The York Councils health scrutiny committee will meet on Tuesday. The Cabinet member with responsibility of Health is meeting to take decisions on Wednesday. Neither meeting will however consider the proposed cuts in NHS service standards in York and North Yorkshire. This seems extraordinary given the reports that are emerging.

The Yorkshire Post is reporting today that,

“Thousands of patients face being denied access to hospital care under tough new rules to ration treatment as NHS bosses step up desperate efforts to make millions of pounds in savings.

Under the regime in North Yorkshire, a series of thresholds restricting access to routine hospital care for new patients are being drawn up.

Numbers of patients returning to hospital for specialist check-ups will be cut by more than half, with follow-up consultations axed altogether in some fields”.

York Councillors seem to be content to be sidelined on this important issue

Meanwhile, the number of complaints about the counties ambulance service have reduced this year.

The main area of concern remains response times with 62 complaints recorded so far during the current year, compared to 147 in the whole of the preceding year.

Full details http://tinyurl.com/Ambulance-complaints

The Prior Medical Group – which runs 5 surgeries across York including one in Cornlands Road, is to merge with the Abbey Medical group. The latter has practices on the east of the City.

Together the new group would have 38 GPs and serve 51,000 patients across 9 locations.

The group reports that 74.5% of patients who responded to consultation favour the change.

The merger will take place on 1st April 2013

More information click here: http://tinyurl.com/Priory-merger

The Press have decided not to allow any comments on its web site when stories are published about the Great Buda.

They are right to do so. The comments are filled with the kind of innuendo and parody that could so easily lead to a great Leader losing credibility.

This web site would never stoop to such tactics… although “comedy week” will return in the week after Christmas (so you’d better let us have the photos that they don’t want to be posted now).