Archive for the ‘Economy’ Category
Tuesday, September 7th, 2010
At PRimage Judy Viitanen tries hard to follow these useful steers to achieving the maximum out of her life – and to increase work time productivity. 
If you’re like Judy, with a lot to get through each day, why not try these lifestyle tips and see if they help you?
- Make sufficient sleep a top priority.
Schedule your bedtime, and start winding down at least 45 minutes earlier. Ninety-eight percent of all human beings need at least 7-8 hours a night to feel fully rested. Only a fraction of us get that much regularly, in part because we buy into the myth that sacrificing an hour or two of sleep a night give us an hour more of productivity. In reality, even small amounts of sleep deprivation can take a dramatic toll on our cognitive capacity, our ability to think creatively, our emotional resilience, the quality of our work, and even the speed at which we do it.
- Create only one ‘to-do list’ that includes everything you want or need to do, on and off the job. Include everything, including any unresolved issues that merit further reflection.
Writing everything down helps get it off your mind, leaving you free to fully focus on what’s most important at any given moment.
- Ensure you do the most important thing first when you start work each morning, when you’re likely to have the highest energy and the fewest distractions. Decide the night before what activity most deserves your attention.
Then focus on it single-mindedly for no more than 90 minutes. Productivity isn’t about how many tasks you complete or the number of hours you work. It’s about the enduring value you create.
- Live like a sprinter, not a marathoner.
When you work continuously, you’re actually progressively depleting your energy reservoir as the day wears on. By making regular renewal and refuelling important, you’re regularly replenishing your reservoir, so you’re not only able to fully engage at intervals along the way, but also to maintain high energy much further into the day.
- Monitor your mood. When demand begins to exceed your capacity, one of the most common signs is an increase in negative emotions.
The more we move into ‘fight or flight’ the more reactive and impulsive we become, and the less reflective and responsive. The first question to ask your self is “Why am I feeling this way, and what can I do to make myself feel better?” It may be that you’re hungry, tired, overwhelmed, or feeling threatened in some way. Awareness is the first step. You can’t change what you don’t notice.
- Schedule specific times for activities in your life that you deem important, but not urgent. With so much coming at you all the time, it’s easy to focus all day on whatever feels most pressing in the moment. What you sacrifice is the opportunity to take on work such as writing, strategizing, thinking creatively, or cultivating relationships, which may require more time and energy, but often yield greater long-term rewards.
Good luck!
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Sunday, July 18th, 2010
Mooching over the Sunday papers, Judy Viitanen has just read a good piece of investigative journalism in today’s Mail on Sunday on the dramatic increase in generic drug prices in UK and pharma companies excessive profits. 
Check out this link to read the 3-page article in full: http://bit.ly/dk2CK6
As an example, the piece cites two years ago, when a packet of hydrocortisone tablets cost the NHS £5 – and now the cost is claimed to be £44.
You’d think with the buying power of the NHS we’d get the cheapest possible prices – but as the article reveals, we don’t. This situation is clearly unacceptable – and needs to be reviewed.
So, as a specialist healthcare lobbying and communications consultancy, PRimage is pleased to hear that the Department of Health is evidently launching a review to examine why the cost of some generic drugs has risen so dramatically. In our view, Labour poured millions of pounds of tax payer’s money into the NHS and various PCTs and Procurement Departments, but clearly failed miserably to check just how the money was being spent!
The NHS as a huge customer should be able to negotiate huge discounts on these cheap medicines! Maybe NHS should manufacture their own generic medicines - and use the money from savings from removal of the PCTs to fund it? 
What’s your view?
There is certainly no profit being made from pharmacies in this. All the pharmacy gets paid by the Government is the price that they’ve paid the wholesaler, - (or at least, the Governments idea of what should have been paid. - which is frequently less!) - plus a dispensing fee of around 90p. That’s their profit!
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Monday, July 12th, 2010
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publichealth/LiberatingtheNHS/index.htm
Judy Viitanen believes Lansley and the Government need to factor in safeguards to ensure GPs are competent and appropriately incentivised to commission health services! A total focus on a medical model to revolutionise NHS services could risk diluting the great potential and benefits of other primary care services - community pharmacy, optical services, dentistry etc - and their valuable role in public health.
We were amused by Burnham’s quote that ‘PCTs are screwed’ in response to Lansley statement!
We are especially pleased that “Patients will be in charge of making decisions about their care.” … and their carers. 
Implications
implications for all health organisations in the NHS and very significant changes for PCTs and SHAs: PCTs will go by April 2013! Many staff will be worried … Thank God we have an end to tick-box targets! GP commissioning to be compulsory and ‘management allowances’ to fund it.
- patients at the centre of the NHS
- empowering clinicians and GPs in particular
- refocusing the NHS on outcome measurement.
The key highlights of the document, entitled Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS, are listed below:
· Put patients right at the heart of decisions made about their care
· Put clinicians in the driving seat on decisions about services
· Focus NHS on delivering health outcomes comparable with, or even better than, those of our international neighbours
· Introducing an Outcomes Framework to set out what the service should achieve leaving the professionals to develop how
· General Practices responsibility for commissioning NHS services
· Real, local democratic accountability to healthcare
· Reward commissioners for delivering care in line with quality
· The Outcomes Framework will be supported by clinically established quality standards
· Reform the payment system in the NHS
· Patients will be at the heart of the new NHS. Our guiding principle will be ‘no decision about me, without me’
· Extend ‘personal budgets’, giving patients with long-term conditions real choices about their care
· An independent and accountable NHS Commissioning Board will be established
· The Care Quality Commission will safeguard standards of safety and quality
· Detailed consultation documents will enable people to comment on the implementation of this strategy
· Ensure patients’ voices are heard, so we will establish ‘HealthWatch’
· All NHS trusts will become Foundation Trusts
· Reduce the Department of Health’s NHS functions
· Phase out the top-down management hierarchy
· Publish a report setting out the future of NHS-related quangos. Meaning a reduction of at least a 1/3
· Reduce the Department of Health’s NHS functions
· Patients will have choice over treatment options
· All GPs expected to join commissioning consortia by 2012, says the white paper
Strategy:
- The government will devolve power and responsibility for commissioning services to GPs and practice teams working in consortia.
- Every GP will be a member of a ’shadow’ consortium by 2011/12.
- Consortia will start taking on duties from 2012/13 and full financial responsibility from April 2013.
- Management allowances will be available to help fund commissioning.
- An independent and accountable NHS commissioning board will allocate and account for NHS resources.
- NHS commissioning board will calculate practice-level budgets and allocate these directly to consortia and will hold practices to account.
- GP consortia will include an accountable officer.
- Each consortium will hold its constituent practices to account.
- GP consortia will agree local priorities each year, taking account of the NHS Outcomes Framework.
- GPs will need to engage patients and the public in the commissioning process.
- Over time the DoH will seek to establish a single GP contract and funding model.
- PCTs and SHAs will be phased out.
- Patients will be able to choose which GP practice they register with regardless of where they live.
- The current performance regime will be replaced with separate frameworks for public health and social care.
- A new NHS Outcomes Framework will provide the direction for the NHS.
- The government will incentivise ways of improving access to primary care in disadvantaged areas.
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Tuesday, May 25th, 2010
We’ve just finished listening to the Queen’s Speech. 
Our view: the coalition is taking on an ambitious and challenging political programme! But we wish them success. David Cameron’s Con-Lib government aims to enact 22 separate bills over an 18-month period, as it attempts to build on the early goodwill towards the coalition. Nick Clegg will preside over a range of political reforms, including fixed-term parliaments and a bill to hold a referendum on changing the Westminster voting system to the so-called “alternative vote”.
Our interest as a healthcare communications agency means that we were looking for steers on the NHS. So, particularly important for health was that the voice of patients and the role of doctors in decision-making will be strengthened, with the aim of improving public health as well as reducing health inequalities. A Health Bill is expected to begin its legislative process in 2011. So there are sure to be a number of consultations to respond to - and plenty of opportunities for engagement in the coming months as the content of the Bill is decided. PRimage is looking forward to this - and to factor in our client’s interests and viewpoints.
MD, Judy Viitanen, is pleased that the overall thrust of the programme indicates that both the Tories and LibDems share a common interest in devolving power over public services to local people. We also give a ‘thumbs up’ for the news that the legislative programme include plans to create an Office of Budget Responsibility to produce independent economic forecasts and a shake-up of City regulation, giving the Bank of England greater powers in maintaining economic stability.
As a specialist healthcare public affairs and PR consultant, Judy is reassured that the Treasury has confirmed that the Department of Health’s overall spending will not be reduced in the current financial year. 
The Chancellor has announced £6.2bn would be saved from government spending during 2010-11, but none would come from the DoH. Health will have to make additional efficiency savings but they will be reinvested within the department.
For sure there will be tough and difficult times ahead; but the PM and deputy PM are right to focus on reducing the huge deficit as the most crucial challenge. 
We will be seeing an interesting 18-months of politics ahead ……..
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Sunday, May 16th, 2010
PRimage believes that David Cameron has made an excellent decision in appointing the Labour MP Frank Field as the Government’s ‘poverty tsar’. Cameron is clearly putting the fight against deprivation at the heart of his agenda. As a compassionate Conservative, Judy Viitanen thinks this is exactly the right approach, and is very relieved to hear that Mr Field has been asked to lead a major review into levels of poverty across Britain. He is also expected to study how poverty should be measured in the future.
Field is a long-time champion of welfare reform, and an MP that Judy really admires!
PRimage is also pleased to see that a new ICM opinion poll published this morning shows a high level of public support for Mr Cameron’s coalition administration – and for its key policies on tax and political reform. Almost two-thirds of voters (64 per cent) thought that the Lib-Con coalition was the right way forward for Britain after the general election resulted in a hung parliament. It was backed by 87 per cent of those who voted Tory this month and 77 per cent of Lib Dem voters.
Overall, the Conservatives have gained one point since the election and are supported by 38 per cent of the public. The Lib Dems, by contrast, have slipped significantly, down three points to 21 per cent. Labour have gained three points to 33 per cent.
Let’s hope that this “trust” between the Tories and the Lib Dems and the electorate continues!
However, PRimage hopes that Cameron will keep to his Conservative pledges on defence, immigration and Europe. Watch this space.
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Wednesday, April 14th, 2010
Judy Viitanen has been reviewing the Tories election manifesto - ‘Invitation to Join the Government of Britain’ – and is liking what she reads!
As a specialist healthcare consultancy, PRimage is interested in the plans to strengthen the power of GPs as patients’ expert guides through the health system by putting them in charge of commissioning local health services and giving them power to hold patients’ budgets. It’s encouraging to learn that the Party will ensure that funding decisions are made on the basis of need, and commissioning decisions according to evidence-based quality standards, by creating an independent NHS board to allocate resources and provide commissioning guidelines.
We also think that it’s great that the Conservatives recognise the input of the UK’s millions of carers, who look after relatives. 
Their plans will support carers, and those they look after, by providing direct payments to help with care needs and by improving access to respite care.
The Tories five main headline commitments for health:
1. Give patients more choice
Putting patients in charge of making decisions about their care, including control of their health records; spreading the use of the NHS tariff, so funding follows patients’ choices; and, making sure good performance is rewarded by implementing a payment by results system.
2. Trust healthcare professionals
The Conservatives intend to scrap the politically-motivated targets that have no clinical justification. They will set NHS providers free to innovate by ensuring that they become autonomous Foundation Trusts. They will cut the cost of NHS administration by a third and transfer resources to support doctors and nurses on the frontline.
3. Increase access to vital drugs and services
They will stop the forced closure of A&E and maternity wards, so that people have better access to local services, and give mothers a real choice over where to have their baby, with NHS funding following their decisions. We will create local ‘maternity networks’ to ensure that mothers can safely access the right care, in the right place, at the right time.
4. Take control of your care
They will devolve control over health budgets to the lowest possible level, “For people with a chronic illness or a long-term condition, we will provide access to a single budget that combines their health and social care funding, which they can tailor to their own needs.” They will also support carers, and those they look after, by providing direct payments to help with care needs and by improving access to respite care
5. A healthier nation
The Department of Health will become a Department for Public Health so that the promotion of good health and prevention of illness get the attention they need. They will also:
· Introduce a health premium – weighting public health funding towards the poorest areas with the worst health outcomes;
· Enable welfare-to-work providers and employers to purchase services from
· Mental Health Trusts; and,
· Increase access to effective ‘talking’ therapies.
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Friday, April 9th, 2010
As the General Election campaign gets underway, the three main political parties have outlined their key policies and targets for health. PRimage has reviewed these - and for Judy Viitanen and the team, our vote goes to the Conservatives. We totally agree with their view that the NHS under Labour has been totally target driven. This has to change! 
Read the summary below and let us know your views.
CONSERVATIVE HEALTH POLICY
The party says that “we can’t go on with an NHS that puts targets before patients”
Specific health policies and targets
Scrapping all politically-motivated process targets
Putting more detailed NHS performance data online
Improving cancer and stroke survival rates
Enabling patients to rate hospitals and doctors
Giving anyone the power to choose any healthcare provider that meets NHS standards
Opening up the NHS to new independent and voluntary sector providers
Linking GPs’ pay to the quality of the results they deliver
LABOUR HEALTH POLICY
Labour believes the NHS is its “greatest achievement”
Specific health targets if the party is re-elected:
Working to eliminate mixed sex accommodation in hospitals
Rolling out a national programme of vascular checks for everyone aged between 40 and 74.
To prevent at least 9,500 heart attacks and strokes every year and save 2,000 lives.
Extending the ages at which adults are screened so that an additional 500,000 women will be screened for breast cancer.
2 million men and women will be screened for bowel cancer
Training 3,600 more new psychological therapists to treat people with depression and anxiety.
Reduce the numbers on sick leave and benefits.
Giving every 11 to 14-year-old hands-on cooking lessons from 2011 to help reduce childhood obesity
LIBERAL DEMOCRATS HEALTH POLICY
Specific health policies:
Giving people control over their local health services
Introducing patient contracts
Improving access to GPs around the clock
Abolishing strategic health authorities
Universal care payments for those over 65 who require personal care
Closing medical wards and sending staff home during super bug outbreaks
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Tuesday, April 6th, 2010
Now that the Prime Minister has announced this morning that the General Election will be held on Thursday 6 May it’s important that the electorate concentrates on the key issues facing this country – and evaluates which of the political parties has the right vision. For Judy and the PRimage team the choice is David Cameron and the Conservatives.
www.rockthevote.com – PRimage supports this campaign to get young people motivated to vote.
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Monday, March 29th, 2010
PRimage is pleased that the Conservatives have announced they will reverse the bulk of the government’s planned increase in National Insurance by cutting £6bn of “waste” from the public sector. They estimate the change would save taxpayers earning between £7,100 and £45,400 up to £150 a year and would save employers money in reduced contributions.
We believe that this move by the Tories will set out clear dividing lines with the government as the election campaign moves apace. The Tories’ plans would mean that seven out of 10 workers will not be affected by the per cent increase in contributions for those earning more than £20,000. Top earners will still be hit.
Today’s announcement by Osborne is well timed – as he joins Chancellor Alastair Darling and Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable in a live TV debate on Channel 4. This evening’s programme will air at 8pm and should be interesting viewing. 
The 1p National Insurance rise on people earning more than £20,000, announced by chancellor Alistair Darling in 2008 and 2009, is due to come into effect in April 2011 and forms a centrepiece of the government’s programme to rein in Britain’s record deficit. But it seems that ministers had already identified in last week’s Budget £11bn in wasteful expenditure which could be cut from Whitehall departments.
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Thursday, March 25th, 2010
Judy Viitanen, as a healthcare lobbying and communications consultant, has been assessing the news that the Department of Health says it is to make cuts of £4.35bn over three years in an “efficiency savings” drive and as part of its contribution to slashing central Government spending. As far as PRimage can assess, NHS spending will be frozen in real terms for the foreseeable future.
However, Judy is pleased that there will be huge cuts to the beleaguered and much criticised NHS IT database. This particular scaling back move is long overdue in our view!
There will be a sweeping crackdown on NHS staff taking time off sick – with the DH estimating that these clampdowns will produce savings of £555m. And there is to be a review of NHS estates. This, PRimage believe, could run the risk of being translated as a major sell-off of hospitals.
Public sector pay deals, including those for GPs, will be capped at a 1% maximum for 2011-12 and 2012-13, saving a total of £3.4 billion a year. While the Budget makes it clear that 95% of NHS spending will be ring-fenced to rise with inflation in 2011/12 and 2012/13, which the Government claims will safeguard frontline services, the remaining five per cent is under threat.
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