Kent NHS trust apologises over ear, nose and throat delays
It said on Friday it found 8,849 patients waiting to be seen by ENT specialists whose referrals had not been correctly managed in line with NHS waiting time standards. First reported by the Health Service Journal, it is believed that some patients have waited up to five years for an appointment.The patients impacted are predominantly in the Dartford, Gravesham, Swanley, Bexley and Greenwich areas.
'Immediate action'
It is understood that when the referrals were first received, they were reviewed by a clinician and assessed as routine, meaning that no urgent concerns, such as cancer, were identified at the time.Jonathan Wade, interim chief executive of Medway NHS Foundation Trust and chief executive of Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust, apologised for the delays."We have taken immediate action to ensure referrals to this service are correctly managed, with stronger oversight and improved systems in place," he added.Mr Wade said the hospitals were contacting patients to make arrangements for them to be seen as quickly as possible.
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Daily Mail
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- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE New mom details shocking cost of giving birth in America
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'I thought to myself, I could think of a lot of reasons why the birth rate might be declining. First and foremost, cost. 'So I decided to take it upon myself and look at every bill that I received over the course of my pregnancy and total what it costs to deliver twins in America.' Emily explained that she is considered 'advanced maternal age' and was pregnant with 'dichorionic diamniotic twins' which made her pregnancy 'high risk.' In addition, about halfway through the pregnancy her doctor raised concerns about potential 'fetal growth restriction,' so from about 22 weeks on she had to have two appointments every week with her OBGYN and a maternal fetal medicine specialist to make sure the babies were healthy. 'So what was the total cost of that? From the start of my pregnancy through delivery and me walking out of those hospital doors, the total bill for my care was $120,527.51,' she said in the video. 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Unsurprisingly, the delivery itself and the hospital stay afterwards was the most costly expense. Emily explained that she had a scheduled C-section at 37 weeks and spent four days in the hospital post delivery, and the total cost of her care before insurance was $65,665.50. The second highest cost during the pregnancy was an appointment she had about seven months in, during which she complained to her doctor that she was having headaches. She said they took her blood pressure and it was slightly elevated, so they monitored the heart rate of the babies for 20 minutes to 'make sure they were okay.' She was then given 'two extra strength Tylenol' and they 'did some blood work.' 'The cost that was billed to my insurance for that visit was $9,115,' shared the new mom. 'All things considered, I'm very grateful for the experience that I had and very grateful to have great insurance, but I know that for a lot of people who live in America that is simply not possible,' she concluded. 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Reuters
7 hours ago
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Philips cuts tariff impact estimate following US-EU deal, shares up 10%
July 29 (Reuters) - Dutch healthcare technology company Philips ( opens new tab slashed its estimated tariff impacton Tuesday after the United States and the European Union agreed a trade dealthat imposes a 15% rate on most goods imported from Europe. U.S. President Donald Trump had threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from the 27-nation EU bloc from August 1 in the absence of an agreement. The group, which sells products ranging from toothbrushes to medical imaging systems, said it expected an impact of 150 million to 200 million euros ($173 million to $232 million) from the tariffs this year, lower than the 250 million to 300 million euros it had previously estimated. Philips' Amsterdam-listed stock was the top performer on the pan-European STOXX index (.STOXX), opens new tab in early Tuesday trading, climbing 10% by 0930 GMT. Philips CEO Roy Jakobs told reporters that the U.S.-EU deal provided clarity, but Philips would continue to ask for an exemption from tariffs and other trade barriers for the healthcare sector, including in the U.S. and in China. China announced earlier this month it was restricting government purchases of medical devices from the EU that exceed 45 million yuan ($6.27 million) in value, in retaliation against Brussels' own curbs imposed in June. "We have localized 90% of what we sell in China to manufacture in China, so this is not something of significance to us," Jakobs said, adding that the Chinese market was slowly recovering. Philips also increased its core profit (EBITA) margin forecast to a range of 11.3% to 11.8% for the year, from the previous guidance of 10.8% to 11.3%. Chief Financial Officer Charlotte Hanneman told analysts that the company expects mid-single-digit growth and mid-teens margins beyond 2025, taking into account the impact of tariffs. Its second-quarter adjusted EBITA margin grew to 12.4%, beating analysts' average forecast of 9.9%, while sales were in line with market expectations at 4.3 billion euros. Philips operates through its Personal Health, Diagnosis & Treatment, and Connected Care segments. Its top selling products include image-guided and diagnostic systems, consumer electronics and appliances. The company's sleep and respiratory care products, part of its Connected Care segment, accounted for about 6% of its total sales in 2024. That is about half their pre-pandemic levels, following a 2021 recall of millions of breathing devices and ventilators used to treat sleep apnea. Philips said last April it had agreed to pay $1.1 billion, less than expected, in a settlement of personal injury cases in the United States related to the recall. It said it was committed to rebuilding its position in the market while resolving the effects of the recall. "We have strong momentum in the masks ... and we are working our way back into the markets that we are reentering", Jakobs told analyst on Tuesday. Its comparable order intake grew by 6% in the quarter, the company said, citing the impact of innovations including AI-enabled diagnostic systems. The group also said it had signed a long-term deal with the Indonesian Ministry of Health for its Azurion image-guided therapy system for cardiac, stroke and cancer care and expected a "sizable" impact on its revenues over time. ($1 = 0.8630 euros) ($1 = 7.1764 Chinese yuan renminbi)
