The first death in the UK from measles for over a decade, in Liverpool, has sent shockwaves around the country. Despite recent warnings the dangerous decline in MMR vaccination rates continues. Several seriously ill children are in Merseyside hospitals according to large-scale media reports. Public health experts fear a potential outbreak could “spread like wildfire” across Merseyside. 95% vaccination uptake is the threshold for herd immunity (World Health Organisation). England’s present rate is 84%, with the lowest uptake in the London area being under 73%. Please get full vaccinations for measles and all other serious conditions as we are seeing increases in so many life-threatening illnesses because of reduced immunity.
Resident (sic) – previously Junior – Doctors have announced strike dates in England from 0700 on Friday 25 July to 0700 on Wednesday 30 July 2025. The BMA (British Medical Association) said: “We met Wes Streeting [on 8 July] and made every attempt to avoid strike action by opening negotiations for pay restoration. Unfortunately, the Government has stated that it will not negotiate on pay, wanting to focus on non-pay elements without suggesting what these might be. Without a credible offer to keep us on the path to restore our pay, we have no choice but to call strikes. No doctor wants to strike, and these strikes don’t have to go ahead. If Mr Streeting can seriously come to the table in the next two weeks, we can ensure that no disruption is caused. The Government knows what is needed to avert strikes. The choice is theirs.”
NHS England responded: ““It is disappointing the BMA have announced strike action, particularly so close to the 10 Year Health Plan that provides a clear vision for recovery and making the NHS fit for the future for both staff and patients.
“While we understand resident doctors’ frustrations go beyond pay, industrial action comes at a significant cost to patients and frontline colleagues, and they will rightly expect steps are taken to avoid strikes from going ahead.”
‘Resident’ seems to be a misnomer for ‘Junior’ doctors who plan another absence. Polls already suggest they don’t have patient and public support this time. No one else can afford more high settlements; our joint priority now must be working hard to deliver the necessary changes set out in the NHS 10-year plan.
The Launch of the 10 Year Health Plan for England sets out steps to make the NHS fit for the future. We hope it will work. The three ‘shifts’ are: from hospital to community; from analogue to digital; and from treatment to prevention. These are welcome. Delivering as much as possible locally is a reminder of the 2008 plan; let’s hope it is delivered this time. We must remember that the oldest, frailest patients are more analogue users than digital users. Prevention is definitely preferable to cure. Our full article about the Plan, the local implications from it, what the Government has said about it, and the King’s Fund’s analysis is at https://swfhealthsocial.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/nhs-10-year-plan-july-2025.pdf
Independent academic report into “Accessibility to Healthcare Services in South Woodham Ferrers (SWF), the Dengie & Maldon” published by SWF Health & Social Care Group
Read the full report at accessibility-to-healthcare-services-report-swf-hscg-warwick-medical-school-vf.pdf
Details of the challenges of accessibility from places in the area to get to the three local acute hospital services are in Appendix 7 to the Report.
Decisions about the future of St Peter’s Hospital, Maldon, and its present services are due to be made at the meeting in public of the Mid & South Essex Integrated Care Board on the afternoon of this Thursday 17 July 2025. We will be there to hear this and hope the decisions will take account of the evidence we gave to the public consultation meeting and that decisions about future health services will start to take account of the findings in our Accessibility Report.
Our local hospitals at Broomfield, Basildon & Southend performance in May
70.5% (66.9% in April) patients were seen within four hours in our emergency departments
25 minutes (36 minutes in April) is the average time for ambulances to hand over patients, compared to 27 minutes in the East of England and 38 minutes nationally
62.1% (65.5% in April) patients received cancer diagnosis results within 28 days
Cases of Salmonella and Campylobacter are the highest in a decade after another significant increase in the last year. Diarrhoea and vomiting bugs spread easily. These infections are usually caught from contaminated food, including poultry meat, eggs, raw fruit or vegetables and unpasteurised milk products. Infections also spread with close contact and cross-contamination in the kitchen, for example when utensils are used for both cooked and uncooked foods. Follow the 4Cs when preparing food to protect everyone from food poisoning:
- cook food correctly following guidance on time and temperature
- chill food below 5*
- clean equipment and surfaces thoroughly
- avoid cross-contamination between raw and ready-to-eat foods via re-useable bags, knives, chopping boards, cloths and work surfaces.
- Use food and drink by ‘use by date’
- Good personal hygiene is essential.
A taskforce will urgently review maternity and neonatal services in ten hospital trusts, including our hospitals at Broomfield, Basildon and Southend, alongside immediate actions to improve care. By December 2025 it will recommend further improvements and inform a new national maternity and neonatal action plan.
The NHS plans in the next ten years to DNA test all English babies to maptheir DNA and assess their risk of hundreds of diseases. This is part of a drive towards predicting and preventing illness. £650m will be invested in DNA research for all patients by 2030.
The House of Commons vote approving the Terminally Ill (End of Life) Bill to legalise assisted dying is a highly significant social shift. The House of Lords with its many experts will scrutinise the Bill carefully. Perhaps this will provide an opportunity to address the issues raised about the draft legislation before it’s finalised. The waiting list for routine hospital treatments fell by another 30,000 in April, to the lowest level for 2 years. On 1 May the waiting list was 7.39million cases, 6.23m patients.
4m+ patients are waiting up to 18 weeks. Around 3m patients are waiting between 18 weeks and a year. Around 190,000 patients have been waiting over a year. What a very long way still to go.
The new Nimbus Covid variant arrives as the usual summer increase in infections has begun. Local people are getting Covid badly. So far, there’s no evidence to suggest this variant is more severe than previous variants, or that current vaccines will be less effective against it.
The Department of Health & Social Care has accepted the advice of the JCVI (Joint Committee on Vaccination & Immunisation) that the 2025 free COVID-19 Autumn Booster vaccination will be offered to:
- adults aged 75+ years
- residents in care homes for older adults
- individuals who are immunosuppressed aged 6 months and over
This is a change from autumn 2024, when adults aged 65-74 and all those aged 6 months and over in a clinical risk group were included.
Recent discussions have been held about what additional welfare-related activities we’d like to see started/restarted for Townsfolk. Amongst the activities being considered are: a dementia café, a mental health café, therapeutic crafts, and cultural activities. Please tell us what you’d like to help SWF with more health and welfare activities.
Specialist English mental health hospital crisis centres will open during the next decade. Ten hospital trusts are piloting new assessment centres for people experiencing a mental health crisis. Patients get appropriate calm care and avoid long A&E waits; hospital overcrowding and pressure on the police reduce. The scheme is expected to expand as part of the 10-year NHS plan.
NHS England says more than 5million patients have been helped by high-street pharmacies for minor illnesses, bringing care closer to people’s homes. An SWF pharmacy is dispensing 30% more prescriptions than at the end of Covid. More Public Health news is on our website and in our weekly e-newsletters. SWF Library provides online services and helps with internet access. For welfare information and subscription to our newsletter, email swfhealthsocial@outlook.com , or leave voicemails on 01245 322079.