CAMDEN KEEP OUR NHS PUBLIC

Camden Keep Our NHS Public (Camden KONP) is a campaign group launched in March 2008 to protest about the privatisation of three medical practices in Camden, fight the threat to other local practices and defend the founding principles of the NHS. The group holds regular meetings, gathers signatures for a petition to the Department of Health, sends letters and articles to the media whenever appropriate, and makes its presence known at suitable events in the area. The group is affiliated to the national organisation Keep Our NHS Public (www.keepournhspublic.com). 

Links: organisations, publications, radio programmes

ORGANISATIONS

Camden Borough Council: www.camden.gov.uk. In addition to full Council meetings, information about the Health Scrutiny Committee and its meetings can be found on this site. Webcasts of meetings are at  http://www.camden.ukcouncil.net/site/ (choose the meeting you want to view from the right-hand panel).

Department of Health: www.dh.gov.uk.

Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) national campaign: www.keepournhspublic.com. Confuse & Conceal–The NHS and Independent Sector Treatment Centres by Stewart Player and Colin Leys, published by Merlin Press, is obtainable for £10 from www.keepournhspublic.com/bookshelf.php. See also other books listed there.

King’s Fund: www.kingsfund.org.uk. The King’s Fund issues reports, papers and guides on policy and practice in health and social care. One publication of direct interest to the campaign against NHS privatisation is Should Primary Care Trusts Be Made More Locally Accountable, by Ruth Thorlby, Richard Lewis and Jennifer Dixon, price £8.50 (published April 2008).

London Health Emergency: http://www.healthemergency.org.uk/. "London Health Emergency (LHE) was established in the autumn of 1983 as a collective umbrella organisation for local campaigns defending hospitals in the capital against closure (under the impact of the 'Lawson cuts' in the 1983 budget)."

London Health Observatory: www.lho.org.uk/Default.aspx. The LHO “provides information that policy makers and practitioners need to improve health and health care.” It works in partnership with the NHS, local authorities, the GLA, researchers and national agencies and supports the development of health intelligence professionals. Has useful tools and data.

National Primary Care Research and Development Centre: www.npcrdc.ac.uk/ is a multi-disciplinary, academically independent centre with its main base at the University of Manchester. It was established by the Department of Health in 1995 to undertake policy related research in primary care. See www.primary-care-db.org.uk/SOURCES OF PCT AND PRIMARY CARE DATA.pdf for a 3-page list of sources.

NHS Support Federation: www.nhscampaign.org. The Federation is "an independent organisation that works to protect and promote a comprehensive NHS, with equitable access and active public involvement." Its "affiliated
organisations are drawn equally from the health profession and the general public" and include Unison's general political fund.

Primary Care Trust (PCT), Camden (now NHS Camden): www.camdenpct.nhs.gov.uk. Enter "Board meetings" for dates and agenda of future meetings and minutes of past meetings.

Public Not Private: www.publicnotprivate.org.uk. This is “a joint union campaign launched in March 2006 to defend public services against privatisation and stand up for the rights of public sector workers.”

Socialist Health Association: www.soc.health.co.uk. This campaigning organisation affiliated to the Labour Party “exists to promote health and wellbeing, social justice, and the eradication of inequalities through the application of socialist principles to society and government.”

World Development Movement: www.wdm.org.uk. Go to www.wdm.org.uk/campaigns/past/gats/index.htm for information on the General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS). Originally agreed at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in 1994 “the aim of GATS is to remove any restrictions and internal government regulations in the area of service delivery that are considered to be ‘barriers to trade’

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PUBLICATIONS

If you haven't already read the NHS White Paper of July 2010 you can find it at http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Healthcare/LiberatingtheNHS/index.htm.

Journal articles

Heath I. 2008. The emperor's new constitution. BMJ 2008;337:a1857 [A critical look at the draft NHS Constitution.]

Health Service Journal, March 2009 (http:/ / www.hsj.co.uk/ news/ 2009/ 03/ scottish_ bill_ to_ ban_ private_ gp_ provision.html). Scottish bill to ban private GP provision: Health policy in Scotland has moved further from English policy with a bill that will prevent private companies from running GP services. The Scottish government says it aims to safeguard NHS general practice by outlawing attempts by any private company or consortium to take over provision of NHS GP services. The GP move was welcomed by the British Medical Association. Scottish GPs committee chair Dean Marshall said: "The measures proposed in this bill seek to protect NHS general practice [which will] ensure patient care comes before profit and patients can be assured of continuity of care."

See http://www.keepournhspublic.com/newsroundup.php for the latest reports from journals

RADIO PROGRAMMES

Hinchingbrooke Hospital taken over by private company Circle. Channel 4 7.0 News, 25 November 2010: http://www.channel4.com/news/first-privately-owned-nhs-hospital-approved

Supersize surgeries: BBC Radio 4, 11.00 a.m., 17 March 2009. Penny Marshall obtained views on polyclinics, family GPs and the problems of privatisation.  

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Camden KONP is affiliated to the national campaign Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) (www.keepournhspublic.com).