logo
Will we ever see real action on chronic pain and drug deaths?

Will we ever see real action on chronic pain and drug deaths?

When Scotland declared a "national emergency" on drug deaths in 2019, the public was promised urgent action. Instead, what we received was an empire of taskforces, consultative collaboratives, stakeholder networks and endless glossy reports and strategy documents. The response to a human catastrophe was to create a self-replicating bureaucracy.
In chronic pain, real patients were locked out of decision-making for two years, while officials congratulated themselves on "participation".
In addiction recovery, real lived-experience voices were excluded in favour of state-funded charities and compliant partners who echoed official policy while deaths soared to record levels.
In both cases, participation was a stage-managed performance – a theatre of inclusion designed to give the illusion of action while obstructing real change.
The Drug Death Taskforce, the MAT Standards Collaborative, the "National Mission", the countless "action plans" and "frameworks" – all absorbed years of time and tens of millions of pounds. But frontline detox beds remained closed. Residential rehabs were starved of funding. Choice in treatment was narrowed, not expanded. And the Right to Recovery (Scotland) Bill – which would have guaranteed people legal access to treatment options – was met with bureaucratic hostility and delay.
Exactly as with chronic pain, those who challenged the system – whether patients, advocates or independent charities – were either silenced, excluded, or had their funding threatened. This is not accidental. It is structural.
It is the deliberate management of public outrage through consultation fatigue, policy jargon and bureaucratic complexity, while shielding officials and ministers from accountability.
In both cases, the Scottish Government's own guidelines on transparency, participation and human rights are being openly breached.
In both cases, ministers speak the language of rights and inclusion while presiding over systems that actively exclude the very people they claim to represent.
How many more must die before Scotland confronts the uncomfortable truth? That we have built a public sector culture more skilled at managing public relations than at saving lives. That we have spent vast sums funding consultative industries while starving direct services.
Scotland urgently needs a reckoning: a rebalancing of power in favour of patients, families, and front-line practitioners.
Real independent oversight. Real accountability. Real choice in treatment.
For those of us who have lived through these failures, it is already too late for many we loved. But it is not too late to light a fire under the culture of bureaucratic complacency that allowed it.
Chronic pain patients. Addiction recovery advocates. Bereaved families. We are not separate battles. We are one fight: the fight for a Scotland that values life over bureaucracy.
Annemarie Ward, CEO, Faces & Voices of Recovery UK, Glasgow.
• The Scottish Government is under increasing pressure to address a crisis that is affecting many communities ("Organisations demand urgent action over rising alcohol deaths", The Herald, May 1). More than 70 organisations are imploring John Swinney to take significant action, and rightfully so.
The Government must accept responsibility for failing to tackle alcohol misuse, which has reached alarming levels under its watch. It is time for a comprehensive strategy that goes beyond mere rhetoric.
Immediate investment in public health initiatives, combined with effective community support, could make a transformative difference.
Our society must not allow another generation to suffer the consequences of inaction. Action is needed now, because every life matters.
Alastair Majury, Dunblane.
A sonnet on the sexes
At last some common sense on the ongoing, perverse focus on this issue from Eric Begbie ("Why all the fuss about sex and gender?", Letters, May 1).
Brother and Sister, a sonnet by George Eliot, puts it in a lovely descriptive nutshell.
In the first two lines, indistinguishable as infants: "I cannot choose but think upon the time/When our two lives grew like two buds that kiss."
But soon, "He was the elder and a little man/Of forty inches, bound to show no dread.
"And I the girl that puppy-like now ran,/Now lagged behind my brother's larger tread."
The poet was, of course, Mary Ann Evans.
Murdo Grant, Rosemarkie.
The VAR killjoys
As a football fan for 60-plus years I thought that VAR would enhance the game. Sadly no.
During Wednesday night's excellent Inter v Barcelona Champions League match VAR intervened to chalk off an Inter match-winning goal for offside. By three inches!
These ridiculous offside decisions are ruining the beautiful game.
Football is all about goals and entertainment. However I'm sure that there are those who agree with the reported remark by Bobby Williamson: "If you want entertainment go to the cinema."
Roy Gardiner, Kilmarnock.
Is VAR in football detracting from the entertainment? (Image: PA)
A lack of Scottish TV
Homes Under The Hammer is credited as a BBC Scotland production, yet each month only about one property in Scotland is featured. The presenters are all very interesting but only one is a Scot.
I note that there is concern over the cost of costume dramas. To my recollection there haven't been any Scottish ones for many years.
River City, which gives pleasure to many people, must cost a fraction of what EastEnders does, and should be spared.
Margaret Pennycook, Glasgow.
Pint to ponder
Donald M Manson's letter (May 1) regarding those of hard of hearing, reminds me of my late mother who would often ask me to get her some semi-skilled milk.
Malcolm Parkin, Kinross.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures
Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures

The Herald Scotland

time17 minutes ago

  • The Herald Scotland

Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures

The announcement comes after the Chancellor put NHS funding at the heart of her spending review on Wednesday, raising its budget in a move worth £29 billion a year. This comes, however, at the expense of other areas of public spending. The new £6 billion funding will help to meet the Government's target of reducing NHS waiting lists in England, the Chancellor claimed. 'Over a decade of underinvestment from the previous government put the NHS on its knees, with people across the country unable to get the care they need. We are investing in Britain's renewal, and we will turn that around,' Ms Reeves said. She added: 'Part of our record investment will deliver four million tests, scans and procedures, so hard-working people can get the healthcare they and their families need. 'There is no strong economy without a strong NHS, and we'll deliver on our Plan for Change to end the hospital backlog, improve living standards and get more money in people's pockets.' The latest spending commitment will help patients get access to diagnostic scans and treatment in places such as shopping centres and high streets, speeding up their diagnoses. The Government hopes this will help to cut NHS waiting lists, meeting Labour's goal of ensuring the health service carries out 92% of routine operations within 18 weeks. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Since taking office we have been relentless in our drive to cut waiting times for patients, delivering over 3.6 million extra elective care appointments and reducing the overall waiting list by over 200,000. 'The £6 billion investment we are announcing today will generate millions more vital diagnostic tests, scans and procedures for patients across the country.' On Wednesday evening, Ms Reeves said the Government was 'confident' it could meet its pledge to reduce waiting lists after giving the NHS a 3% annual increase in funding at the spending review. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves during a visit to St Thomas' Hospital in London, following the spending review (Carl Court/PA) Some health leaders are, however, sceptical that the Government will meet its target, despite the funding boost provided at the spending review. Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents all health organisations, warned 'difficult decisions will still need to be made as this additional £29 billion won't be enough to cover the increasing cost of new treatments, with staff pay likely to account for a large proportion of it'. He added: 'So, on its own, this won't guarantee that waiting time targets are met.' Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King's Fund charity, said: 'The Chancellor said she wants the public to have an NHS there when they need it. 'It is hard to see how all the things she mentions: faster ambulance times, more GP appointments, and adequate mental health services and more can be met on this settlement alone. 'Particularly when large parts of this additional funding will be absorbed by existing rising costs, such as the higher cost of medicines, which are currently being negotiated, and covering staff pay deals.'

Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures
Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures

Western Telegraph

time20 minutes ago

  • Western Telegraph

Reeves announces £6 billion to provide millions of NHS tests and procedures

New scanners, ambulances and urgent treatment centres are among the things which the additional cash will pay for, with the aim of providing up to four million more tests and procedures over the next five years. The announcement comes after the Chancellor put NHS funding at the heart of her spending review on Wednesday, raising its budget in a move worth £29 billion a year. This comes, however, at the expense of other areas of public spending. The new £6 billion funding will help to meet the Government's target of reducing NHS waiting lists in England, the Chancellor claimed. 'Over a decade of underinvestment from the previous government put the NHS on its knees, with people across the country unable to get the care they need. We are investing in Britain's renewal, and we will turn that around,' Ms Reeves said. She added: 'Part of our record investment will deliver four million tests, scans and procedures, so hard-working people can get the healthcare they and their families need. 'There is no strong economy without a strong NHS, and we'll deliver on our Plan for Change to end the hospital backlog, improve living standards and get more money in people's pockets.' The latest spending commitment will help patients get access to diagnostic scans and treatment in places such as shopping centres and high streets, speeding up their diagnoses. The Government hopes this will help to cut NHS waiting lists, meeting Labour's goal of ensuring the health service carries out 92% of routine operations within 18 weeks. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Since taking office we have been relentless in our drive to cut waiting times for patients, delivering over 3.6 million extra elective care appointments and reducing the overall waiting list by over 200,000. 'The £6 billion investment we are announcing today will generate millions more vital diagnostic tests, scans and procedures for patients across the country.' On Wednesday evening, Ms Reeves said the Government was 'confident' it could meet its pledge to reduce waiting lists after giving the NHS a 3% annual increase in funding at the spending review. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves during a visit to St Thomas' Hospital in London, following the spending review (Carl Court/PA) Some health leaders are, however, sceptical that the Government will meet its target, despite the funding boost provided at the spending review. Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents all health organisations, warned 'difficult decisions will still need to be made as this additional £29 billion won't be enough to cover the increasing cost of new treatments, with staff pay likely to account for a large proportion of it'. He added: 'So, on its own, this won't guarantee that waiting time targets are met.' Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King's Fund charity, said: 'The Chancellor said she wants the public to have an NHS there when they need it. 'It is hard to see how all the things she mentions: faster ambulance times, more GP appointments, and adequate mental health services and more can be met on this settlement alone. 'Particularly when large parts of this additional funding will be absorbed by existing rising costs, such as the higher cost of medicines, which are currently being negotiated, and covering staff pay deals.'

NHS to receive £6bn to provide millions more tests and procedures, Reeves confirms
NHS to receive £6bn to provide millions more tests and procedures, Reeves confirms

The Independent

time31 minutes ago

  • The Independent

NHS to receive £6bn to provide millions more tests and procedures, Reeves confirms

Rachel Reeves has pledged a £6bn investment aimed at accelerating tests and treatments within the NHS, following substantial year-on-year budget increases for the health service. The additional funding will facilitate new scanners, ambulances, and urgent treatment centres, with the goal of delivering up to four million more tests and procedures over the next five years. This announcement follows the chancellor's emphasis on NHS funding in her recent spending review, where she allocated an additional £29bn annually to the NHS budget. However, this increase comes at the expense of other areas of public spending. The £6bn boost is intended to support the Government's objective of reducing NHS waiting lists in England, according to the chancellor. 'Over a decade of underinvestment from the previous government put the NHS on its knees, with people across the country unable to get the care they need. We are investing in Britain's renewal, and we will turn that around,' Ms Reeves said. She added: 'Part of our record investment will deliver four million tests, scans and procedures, so hard-working people can get the healthcare they and their families need. 'There is no strong economy without a strong NHS, and we'll deliver on our Plan for Change to end the hospital backlog, improve living standards and get more money in people's pockets.' The latest spending commitment will help patients get access to diagnostic scans and treatment in places such as shopping centres and high streets, speeding up their diagnoses. The Government hopes this will help to cut NHS waiting lists, meeting Labour's goal of ensuring the health service carries out 92 per cent of routine operations within 18 weeks. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Since taking office we have been relentless in our drive to cut waiting times for patients, delivering over 3.6 million extra elective care appointments and reducing the overall waiting list by over 200,000. 'The £6bn investment we are announcing today will generate millions more vital diagnostic tests, scans and procedures for patients across the country.' On Wednesday evening, Ms Reeves said the Government was 'confident' it could meet its pledge to reduce waiting lists after giving the NHS a 3 per cent annual increase in funding at the spending review. Some health leaders are, however, sceptical that the Government will meet its target, despite the funding boost provided at the spending review. Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents all health organisations, warned 'difficult decisions will still need to be made as this additional £29bn won't be enough to cover the increasing cost of new treatments, with staff pay likely to account for a large proportion of it'. He added: 'So, on its own, this won't guarantee that waiting time targets are met.' Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of the King's Fund charity, said: 'The chancellor said she wants the public to have an NHS there when they need it. 'It is hard to see how all the things she mentions: faster ambulance times, more GP appointments, and adequate mental health services and more can be met on this settlement alone. 'Particularly when large parts of this additional funding will be absorbed by existing rising costs, such as the higher cost of medicines, which are currently being negotiated, and covering staff pay deals.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store