principal academic partner and named 11 regional partnerships involving universities across most of England. Tuesday February 3, 2004

Black nurses paid less than white colleagues. Jo Revill, health editor Sunday February 8, 2004 The Observer

Thousands of nurses are being driven out of the profession by an archaic system of compulsory shift working that plays havoc with their personal lives and family responsibilities, the Royal College of Nursing warned last night. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday February 9, 2004 The Guardian

The NHS is introducing guidance to protect the anonymity of HIV-carrying workers who might accidentally pass on the disease to patients. James Meikle, health correspondent Monday February 16, 2004 The Guardian

The government is planning to close a major loophole which allows unqualified nursing staff to treat patients - after the inquiry into the death of mental health patient David "Rocky" Bennett revealed that three of the five nurses involved were not qualified. Hélène Mulholland Friday February 20, 2004

Hospital reforms and EU curbs on working time may soon cut the time available for training surgeons to 20% of what it used to be, an editorial in the British Medical Journal today says. James Meikle Friday February 20, 2004 The Guardian

Labour and the unions are on course for a fresh bust-up with the biggest public sector union warning that the government's turning a blind eye to the creation of a two-tier workforce in health will become the defining issue in their relationship. Patrick Wintour, chief political correspondent Saturday February 21, 2004 The Guardian

Salary levels for chief executives of NHS primary care trusts (PCTs) have shot up by 28% over the past year, figures published today reveal. Tash Shifrin Tuesday February 24, 2004

The government is planning to close a major loophole which allows unqualified nursing staff to deliver frontline care to patients without guarantees that they are fit to practise, it has emerged. Helene Mulholland Wednesday February 25, 2004

More than £3m is to be spent on an NHS recruitment drive for radiographers, it was announced today. As many as one in four posts go unfilled in some parts of the country. Friday February 27, 2004

NHS launches £4m recruitment campaign. Tash Shifrin Monday March 1, 2004

A shortage of doctors, nurses and other health professionals will affect the ability of local health services to meet future challenges, an NHS watchdog said today. The Commission for Health Improvement (Chi) launched a report highlighting the difficulties in filling senior posts in England's 303 primary care trusts (PCTs), leaving some managers with heavy workloads. Thursday March 4, 2004

There are more doctors in training in England than ever before, the health secretary, John Reid, announced today. Medical school intake has increased by 2,281 places (60%) since 1997, according to figures published by the Department of Health (DoH). David Batty and agencies Tuesday March 9, 2004

The first comprehensive survey of NHS staff experiences will reveal today that Europe's biggest employer is riddled with violence, bullying, work-related stress, accidents and excessive overtime. But pride in the organisation and its mission to provide free healthcare is so strong that 73% of the 1.3 million staff in England are generally satisfied with their jobs. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday March 10, 2004 The Guardian

Jocelyn Cornwell on the NHS paradox: staff are stressed, abused and yet satisfied. Wednesday March 10, 2004 The Guardian

Fifteen cardiac patients had their surgery cancelled after an NHS trust gave an entire theatre team the week off to "recharge their batteries". Swansea Hospitals NHS Trust defended its decision to send the 15-strong cardiac operating team home last week on the grounds that they were stressed and overworked. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday March 10, 2004

The NHS is quietly assembling a cadre of ambitious black and Asian managers for fast-tracking into senior positions to counter a white bias in the top echelons of the service. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday March 15, 2004 The Guardian

NHS needs fast-tracking. Letters Wednesday March 17, 2004 The Guardian

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) has admitted that statistics which showed a dramatic fall in the number of UK midwives were flawed. David Batty Wednesday March 17, 2004

More than three-quarters of maternity units in the UK do not have enough midwives, according to a new report. The Royal College of Midwives (RCM) found that of the 122 maternity units surveyed in the UK, 77% had staff shortages, rising to 83% in England alone. Friday March 19, 2004

The NHS workforce in England has grown by 224,200 since Labour came to power in 1997, according to an employee census published yesterday. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday March 20, 2004 The Guardian

The public trusts doctors more than any other professional group, a Mori poll has revealed today. Trust in doctors is at its highest for over 20 years, with more than nine in 10 members of the public (92%) having faith in them to tell the truth, according to Mori's annual poll of people's confidence in the professions. Hélène Mulholland Tuesday March 23, 2004

More than 11,000 overseas doctors registered to practise in the UK last year - the highest number ever, according to the regulatory body for the medical profession. Friday March 26, 2004

Doctors' leaders warned yesterday that patients were bound to suffer from a sudden move by the government to introduce the profit motive into NHS general practice for the first time since 1948. Ministers tabled a regulation to encourage competition between GPs and private firms in providing non-standard services such as vaccination, contraception, cervical screening and home visits outside normal working hours. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday March 26, 2004 The Guardian

University College London has poached a 50-strong cancer team from Queen Mary University of London in a bid to create the top European women's health research centre. Polly Curtis Monday April 5, 2004

Doctors who give up careers in medicine do so because they feel 'undervalued' by the NHS, a new report has found. The report from the British Medical Association (BMA), released today, found that a lack of professional and emotional support, coupled with unacceptable work-life balance, was making work in the NHS intolerable. Diane Smith Wednesday April 7, 2004

Hospitals are facing a major staffing crisis as a result of European legislation and court rulings on doctors' working hours, a House of Lords committee warned today. The Lords' European Union committee cautioned that the extension of the EU working time directive to junior hospital doctors from August 1, combined with two rulings by the European court of justice (ECJ), could have a dramatic effect on the NHS. Thursday April 8, 2004

Patients needing medicines in an emergency will be treated more quickly under plans to expand nurse prescribing, the health minister John Hutton has announced. Under the new proposals, nurses could prescribe medicines used to treat life-threatening conditions such as blood clots, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and meningitis. They would also be able to prescribe drugs for angina, tetanus, poisoning and dental infections. Tash Shifrin Wednesday April 14, 2004

The government has admitted that it will be unable to fully implement a European directive to cut junior doctors' hours by the August 1 deadline.Tash Shifrin Thursday April 22, 2004

The NHS has achieved its GP recruitment target three months ahead of schedule, according to figures released by the Department of Health (DoH) today. There are now 30,598 GPs working in the NHS, an increase of 240 in the three months to December 2003. The DoH said this meant GP numbers had increased by 2,131 since 1999, exceeding the NHS Plan target for 2,000 more GPs by March 2004. Tash Shifrin Friday April 23, 2004

All NHS psychiatrists and mental health nurses are to be put through a national retraining programme to root out the racist attitudes that have undermined the treatment of black and ethnic minority patients, it was disclosed yesterday. Ministers have accepted a recommendation of the inquiry into the death of David "Rocky" Bennett that training the 40,000-strong mental health workforce in "cultural competence" should become a priority for the service. John Carvel, social affairs editor Tuesday April 27, 2004 The Guardian

Ambulance drivers on emergency calls are being caught so often by electronic speed cameras that NHS trusts have had to take on extra administrative staff to deal with penalty notices. The public health service union Unison said scarce resources were being wasted and staff feared fines and loss of their driving licences. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday April 29, 2004 The Guardian. See Speed traps for ambulances sources.

More than half of England's NHS trusts have failed to implement a new contract guaranteeing consultants' pay and working hours, the national doctors' organisation announced today. The British Medical Association (BMA) said it was concerned that patients' waiting times could grow longer due to immediate cuts in consultants' workloads as these trusts respond to laws capping the maximum number of hours in the doctors' working week. Roxanne Escobales Wednesday May 5, 2004

John Reid, the health secretary, warned NHS trusts last night that they have less than 100 days to avert chaos in hospitals when the European working time directive is applied to junior doctors. He urged managers to reorganise the way they work at night by setting up multi-disciplinary teams of consultants and reduce the number of junior doctors needed for each shift. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday May 6, 2004 The Guardian

Most NHS nurses cannot see any evidence of increased staffing at work, according to a survey yesterday which casts doubt on whether the government's recruitment drive is reaping the expected benefits on the wards. The largest poll yet of nurses found that only 30% believed that the number of permanent nursing staff had increased over the past four years at their own hospital or health centre. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday May 10, 2004 The Guardian

An extra 5,250 dentists may be needed in England and Wales to meet barely adequate levels of NHS provision, a study suggests today. The increase of more than a quarter on current numbers would mean luring existing dentists who have only private patients into NHS work and employing foreign dentists, say the study's authors. James Meikle, health correspondent Monday May 10, 2004 The Guardian

The government is to roll out prescribing powers to physiotherapists, radiographers, chiropodists and optometrists in a bid to speed up access to medicines and improve patient care, the health secretary, John Reid, has announced. Under the proposals, Mr Reid said even more health professionals would be able to prescribe medicines in partnership with a doctor. The plans will be put out to a three-month consultation and are part of a wider push to expand the roles and responsibilities of staff to improve the patient experience. Helène Mulholland Tuesday May 11, 2004

Trainee nurses and other NHS professionals will be able to claim up to £170 per week in childcare costs while they are students, the health secretary, John Reid, announced today. The scheme, which will be available to around 6,000 students a year at a cost of £17m, will allow them to claim up to 85% of the cost of childcare from this September. Paul Stephenson Tuesday May 11, 2004

The expansion of the NHS is being achieved by the surreptitious poaching of nurses from developing countries that is tantamount to people trafficking, leaders of the Royal College of Nursing warned yesterday. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday May 12, 2004 The Guardian

The European working time directive will cut the number of hours junior doctors spend on the wards. It ought to make hospitals safer - but does the NHS have enough staff to cope? Mark Gould reports. Wednesday May 12, 2004 The Guardian

Nurses are allowing incompetent students to qualify as professionals, a report by the nursing regulator, the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), has revealed. The NMC-commissioned research strongly criticised nurse mentors for not failing students when they showed a lack of clinical competence on placements. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday May 12, 2004

Patients in danger of having a heart attack will be able to buy cholesterol reducing drugs over the counter for the first time, the health secretary, John Reid, announced today. Statins, which reduce cholesterol levels, are currently prescribed to 1.8 million people and are thought to save up to 7,000 lives a year. The decision to allow patients to obtain statins from their local chemist is the latest move by the government to help patients protect their health by improving access to medicines through a variety of routes, other than an appointment with their GP. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday May 12, 2004

The government was yesterday accused of allowing the public to be used as guinea pigs after it announced that powerful cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins can be be sold in high street pharmacies. Sarah Boseley, health editor Thursday May 13, 2004 The Guardian

I am a "junior" doctor who has been working in the NHS for nearly eight years. I first came across the expression "the killing season" in the beer-soaked medical school bars before I qualified (Society, May 12). When I got to the wards myself, this comment fell short of the mark by a long distance, as none of us were allowed to "fly solo" until we could demonstrate our competence to those more experienced above us. I recognised that this expression was used in the medical school bar by ageing medical school groupies who could not make the grade, and now by Fleet Street journalists on the lookout for a cheap headline. Letters Saturday May 15, 2004 The Guardian

NHS students with parental responsibilities are to get a new allowance to help pay for childcare costs. The scheme, which will help some 6,000 nursing, midwifery, and physiotherapy students a year including single parents, the low waged and mature students could pay up to 85% of childcare expenses. Childcare costs for children under 15, and under 17 if the child has special needs, will be eligible. When it starts in September, it will pay up to £114 per week for students with one child or £170 per week for those with two or more children. The new allowance will be means-tested to target benefits "where needed". Tony Levene Saturday May 15, 2004 The Guardian

About 5,000 jobs are to be cut in a bonfire of NHS bureaucracy as half the health service quangos are axed or merged, it was confirmed last night. The health secretary, John Reid, is expected to tell parliament today that 21 of the 42 NHS quangos will be abolished or combined, freeing £500m to be invested in front-line services. Thursday May 20, 2004 The Guardian

The health secretary, John Reid, yesterday promised that more than 5,000 jobs would be axed from NHS agencies, in addition to 1,400 civil servant posts already being removed by a near 40% cull in central Department of Health offices. A huge reshuffle of quangos and other arms-length groups will see the number reduced by about half by April 2008. A quarter of their 22,000 jobs will go in an effort to drum up money for extra front-line health staff such as doctors and nurses. Dr Reid believes he can find £500m, a fifth of the annual bill for the agencies, if he drives through mergers and abolitions which he plans to detail by the parliamentary recess in July. That roughly equals the cost of hiring another 20,000 nurses or building four hospitals. James Meikle, health correspondent Friday May 21, 2004 The Guardian

After a government pledge to increase GPs, we were given money to expand training capacity (The health service is on the up, May 19). We worked hard to encourage experienced GPs to take on the time-consuming and stressful role of training potential GPs, and succeeded in meeting the target set. Last week, in an unpublicised and potentially disastrous cut in NHS funding, we were told to put this process into reverse, as the national training budget had been cut by £100m (£6m in Yorkshire); 70 fewer doctors will be recruited to start GP training in Yorkshire next year. Letters Friday May 21, 2004 The Guardian

Medical school chiefs are warning of a crisis in teaching medicine and dentistry as the number of medical academics plummets. There are 15% fewer academics in medical and dentists schools now than in 2001 - a total of 500 fewer - new figures from the Council of Heads of Medical Schools (CHMS) and the Council of Deans of Dental Schools (CDDS), revealed today. Medical departments have seen a 14% drop in academics in the same period that there has been a 40% surge in student numbers. Polly Curtis Monday May 24, 2004

Government plans to reform dental services face renewed opposition from dentists, after a survey by the British Dental Association found 59% of them would reduce or completely stop NHS work if proposed changes to the service are introduced. The BDA says dentists are concerned new finance systems are being rushed in, and have little confidence in the government's plans for NHS dentistry in England and Wales. Paul Stephenson and agencies Wednesday May 26, 2004

The government must underpin its commitment to increase the number of cancer scans by 250,000 a year with a renewed effort to recruit and train more qualified radiologists, charities have warned. Annie Kelly Friday May 28, 2004

A new breed of nurse called 'community matrons' is being created to take responsibility for patients in primary care who have long-term chronic conditions, the health secretary, John Reid, announced today. About 3,000 of these new nurses will be employed to manage the 250,000 patients who have multiple and complex chronic health needs to help prevent emergency admission to hospital and reduce long-term stays, Mr Reid revealed. They will be senior nurses likely to offer some care themselves, but who also have a major responsibility to co-ordinate packages of care across different agencies. Debbie Andalo Tuesday June 8, 2004

Plans to create an elite squad of "community matrons" to help patients get the best out of NHS facilities will be included in a five year development plan that is being prepared for Tony Blair to publish later this month. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday June 9, 2004 The Guardian

High street pharmacists could be monitoring people's blood pressure and measuring their blood glucose levels by next year, in a major expansion of their public health role, following a Department of Health contract to develop ways of expanding services. A consortium of charity PharmacyHealthLink, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, the Faculty of Public Health and the UK Public Health Association has been awarded the contract to produce a report on how to expand the public health role of pharmacists. Paul Stephenson Friday June 11, 2004

Implementation of a new pay system for 1.3m NHS staff has been hit by delays and will not now happen by the October 1 target date, employers and unions have admitted in a joint statement. The complex Agenda for Change pay system is now being piloted in 12 "early implementer" sites, but cannot be rolled out across the country until it has been agreed by the unions, after ballots of their NHS members. Tash Shifrin Friday June 11, 2004

Less than 1% of chief executives within the NHS are drawn from black or minority ethnic groups, depriving promotion to such individuals and the organisation of their experience. So how can the service tackle 'snowcapping'? John Carvel and Tash Shifrin report. Wednesday June 23, 2004 The Guardian

John Reid, the health secretary, is planning to hand over responsibility for the pay and conditions of 1.3m NHS staff to a new employers' body independent of the Department of Health. John Carvel, social affairs editor Wednesday June 23, 2004 The Guardian

Start with the cleaners. Labour is winning the battle of ideas on health - but to improve hospitals it must denounce casualisation. Polly Toynbee Friday June 25, 2004 The Guardian

Doctors' leaders acknowledged yesterday that a white male establishment in the NHS is blocking the careers of talented medical staff from minority ethnic communities. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday June 28, 2004 The Guardian

The proposed new pay system for 1.3 million NHS staff moved a step closer today as trade union Amicus voted to leave open the question of whether members should accept the deal.. Tash Shifrin Monday June 28, 2004

Nine out of 10 speech and language therapists say they will leave the NHS if the proposed new pay system for 1.3m health service staff is implemented as it stands, it was warned today. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) said the Agenda for Change pay system now being piloted in 12 "early implementer" sites will mean cuts of up to £8,000 for therapists and an increase in their working hours. Tash Shifrin Tuesday June 29, 2004

So healthcare workers took 11 days sick leave last year. Vilified public sector workers are overworked, underpaid and highly stressed, says Geoff Martin. Tuesday July 6, 2004

Nearly one in six health workers could lose out under the proposed new pay system for 1.3 million NHS staff, results from pilot sites show. The Department of Health has confirmed that initial indications from the 12 "early implementer" sites piloting the Agenda for Change pay system show that around 15% of staff will require "pay protection" because their wages will be cut under the new scheme. The government had previously promised that less than 8% of the workforce would need protection. Tash Shifrin Thursday July 8, 2004

NHS consultants are to be paid a productivity bonus if they exceed the normal quota of operations during a routine shift, under government plans disclosed yesterday. The scheme is designed to give surgeons an incentive to work "harder and smarter" for the NHS instead of moonlighting in the private sector. Ministers hope it will result in thousands of extra operations and help achieve their aim of cutting maximum waiting times to six months next year. John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday July 10, 2004 The Guardian

The health secretary, John Reid, today announced plans to recruit a thousand more NHS dentists in the next 15 months as part of a shake-up billed as the "biggest reform" of NHS dentistry since 1948. Tash Shifrin Friday July 16, 2004. NHS Dentistry: Delivering Change Report by the Chief Dental Officer (England) July 2004

Reforms announced by the government today, including plans to recruit more than 1,000 dentists, are "a positive first step on the long walk back to NHS dentistry," say dentists. Tash Shifrin Friday July 16, 2004

John Reid, the health secretary, promised yesterday to hire an extra 1,000 dentists to relieve a shortage that is denying more than half the adults in England the opportunity to register for NHS care. He said he would increase the health service's annual dental budget by £250m a year (nearly 20%) and push through a new contract for the profession to reward preventive work, reducing the financial pressure to "drill and fill". John Carvel, social affairs editor Saturday July 17, 2004 The Guardian

Foundation hospitals in England are to be exempt from NHS rules banning the poaching of nurses and other medical staff from developing countries, a confidential Department of Health document has revealed. A draft code of practice seen by the Guardian says foundation trusts will be treated like private hospitals and merely "invited" to adopt ethical recruitment policies, without any sanction if they choose to ignore them. For other NHS organisations - and UK employment agencies that supply them with staff - the rules will be compulsory. John Carvel, social affairs editor Monday July 26, 2004 The Guardian

Unions have today reacted with astonishment at the "shameful" u-turn on poaching nurses from developing countries, just two months after the health secretary, John Reid, pledged to strengthen the code of conduct on ethical recruitment. The erosion of the code of conduct on international recruitment comes as hospitals with foundation status are to be exempt from a statutory obligation to adhere to the guidance. Hélène Mulholland Monday July 26, 2004

Hit squads move in as hospitals prepare to deal with limits on working hours. Managers face choice of compromising patient care or failing to meet EU directive. John Carvel, Polly Curtis, Lee Glendinning and James Sturcke Friday July 30, 2004 The Guardian

Most NHS hospitals in England will find it difficult to operate legally from Sunday when a European directive comes into force limiting junior doctors' hours, a Guardian survey has revealed. Written replies from 75 NHS acute and specialist trusts showed 53% expect difficulties in cutting the juniors' hours to less than 58 a week, as required by the new law. John Carvel, social affairs editor Friday July 30, 2004 The Guardian

One NHS manager with a close knowledge of implementing the directive advised the Guardian to be sceptical about trusts - like her own - which claimed to be safely within the law. In fear for her job, she requested anonymity before telling us: "Devising a new rota is not a problem. Most trusts did this a long time ago. So on paper, we are compliant. But there are many extra factors stopping this working in practice. John Carvel Friday July 30, 2004 The Guardian

Doctors' leaders yesterday began monitoring the hours junior doctors work in hospitals as new limits enforced by European law were introduced. As many as one in six NHS trusts may be breaking the rules and others facing severe difficulties, a Guardian survey testing preparedness suggested last week, and the British Medical Association is targeting six unnamed trusts where it may intervene over lack of compliance. James Meikle, health correspondent Monday August 2, 2004 The Guardian

The president of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has denied saying there are "too many" women doctors. Professor Carol Black today distanced herself from the front page headline in the Independent which ran over an interview in which she discussed the increasing number of women entering medicine. Tash Shifrin Monday August 2, 2004

Thousands of doctors are working far more hours than European limits allow but feel too frightened to complain, the British Medical Association said yesterday. Staff and associate specialists doctors on full-time contracts are working on average 73 hours a week, well over the 48-hour working time directive, the BMA said. James Meikle, health correspondent Thursday August 5, 2004 The Guardian

No one knows how many GPs will be operating out-of-hours services when their obligation to do so end on December 31, MPs said last night. The uncertainty in staff and funding for the switch in responsibility for night-time and weekend medical cover must be resolved so quality of care is not compromised, the all-party Commons select committee on health said. James Meikle Friday August 6, 2004 The Guardian

Working-class teenagers are to be encouraged to train as doctors in a £9 million drive to break the class divide in medicine. Four years after the row over Laura Spence, who was denied a place to read medicine at Oxford despite a predicted string of A-grade A-levels - sparking arguments that her state school background had counted against her - almost three-quarters of medical students are still from the top three social classes. Gaby Hinsliff, chief political correspondent Sunday August 8, 2004 The Observer

The government today said it would pay tuition fees for medical students in their fifth and sixth years as it launched schemes to attract young people from poor families and ethnic minority communities to train as doctors. Donald MacLeod Tuesday August 10, 2004

NHS staff in east London have pulled out of the new pay deal, Agenda for Change, amid fears that swathes of workers could lose out under pay modernisation, it has emerged. The East London Unison branch is the first to withdraw from Agenda for Change, and has now pledged to call for a "no" vote amongst members, ahead of the Unison ballot in October. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday August 11, 2004

The new pay system for the NHS, Agenda for Change, has been agreed, unions claimed today, after the government bowed to demands to improve the lowest wage and suspend the most controversial aspect of the package. The breakthrough was brokered following sustained pressure from healthcare unions over the new formula for remunerating staff working unsocial hours. Hélène Mulholland Wednesday August 11, 2004

Ambitious targets to recruit nurses in Scotland are set to be missed as interest in the profession wanes, nursing leaders have claimed. Despite figures published today by the Scottish Executive showing the number of qualified nurses to be at an all time high, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has warned that growth in the number of new recruits is slowing down. Ben Willis Thursday August 12, 2004

A midwife has been dismissed by hospital managers for helping a woman who did not want to go to hospital to give birth at home. Campaigners for home births are angry that Paul Beland, a midwife with 17 years of experience, has lost his job for defying hospital rules and helping a woman as she went into labour. Jo Revill, heath editor Sunday August 22, 2004 The Observer

A crackdown on British hospitals poaching nurses from developing nations is to be launched this week after warnings that Aids-stricken African countries are being stripped of vital staff. Ministers will admit that a ban on NHS recruitment from poorer countries, introduced three years ago on ethical grounds, is being flouted. More than 1,300 nurses arrived in Britain last year from South Africa, with another 500 coming from Nigeria. Gaby Hinsliff, chief political correspondent Sunday August 22, 2004 The Observer

Doctors have warned that changes to consultants' pension arrangements could spark a mass exodus from the profession within three years. In a final twist to the saga of the new consultants' contract, finally agreed between the British Medical Association (BMA) and the government last year, consultants have warned that the advent of improved conditions that will also boost pensions could prompt two waves of departures in 2006 and 2007, when the doctors have reached new higher pension thresholds. Tash Shifrin Monday August 23, 2004

Too few medics are considering careers in teaching and research, which leaves a question mark over who will be left to train doctors in the future, the British Medical Association warned today. Polly Curtis, education correspondent Wednesday August 25, 2004

The government promised yesterday to close loopholes that have allowed NHS hospitals to poach thousands of nurses and doctors from developing countries with a shortage of medical staff. John Hutton, the health minister, said he would stop NHS organisations evading a code of practice that was brought in three years ago to stop unethical recruitment. But the Royal College of Nursing said the problem would not be solved unless the ban was extended to the private sector. John Carvel, social affairs editor Thursday August 26, 2004 The Guardian

The Department of Health's proposals on the recruitment of health workers (Minister to close loopholes, August 26) from the world's poorest countries are an improvement, but still ignore the main issue. Domestic agendas are overriding the need to tackle poverty. We should manage migration in a way that puts the needs of poor countries first. Letters Friday August 27, 2004 The Guardian

The government recognises that it is unethical to poach nurses from sub-Saharan Africa. But kind words alone won't cure this problem. John Carvel Friday August 27, 2004 The Guardian

We already have a largely untapped nursing workforce in this country, in the form of refugee nurses (Nil by mouth, August 27). This is a workforce desperate to make a professional contribution to healthcare in the country that has given them sanctuary. They have had to move on from often very distressing, life-threatening situations - they are not benefit cheats, they are benefit bringers. In July, the Refugee Nurses' Task Force launched its strategy and acknowledged the good practice of a small number of "centres of excellence" (mainly in London) where refugee nurses are being successfully assimilated into the workforce. The health minister, John Hutton, agreed that these examples need to be replicated more widely. Why can't we work smart here instead of raiding our less well to do global neighbours? Letters Monday August 30, 2004 The Guardian

NHS hospitals are increasingly reliant on doctors trained overseas, a study says today. Nearly a quarter of consultants appointed since 1992 fall into this category, as opposed to 15% in the previous 30 years, researchers led by Michael Goldacre, a professor of public health at Oxford University, report in the British Medical Journal. James Meikle Friday September 3, 2004 The Guardian

More than half of doctors believe raising the public sector pension age from 60 to 65 would deter people from joining the NHS, a survey revealed today. A poll of almost 5,000 doctors by the British Medical Association (BMA) found that 51% believed increasing the pension age would deter would-be NHS employees. Tuesday September 14, 2004

A passage from India. India has responded to chronic healthcare staff shortages in Britain and the US by creating a booming export business in trained nurses. Raekha Prasad, in Delhi, talks to nurses preparing to join the NHS, and the recruitment agents who are cashing in. Wednesday September 22, 2004 The Guardian

Nestor Healthcare has posted a £53m loss in the first half of the year after slashing the value of its troubled GP out-of-hours call-out service, Primecare. The company has issued a number of profit warnings in recent months as the NHS cuts the use of agency staff supplied by the private sector. The number of nurses on its books who are paid in any one week has fallen to 6,000 from 10,000, chief executive Stephen Booty said. Heather Tomlinson Thursday September 23, 2004 The Guardian

Junior doctors are shunning a career in general practice, the British Medical Association said yesterday, amid growing alarm that plans to expand the GP workforce in England have stalled. Figures from the Department of Health showed the number of junior doctors training to be GPs fell in the second quarter of this year, while the number of GPs working in English family surgeries and health centres remained at around 33,500. The trend threatens to derail government plans to switch more work to primary care. Last year, GPs and practice nurses saw 700,000 extra patients who would have previously been dealt with in hospital. Ministers want millions more given cheaper care in local health centres. John Carvel Thursday September 23, 2004 The Guardian

Radiographers today warned that long waiting times for scans and cancer treatment are likely to continue for at least three years, despite efforts to solve the profession's staffing crisis. The Society of Radiographers (SoR) claims staff shortages will continue to create backlogs unless more is done to encourage former workers to return to their jobs and to cut degree course drop-out rates. Experts claim that there will be no real influx of staff until 2007 even though a new foundation degree, the first in the country, has been launched to train assistant radiographers to perform x-rays under supervision. It follows a government drive to double the number of university training places and a pledge from the prime minister, Tony Blair, this May to increase the number of cancer scans completed in Britain by 250,000 a year. Tuesday September 28, 2004

This week a Unison conference will decide the union's policy on the new pay structure for NHS staff, Agenda for Change. Geoff Martin says he is not sure he can back a deal which will benefit some - but penalise others.