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Articles by Allyson Pollock
Cómo la mercantilización y la privatización se están utilizando para abolir los sistemas nacionales de atención universal de salud y qué se debe hacer para restaurarlos
español La decisión de tener un sistema de atención de salud pública universal es siempre una decisión política. Muchos países han decidido que la atención universal de salud es el sello de calidad de una sociedad civilizada y que para los gobiernos es a la vez necesario y asequible legislar para sus ciudadanos con ese fin.
Essential medicines lists are for high income countries too
Petra Brhlikova, honorary researcher, Nav Persaud, assistant professor2, Claudia Garcia Serpa Osorio-de-Castro, professor3, Allyson M Pollock, clinical professor of public health1 1Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK 2Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada 3Departamento de Política de Medicamentos e Assistência Farmacêutica, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública Sergio Arouca, Fundação Oswaldo...
Opinion | You Don’t Have to Be a Doctor to Know How Much Trouble the N.H.S. Is In
On Dec. 15, nurses walked out and began the largest nurses’ strike in the history of Britain’s National Health Service. They were protesting working conditions that have left them burned out and stretched thin — and compromised patient safety — and wages that fell in the last decade in real terms. Ambulance workers joined them. This week, thousands of junior doctors went on strike for three consecutive days. “I come to work and can see that there’s a patient waiting eight hours to see a doctor.
Britain's National Health Service is in trouble
“I come to work and can see that there’s a patient waiting eight hours to see a doctor. There are some days where I finish my shift, come back the next day and then I see the same patient still sat waiting in A&E” — the emergency room — “the next day,” Dr. Kiara Vincent, one of the doctors striking, told the BBC on Monday. But you don’t have to work in a hospital to know that Britain’s N.H.S. is in the most serious crisis of its history; you just have to be injured, or ill.
Children in poverty: Time for action to address rising inequalities in the United Kingdom
Abstract enThis link goes to a English sectionzhThis link goes to a English sectionesThis link goes to a Spanish section Children have been disproportionately affected by the response to COVID-19 despite having a negligible risk of morbidity and mortality. Moreover, the response to COVID-19 has magnified the inequalities generated by the decade-long austerity regime imposed by the coalition, and current government.
Unregulated ‘Innovation’: India’s Medicine Problem
Most medicines consumed in India are bought in the private sector. Our latest research into the sales of antibiotics (those taken orally, intravenously or in the form of injection) in the private sector in India in 2020, showed that a third are in the form of FDCs. We found that these sales are driven in large part by drugs the WHO has listed as not recommended and are not on the country’s essential medicines list.
India’s medicine problem
If India is the pharmacy of the world, it’s not doing a good job of providing safe products. A large number of children in the Gambia and Indonesia have recently died after ingesting cough syrup made in India. And in 2019, 11 children in India’s Jammu region died the same way. The cough medicine contained diethylene glycol, an industrial solvent.
Mass Testing: Expensive, Chaotic, and Wasteful
Editorials Professor of Public Health Allyson Pollock discusses the pitfalls of mass PCR testing. The chaos of testing has been well-described by the UK Public Accounts Committee, which stated in October 2021 that the policy ‘had not achieved its main objective’ of preventing transmission and was ‘muddled, overstated and eye-wateringly expensive’.
If you believe in a public NHS, the new health and care bill should set off alarm bells
Photograph: Peter Byrne/PA The government is easing the way for the privatisation of the health service – where is the opposition to their plans? Ten years ago, Andrew Lansley’s health and social care bill to reorganise the NHS in England faced enormous opposition. The current health and care bill, which has its second reading in the House of Lords today, has received far less attention. But it is no less significant.
If you believe in a public NHS, the new health and care bill should set off alarm bells
Photograph: Peter Byrne/PA The government is easing the way for the privatisation of the health service – where is the opposition to their plans? Ten years ago, Andrew Lansley’s health and social care bill to reorganise the NHS in England faced enormous opposition. The current health and care bill, which has its second reading in the House of Lords today, has received far less attention. But it is no less significant.
Re: Pandemic policy must address SARS-CoV-2 transmission in schools
Dear Editor In their response Gurdasani et al [1] misrepresent our editorial and published studies in a manner that exaggerates risks from covid transmission in children. First, we state that “school closures reduce the number of contacts children have and may decrease transmission”. We do not state, as they claim, “that school closures do not reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission”.
Preventable Traumatic Brain Injury in Rugby Players
Head injuries, particularly recurrent head injuries, are a well-defined risk factor for all-cause dementia. The question we need to ask is, ‘are head injuries preventable?’. Photo by Max Leveridge on Unsplash In this longitudinal observational study in professional male and female rugby players there was clear neuroimaging evidence of axonal injury or diffuse vascular injury in a quarter of players. In contrast, non-collision-sport athletic controls did not show these abnormalities.
Mandatory covid-19 vaccination for care home workers
Lydia Hayes, professor of law1, Allyson M Pollock, professor of public health2 1University of Kent, UK 2Institute of Population Health Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK Correspondence to: L Hayes L.J.Hayes@kent.ac.uk Unnecessary, disproportionate, and misguided In a profound departure from public health norms, new law will remove the right of care home staff in England to choose whether to be vaccinated against covid-19.1 The intended next step is a rapid and massive...
Closing schools is not evidence based and harms children
News & Views Closing schools is not...
Tackling rugby - Allyson Pollock
Sport Collision Injury Collective Chief medical officers correspondence Open letter to secretaries of state for health and for culture, media & sport, 07 February 2021 Open letter to UK CMOs 18 December 2020 SCIC letter to UK CMOs_10 January 2018 Letter from CMO Scotland 10 October 2017 SCIC open letter to UK CMOs 13 July 2017 SCIC questions to UK CMOs 13 July 2017 SCIC executive summary to UK CMOs 13 July 2017 UK CMOs letter 29 July 2016 SCIC chronology of events Research White AJ, Batten J,...
Asymptomatic transmission of covid-19
News & Views Asymptomatic...
East African Countries Should Prioritise Their Essential Medicines for Drug Registration
The World Health Organisation (WHO) introduced an essential medicine list in 1977. The aim was to help countries prioritise which medicines to make available for public use. Every two years the WHO publishes a model list which countries use to develop national lists of essential medicines. Most low- and middle-income countries have adopted and adapted the WHO model list concept and developed their own essential medicine lists in line with their disease and treatment priorities.
East African countries should prioritise their essential medicines for drug registration
The World Health Organisation (WHO) introduced an essential medicine list in 1977. The aim was to help countries prioritise which medicines to make available for public use. Every two years the WHO publishes a model list which countries use to develop national lists of essential medicines. Most low- and middle-income countries have adopted and adapted the WHO model list concept and developed their own essential medicine lists in line with their disease and treatment priorities.
Test and trace strategy has overlooked importance of clinical input, clinical oversight and integration
From 18th May in the UK, patients, health and social care staff, and the public could arrange their own COVID-19 tests directly through government phone line or website in the absence of proper clinical input and oversight.
An update to Independent SAGE’s recommendations for student return to campus
Allyson M Pollock, professor of public health Population Health Sciences Institute, Newcastle University, Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4EP allyson.pollock{at}newcastle.ac.uk Yamey and Walensky draw on the experience of the United States to show the risks of outbreaks when universities open.1 They cite a draft recommendation from “the UK’s Independent SAGE Behavioural Advisory Group, that if students in the UK have to physically attend campus, there should be ‘testing on or before...
Operation Moonshot proposals are scientifically unsound
Intended for healthcare professionals Toggle navigation The BMJ logo Toggle top menu News & Views Operation Moonshot...
Covid-19 mass testing programmes
News & Views Covid-19 mass testing...
Covid-19 – a legacy of failure | Chartist
Allyson Pollock and Louisa Harding-Edgar say there is also an opportunity to end the neoliberalism that got us to this point There is no doubt that the Westminster government’s delay in implementing public health measures to prevent Covid-19 has cost thousands of lives and enormous hardship for the many millions of people plunged into unemployment and debt.
Getting back on track: control of covid-19 outbreaks in the community
News & Views Getting back on track:...
Covid-19: why we need a national health and social care service
Intended for healthcare professionals Toggle navigation The BMJ logo Toggle top menu News & Views Covid-19: why we need...
Covid-19: why is the UK government ignoring WHO’s advice?
Intended for healthcare professionals Toggle navigation The BMJ logo Toggle top menu News & Views Covid-19: why is the... Covid-19: why is the UK government ignoring WHO’s advice?
Covid-19: local implementation of tracing and testing programmes could enable some schools to reopen
Allyson M Pollock, professor of public health Faculty of Medical Sciences, The Medical School, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK allyson.pollock{at}newcastle.ac.uk As a public health physician, I am increasingly concerned about the apparent failure to implement fundamental public health measures to tackle the covid-19 outbreak—specifically, community contact tracing, clinical observation, and testing—and about what seems to be one of the knock-on effects of this...
Will HPV vaccination prevent cervical cancer?
The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme aims to prevent cervical cancer. Globally around 13.1/100,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year.2 Typically, vaccination is offered to girls aged 9–13 years before sexual debut and naïve to HPV infection. Box 1 gives an overview of licensing and indications in Europe and the US. Public health agencies promote the position that the vaccine has been shown to prevent cervical cancer (see Supplement 1).
Threats to global antimicrobial resistance control: Centrally approved and unapproved antibiotic formulations sold in India
What is Already Known about this Subject India has among the highest rates globally of antimicrobial resistance and of antibiotic consumption. Prescription medicines must have central regulatory approval before they can be sold. Indian government reports claim extensive use of unapproved fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations of antibiotics. What this Study Adds There were 118 antibiotic FDC formulations on the market in India (2007–2012) compared with four in the UK and/or US.
Publications | British Pharmacological Society
Abstract Aims Rising antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global health crisis. India has among the highest resistance rates and antibiotic consumption internationally. Extensive use of fixed‐dose combination (FDC) antibiotics and of unapproved formulations are claimed contributory factors but there has been no systematic examination of formulations or volumes sold.
An ecological study of NHS funded elective hip arthroplasties in England from 2003/04 to 2012/13
Introduction The 2012 Health and Social Care Act places duties on NHS England and Clinical Commissioning Groups to ‘have regard to the need to reduce inequalities between patients with respect to their ability to access health services’.1 Following the NHS Plan in 2000, private providers of healthcare services have expanded rapidly.
Rights that protect against socioeconomic disadvantage are long overdue - the UK is already paying the price
Credit: Peter Gudella/Shutterstock In 2018, two anniversaries and a crucial decision loom large in the UK. We saw in the 70th anniversary of the NHS in July, while December 10 marks the 70th birthday of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations. On December 11, the UK parliament will also vote on the prime minister's EU withdrawal deal. The coming together of health, human rights and Brexit, raises questions of huge practical and constitutional significance.
Rights that protect against socioeconomic disadvantage are long overdue - the UK is already paying the price
In 2018, two anniversaries and a crucial decision loom large in the UK. We saw in the 70th anniversary of the NHS in July, while December 10 marks the 70th birthday of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations. On December 11, the UK parliament will also vote on the prime minister’s EU withdrawal deal. The coming together of health, human rights and Brexit, raises questions of huge practical and constitutional significance.
In UK, children account for almost half of all visits to A&E for sports injuries
Encouraging children to play sport is a key part of the UK government’s childhood obesity strategy. The argument goes that children who play sport are physically active and therefore less likely to be obese. The problem with this argument is that the proponents conflate the undoubted benefits of physical activity, for which there is a great deal of evidence, with playing sport, for which there is no clear evidence that it helps reduce obesity.
Children account for almost half of all visits to A&E for sports injuries
Encouraging children to play sport is a key part of the UK government’s childhood obesity strategy. The argument goes that children who play sport are physically active and therefore less likely to be obese. The problem with this argument is that the proponents conflate the undoubted benefits of physical activity, for which there is a great deal of evidence, with playing sport, for which there is no clear evidence that it helps reduce obesity.
Europe’s new device regulations fail to protect the public
The new EU Medical Devices Regulation ((EU) 2017/745) comes fully into force on 26 May 2020.1 This “fundamental revision” of the existing regulatory framework is intended to “ensure a high level of safety and health whilst supporting innovation,”1 to provide a better guarantee for the safety of medical devices, and to restore the loss of confidence2 that followed high profile scandals around widely used hip, breast,2 and vaginal mesh devices.3 The regulation is implemented through national...
Why we should be concerned about accountable care organisations in England’s NHS
The introduction of accountable care organisations (ACOs) into the English NHS signals a major reorganisation of the health and adult social care system. Plans for ACOs were proceeding without the usual public consultation followed by an act of parliament.
Jeremy Hunt must consult properly on accountable care organisations
The Secretary of State for Health, Jeremy Hunt, intends to change secondary legislation to enable US-style accountable care organisations (ACOs) to operate in England. He has consulted on technical changes to 12 regulations which would define ACOs and let them operate under contract. But so far there has been no public consultation about whether the law and the NHS should undergo this major change.
Indian government is not doing enough to tackle the sale of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, our latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with antibiotics.
Drug resistance threat: India is failing to curb sales of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, our latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination or FDC formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with antibiotics.
India not doing enough to stop sale of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardized in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, new analysis from British researchers reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal.
Indian government not doing enough to tackle sale of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, our latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with antibiotics.
Antibiotics menace: Govt not doing enough to curb sale of unapproved drugs
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in due to the of huge volumes of that combine two anti-microbial in one pill, a latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s Their is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with As adapt to survive, effective treatments, even for common infections, are diminishing.
Indian government not doing enough to tackle sale of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, our latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with antibiotics.
The Indian government is not doing enough to tackle the sale of unapproved antibiotics
Efforts to conquer antimicrobial resistance are being jeopardised in India due to the sale of huge volumes of antibiotics that combine two anti-microbial drugs in one pill, our latest analysis reveals. Many of these fixed-dose combination (FDC) formulations, as they are known, have not been approved by India’s drug regulator. Their sale is illegal. Antibiotic resistance is a global crisis, threatening to reverse the astonishing health benefits achieved with antibiotics.
Access, Watch, and Reserve antibiotics in India: challenges for WHO stewardship
In its most recent Model List of Essential Medicines, WHO adopted a new classification for antibiotics.
Are radical changes to health and social care paving the way for fewer services and new user charges?
Seismic changes in the organisation, delivery, and funding of health and social care services have been underway since the secretary of state’s duty to provide key services throughout England was abolished by the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
Verso
The World Transformed 2017 will be a four day fringe festival alongside the Labour Party Conference in Brighton. Across nine venues we’ll host skill shares, debates, plays and parties that’ll redefine what it means to do politics and debate new ideas that’ll soon shape the future of Britain. Seymour tells the story of how Corbyn’s rise was made possible by the long decline of Labour and a deep crisis in British democracy.
Why the next Labour Manifesto must pledge to legislate to reinstate the NHS
Labour’s 2017 health manifesto was a hodgepodge of offers – but failed to tackle the underlying issues. Bold thinking and a commitment to the NHS Reinstatement Bill - is needed now if Labour is not to leave NHS patients subject to the mercies of the private sector, NHS workers deregulated, NHS buildings facing more PFI and sell-offs, and the frontline under-funded as money continues to be wasted on private-sector friendly bureaucracy.
Disclosure of patients’ data to the UK Home Office must stop
The BMA’s annual representative meeting in June called for the NHS to stop handing over non-clinical details of patients, including their addresses, to the UK Home Office for immigration enforcement purposes without consent of patients and knowledge of their GP.1 The motion brings into sharp focus the undermining of doctor-patient confidentiality and the insufficient attention to evidence in policy making.
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