Latest news with #AshishJoshi
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Plans to tackle mental health crisis 'not ambitious enough', charity boss tells Sky News
Government plans to strengthen mental health services are "not ambitious enough", a charity head has told Sky News. Dr Sarah Hughes, chief executive of mental health charity Mind, spoke to The UK Tonight with Sarah-Jane Mee after a report on mental health cases at A&E reaching crisis levels. Sky's health correspondent Ashish Joshi reported that waiting times for these cases have risen, and overnight beds in mental health units are down almost 3,700 in a decade. Dr Hughes called the report "incredibly important insight into what's happening," before adding: "One of our wonderful campaigners waited 87 hours on a stretcher when she was incredibly distressed. "These are scenes are happening up and down the country, and I'm afraid to say that whilst I'm devastated to see them, I'm not surprised." She then said that while "there are all sorts of services" across the UK for mental health, they are "nowhere near the level that we need". 'We know what works' "We are seeing thousands and thousands of people go into A&E every month for very serious mental health challenges, and this can be resolved quite easily by beefing up what's available in the community," Dr Hughes said. "By making sure that community mental health services are resourced so that people are caught far earlier, that we don't hit crisis, that they're able to get the support they need well before they get into trouble. "We know what works: We know that with proper investment that we could avoid this situation." The charity boss also said that while new initiatives from the government on services would be welcomed, "fundamentally, without mental health support, we're not enabling [people] to thrive". "In fact," she said, "we're putting them into incredibly vulnerable situations day in day out. They are carrying the risk here. "We know that mental health staff in A&Es are also really struggling. They want to do a good job, and they can't. They're not resourced to." Plans to tackle spike in cases 'not ambitious enough' New Freedom of Information data gathered by the Royal College of Nursing shows that over the last five years, waits of 12 hours or more for a mental health bed have increased by more than 380%. When asked about whether and government plans will help tackle the sharp rise, Dr Hughes said: "We already know that they don't and they won't. "We are expecting a real-terms cut in terms of the funding around mental health going forward. We are not convinced or persuaded that we've got the share of spend that's right for mental health. "We're concerned that the plans for mental health are not ambitious enough. We're not really persuaded, I think, that the policies surrounding mental health either are going to help reform and so on. "All of these things that are going on demonstrate a lack of understanding." Read more from Sky News: In response to Ashish Joshi's report, the Department for Health and Social Care told Sky News: "We know people with mental health issues are not always getting the support or care they deserve and incidents like this are unacceptable. "We are transforming mental health services - including investing £26m to support people in mental health crisis, hiring more staff, delivering more talking therapies, and getting waiting lists down through our Plan for Change."
Indian Express
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘Pahalgam avenged but what about Vadodara boat tragedy?' Suspended BJP corporator says will continue fight for justice
A day after the BJP suspended him for 'damaging the image' of the party, Vadodara Corporator Ashish Joshi on Friday said he had 'pledged to get justice' for the 14 victims of the Harni boat tragedy and will 'remain steadfast' in his support to the families. Joshi's suspension from the party came a week after two women, mothers of two students who lost their lives in the 2024 tragedy, had interrupted the speech of Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel in Vadodara, questioning the alleged delay in serving justice. Joshi questioned if the pain of the victims of the Harni tragedy was 'lesser' than the victims of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Speaking to The Indian Express, Joshi said, 'Truly, asking for justice is a crime within the party… In the April 22 attacks in Pahalgam, 26 civilians were killed and within 15 days, it has been avenged. But what about the 14 victims, including 12 innocent children, of the Harni tragedy…? It was nothing but a disaster made by corrupt officials, against whom we have all the proof. While Prime Minister Narendra Modiji has fulfilled his promise of delivering justice to the victims of Pahalgam, the local leaders of Vadodara and Gujarat have been trying to shield the perpetrators (of Harni case)…' Joshi is a first-time corporator of Ward-15, where the New Sunrise School – where the 12 deceased students studied and two teachers taught – is located, and families of most of the victims live. He said he has been seeking 'appropriate action' against officers of the VMC who 'slacked in their supervision duties' of the Lake Zone, particularly the then Executive Engineer of the civic body's Futuristic Cell Rajesh Chauhan, contending that it was the 'duty of the VMC to inspect' the project under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. In July last year, the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) moved a proposal to decide on the punitive action to be initiated against Chauhan, who has been found 'guilty' in the disciplinary inquiry initiated against him in the case. Joshi has also been seeking exemplary compensation for the victims, raising the issue on the floor of the VMC's General Board on several occasions. He said, 'Why has there been no action against the officer even after VMC has found him guilty? He retired in August with all perks and benefits, except a meagre cut of Rs 5,000 from his pension as punishment. Why has he not been made an accused in the case? What about the former Municipal Commissioners, who allowed the boating facility to come up without any processes in place…? Even the order of the HC directing M/s Kotia Projects (the contractors) to pay compensation has not been complied with. But compensation is just a consolation… The loss is irreparable.' Speaking about the episode of May 2 when Sarla Shinde and Sandhya Nizama, mothers of two deceased children — Roshni and Vishwa, interrupted the CM's speech from the audience and sought justice, Joshi said the government ought to have 'shown compassion and large-heartedness'. He said, 'Instead of subjecting the two women to police interrogation, had the CM sahib asked for a microphone to be handed over to them and heard them out, he would have set the example of the sensitivity and compassion that the BJP speaks of. But instead, they were…dragged away…' He further said, 'They (the two women) were forced to take this step as the city police had turned them away or kept them under house arrest on previous occasions when the CM was in the city. Can the pain of the mothers who lost their children be compared to anything?' Joshi, whose public spat with then Municipal Commissioner Dilip Rana in March over the cleaning of a drainage line earned him a show-cause notice from the BJP, said he has never spoken against the party. He said, 'I have always raised questions against the system and the administration… I am not someone who barges into offices and threatens officials… I have always approached through right channels, writing letters and requesting action but when the requests are ignored and people suffer, I raise my voice against such officers. If they think that such officers belong to the BJP, then I don't agree with the party…' While he insisted that the suspension 'does not affect him much' — he will continue to hold the position as an independent corporator, as per the rules — Joshi has decided to 'seek answers from the BJP'. He said, 'I will write a letter to the party to ask them to enlist the examples when I have damaged the party's image… I only know that I fulfilled my duty as a people's representative and raised my voice for justice and service to people. I believe in that ideology of the BJP — of Shyamaprasad Mukherjee and Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. I have no agenda to be famous or become a Minister.' Last year, Joshi had vowed not to visit the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, which was inaugurated just four days after the Harni tragedy, until the victims are served justice. He said, 'Yes, I am firm on my resolve… Lord Ram does not ask his disciples to come and bow down only in a temple… He is pleased by service to humanity. Lord Ram is in my heart and the way he fought for his principles, so will we. Now that I am not even answerable to anyone, I will ensure that Harni victims get justice with double the power that I have…'
Indian Express
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
BJP suspends VMC corporator Ashish Joshi, days after mothers of Harni boat tragedy victims questioned CM at Vadodara event
The Bharatiya Janata Party Thursday suspended Ashish Joshi, a Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) corporator from Ward 15, from the party for 'damaging image of the party'. Joshi's suspension came after the mothers of two students killed in the Harni boat capsize were allegedly detained by the Vadodara police for interrupting Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel during his speech at an event in the city on May 2. Joshi has been supporting the victims of the Harni boat tragedy by raising the issue on the floor of VMC since the day of the accident on January 18, 2024. He is the corporator of the VMC ward where the New Sunrise School is located, and from where most of the deceased studied. On Thursday, in a letter to Joshi, the BJP said it had taken the step to suspend him, considering the 'repeated reminders to mend ways' had gone unheeded. The suspension letter, signed by BJP Vadodara unit chief Jayprakash Soni, states, 'Time and again, you have been reminded to maintain discipline in writing as well as through verbal communication… On several occasions, your behaviour and conduct have damaged the image of the party. You were also served a show-cause notice in this regard, but no improvement has been seen in your conduct.' 'It has come to our notice that you have joined in damaging the image of the party in several instances… The same has been proven adequately by way of social media posts as well as newspaper reports… Considering these factors, as per the directions of the State party President, you are suspended from the party's active and primary membership.' The suspension comes two days after Joshi said in an interview on a social media channel regarding the two mothers questioning CM Patel, and spoke about justice being denied to the families due to the delay in adding officials of VMC as accused in the case. In March this year, days after Soni was appointed as the city unit president, the BJP issued a show cause notice to Joshi to 'explain repeated indiscipline', just two days after Joshi got into a bitter argument with the then municipal commissioner Dilip Rana in the General Board meeting of the civic body over the cleaning of stormwater drains in his ward. In February, Joshi left the BJP embarrassed during the annual budget sessions when he 'voted against' the party's whip on a question related to the compensation for victims of the Harni boat tragedy. Based on a proposal before the Congress party as part of its budget recommendations, VMC held a vote to decide whether the civic body should award the families of 14 victims of the Harni tragedy a compensation of Rs 25 lakh. While all other BJP corporators voted against the suggestion, Joshi, along with seven Congress corporators, voted in favour. Joshi has been supporting the families of the 14 victims, including 12 students and two school teachers who were killed in the boat capsize. He has been demanding exemplary compensation from VMC for the victims of the Harni boat tragedy, and also forged a bond Raksha Bandhan last year when the mothers of deceased students Roshni Shinde and Alishba Kothari tied rakhis on his wrist. Joshi, who is the corporator of the VMC ward where the New Sunrise School is located and from where most of the deceased belong, publicly said following the tragedy he 'felt guilty being part of the system' that could 'not provide a safe picnic spot to the innocent'. A first-time corporator, Joshi said VMC officials, who should have been responsible for checking the fitness certificate of the boats and other safety measures, should be suspended. Joshi has vowed not to visit the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya until those responsible for the boat capsize are brought to justice.
Sky News
13-02-2025
- Health
- Sky News
What is health anxiety and is it clogging up the NHS?
👉 Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 👈 Latest figures show 73% of patients in England were seen within four hours in A&E last month - up from 71.1% in December - but still well below the NHS target of 95%. Doctors have told Sky News the winter crisis in the health service is being made worse by patients who are demanding urgent and immediate care when it is not always what they need. On the Sky News Daily, Niall is joined by health correspondent Ashish Joshi to discuss what is behind the rise in health anxiety and he also talks to Dr Adrian Boyle, president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, about how to improve A&E waiting times.
