2004 Archived News Stories

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	London Ambulance Branch

Archived News Stories for 2004

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9 Dec 2004	Staff Shortages cause delay
	PARAGON — A lack of staffed ambulances in the southern part of Morgan County Saturday morning resulted in a call to Monroe County for help. We added this story out of interest just to show that things are actually a lot worse in some parts of the USA than here.
9 Dec 2004	National executive council elections 2005
	Timetable for elections agreed: nominations to be in by 11 Feb
8 Dec 2004	Latex-allergy nurse wins further settlement
	UNISON reaches last-minute deal with Swansea hospital
7 Dec 2004	NHS cracks down on MRSA
	UNISON says more cleaners are solution in battle to stop the superbug
6 Dec 2004	Nurses to perform surgery
	Government determined to reduce waiting lists by training up to 5,000 practitioners
2 Dec 2004	Unions gear up for conflict over pensions
	Treasury proposals mean workers will “pay more for less”
2 Dec 2004	UNISON wins right to greater employee consultation
	Tribunal rules employers must have proper dialogue with staff over proposed redundancies
1 Dec 2004	Stress becoming a bigger issue for UK workforce
	TUC research identifies nearly 60% of safety reps reporting it as issue for their workplace
*****	Website News
	We apologise for the lack of news updates from Sep - Nov. This was due to a technical issue and whilst the news box on the home page was regularly updated with the latest news headlines, this page was not.
2 September 2004	Tories blamed for spread of superbug
	Responding to Tory leader Michael Howard’s comments on the spread of MRSA in hospitals, UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis blamed the Conservative party for creating the conditions for the superbug when they were in power.
1 September 2004	Private ads could go on 999 vans
	Ambulances in Hampshire could be the first in the country to carry private company logos in a bid to raise money for drugs and cut a budget deficit. (BBC News)
1 September 2004	Man held after gun siege on farm
	Firearms officers were called to a farm in Tiverton after a man threatened to kill police and ambulance staff. (BBC News)
27 August 2004	UNISON welcomes TUC call for more bank holidays
	The TUC is calling on the government to introduce three new bank holidays to bring the UK into line with the European average of 11.
5 August 2004	'No show' ambulance for youngster
	An inquiry is under way after a six-year-old disabled girl with possible meningitis waited two hours for an ambulance that did not arrive. (BBC News)
3 August 2004	Paramedics demand Olympic bonus
	Greek ambulance drivers and paramedics have gone on strike to demand extra payment during the Olympic Games. (BBC News)
3 August 2004	Volunteer hit by £2,000 tax bill
	A volunteer ambulance car driver is facing a £2,000 tax bill for mileage claimed for unpaid work. (BBC News)
29 July 2004	Violence plagues ambulance staff
	Ambulance workers suffer more violence and bullying than other NHS staff, research finds. They are also more likely to be disatisfied with their work-life balance, and level of managerial support than other NHS workers. (BBC News)
23 July 2004	Ambulance dispute comes to an end
	An industrial dispute involving ambulance workers in the north east has come to an end. The dispute began after the North East Ambulance Service decided not to pay staff during their meal breaks. (BBC News)
14 July 2004	Hospital superbug on the rise
	UNISON is urging the department of health to increase the number of cleaners on the wards and introduce easier access to hand washing facilities, as part of its fight to cut the number of cases of MRSA.
14 July 2004	Ambulanceman drove 'without care'
	A Cornwall ambulance driver involved in a collision with a car in which two young men died has been convicted of driving without due care and attention. (BBC News)
13 July 2004	Zimbabwe 'returning to stone age'
	The introduction of ox-drawn ambulances is a sign that President Robert Mugabe is taking Zimbabwe back to the stone ages, the opposition says. The nine ambulances are destined for rural areas around the capital, Harare.... (BBC News)
2 July 2004	Ambulance speeding fines are axed
	Ambulance drivers on emergency calls will not be fined for going over the speed limit, the government has said. Health minister Rosie Winterton made the pledge to the Ambulance Service Association meeting in Harrogate.
29 June 2004	Union discusses ambulance dispute
	Union leaders representing ambulance workers in the north-east of England have been meeting in an effort to resolve ongoing industrial action. Members of UNISON are refusing to work overtime or to provide emergency cover for certain events. (BBC News)
19 June 2004	NHS plans for the unthinkable
	As the crews from the North East Ambulance Service sped to Newcastle city centre, all they knew was that there had been a sarin gas attack. (BBC News)
18 June 2004	NHS has saved £500m by combating fraud
	The NHS's special body combating fraud says that half way through its ten year remit it has saved nearly half a billion pounds of loss - enough to pay for 60,000 kidney transplants or 100,000 hip replacements.
17 June 2004	Ambulances 'missing targets'
	Almost two-thirds of England's ambulance services are failing to meet government targets for fast responses to calls, figures show. (BBC News)
16 June 2004	PFI projects only save money by crushing staff pay and conditions
	The cost savings promised by privatising public services are at the expense of workers' terms and conditions of the staff and not through any real managerial innovation.
16 June 2004	UNISON member wins £354,193 award over allergy tragedy
	A UNISON member who developed a life-threatening allergy to latex while working at two hospitals in Swansea has seen the triumphant culmination of her eight-year battle for justice today when Cardiff County Court ordered she be paid more than £350,000.
15 June 2004	Tory 'right to choose' policy 'sheer nonsense'
	UNISON today branded Tory leader Michael Howard's 'right to choose' plan "complete and utter nonsense".
15 June 2004	Seven hour wait for ambulance
	A woman who will be 100 years old in August waited over seven hours for an ambulance to take her to hospital. (BBC News)
11 June 2004	New timetable for Agenda for Change
	UNISON today welcomed the new timetable for the national roll-out of Agenda for Change as the best way forward. The operational date for moving the first staff onto new terms and conditions outside the early implementer sites will now be 1 December, with pay and conditions changes dated back to 1 October.
10 June 2004	Action date for ambulance staff
	Ambulance staff in the north-east of England will be taking industrial action from next week. Members of public service union Unison who work for the North East Ambulance Service voted in a dispute over meal breaks. (BBC News)
9 June 2004	Ambulance work is the most stressful profession 'official'
	Rankings of occupations follow (ranked in order of those occupations with most reported problems). The study of employees in 26 occupations was carried out by business psychology firm Robertson Cooper in 2004.
8 June 2004	Few ambulances 'draining police'
	Police in Dorset are increasingly being called out to medical emergencies due to a lack of sufficient ambulance cover, it is claimed.
7 June 2004	Air ambulance faces cash crisis
	London's Air Ambulance, which operates from the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, is facing a £500,000 budget shortfall. (BBC News)
7 June 2004	Action looms for ambulance staff
	Ambulance workers in the north-east of England have voted in favour of industrial action. The members of the public service union UNISON were balloted on Monday in a dispute over meal breaks. (BBC News)
7 June 2004	Fire union votes on medical calls
	Firefighters in London are voting on whether to take industrial action in a row over answering medical calls. (BBC News)
21 May 2004	Union activist was unfairly sacked
	UNISON member Sarbani Mazumdar was racially discriminated against when Wandsworth council in London unfairly dismissed her in March 2002, an employment tribunal has decided.
21 May 2004	Former Blair health advisor joins private firm
	Trade union leaders have criticised Downing Street’s former health advisor, for taking a job with a US company looking to cash in on NHS reforms. The unions, including UNISON, disapprove of Simon Stevens’ move to the United Health Group, a company which is hoping to win NHS contracts.
21 May 2004	Paramedics suspended for shopping
	Two paramedics have been taken off duty for going shopping while they were on call for emergencies. (BBC News)
19 May 2004	Death crash 999 driver to settle
	A trainee ambulance driver cleared of killing a woman when he jumped a red light on a 999 call has agreed a settlement with his former employer. (BBC News)
14 May 2004	Hospital food scandal – inquiry needed
	UNISON is today calling for an inquiry into the waste and profiteering by private companies contracted to provide hospital food.
14 May 2004	Eleven escape after bus crash
	An ambulance was used to prop up a bus that crashed in Keynsham on Thursday. (BBC News)
14 May 2004	Baby's long wait for paramedics
	A mother who found her baby had stopped breathing is demanding answers after she was told it would take 45 minutes for an ambulance to arrive. (BBC News)
14 May 2004	Fears raised over hospital move
	Health officials in Crawley have met ambulance crews who are concerned over changes to accident and emergency services in the town. (BBC News)
31 March 2004	Ten hospitals get Foundation status today
	The first hospitals in England to be awarded foundation status were announced today by Bill Moyes, chairman of the Independent Regulator of the NHS Foundation Trusts. Ten NHS trusts will become foundation hospitals from 1 April in the first wave of applications. (2 are from Central London)
31 March 2004	Eighth Las UNISON AGM
	I am very pleased to welcome you to this eighth Annual General Meeting. I hope you enjoy the meeting and the evening. Although we like to keep these meetings friendly and relaxed there is however, formal business that we must attend to......................
30 March 2004	Apology for ambulance crew change
	Ambulance bosses have admitted that mistakes were made when a crew changed shift while a Devon man was being taken to hospital after a heart attack. (BBC News)
26 March 2004	Groping paramedic gets four years
	A paramedic has been jailed for four years after groping an 83-year-old patient in the back of an ambulance. Clifford Power, 44, also molested two other women while working for Sussex Ambulance Service, the court heard. (BBC News)
26 March 2004	Paramedics 'prepared for attack'
	London's paramedics are well prepared to meet the threat of a terrorist attack or other major incident in the city, according to a watchdog. (CHI said staff were "committed and working hard to provide top quality services for patients". But it did find that many ambulances were unclean.) (BBC News)
25 March 2004	Ambulance crashes in town centre
	Police are investigating an ambulance crash in the centre of Northampton. (BBC News)
22 March 2004	GPs to support ambulance service
	More doctors are to volunteer to work alongside paramedics at the scene of road accidents. (BBC News)
24 March 2004	Public backs ban on public smoking
	The vast majority of the public want a ban on smoking in all public places, according to a new BBC poll. In a reflection of heightened awareness on health issues, there was also strong support for a ban on TV ads for fast food and sweets, while children are watching, and a ban of crisps, chocolates and fizzy drink machines from all school premises.
23 March 2004	NHS: ‘best winter performance ever’
	NHS staff have been praised for their hard work in avoiding a winter crisis this year, with increased investment leading to solid performance improvements.
23 March 2004	Housing support promised for key workers
	Front line public workers who’ve been priced out of the property market in areas like London and the South-East are to get subsidies to help them buy homes. A new £690m initiative called the Key Worker Living programme has been set up by the government.
19 March 2004	Record numbers now working for the NHS
	A record number of people are working for the NHS, according to new figures issued today by the Department of Health
18 March 2004	NHS trust chairman resigns after criticisms caught on tape
	The chairman of a highflying NHS trust has resigned after making controversial comments criticising agency nurses.
17 March 2004	OAP died after ambulance wait
	An elderly woman died in her home just minutes before an ambulance she had waited for more than seven hours to arrive, came to take her to hospital. (BBC News)
12 March 2004	Ambulance worker denies assault
	An ambulance technician from East Sussex has appeared in court charged with indecently assaulting a patient. (BBC News)
10 March 2004	NHS staff pay high price for dedication
	One in six NHS staff have faced physical violence while trying to carry out their duties, according to a survey of over 200,000 health service workers.
2 March 2004	999 man sacked over porn viewing
	A worker in the emergency control room at Mersey Regional Ambulance has been sacked for viewing computer porn. (BBC News)
24 Feb 2004	Death crash lorry driver jailed
	A lorry driver who fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into an ambulance, killing a man, has been jailed. (BBC News)
16 Feb 2004	Tory spending plans 'complete and utter nonsense'
	UNISON has slammed Conservative Party plans to slash public spending, branding them "utter nonsense". Speaking today, shadow chancellor Oliver Letwin claimed "cost savings" can trim public spending by £35bn by 2011 – yet leave health and education spending protected. Crtics say his figures don't add up and the public won't be "conned" by his "crude calculations".
11 Feb 2004	Government to help unions fight for employee rights
	The upcoming Employment Relations Bill is expected to contain proposals for cash to help unions become more effective in fighting for employee rights.
11 Feb 2004	Landmark ruling on workplace bullying
	A Court of Appeal ruling today (11 February) could be great news for victims of workplace bullying. In awarding victory in an appeal over a UNISON-brought case of unfair dismissal the court overturned a 30-year old reading of employment law that could mean thousands of similar claimants may be entitled to more compensation than first expected.
7 Feb 2004	Ambulance 'refused emergency call'
	An investigation is under way into claims emergency operators refused to send an ambulance to a crash half a mile outside its catchment area. (BBC News)
5 Feb 2004	Heart patient 'delay' investigated
	Ambulance bosses are investigating claims an ambulance crew stopped for up to 20 minutes to change shift while taking a heart attack victim to hospital. (BBC News)
2 Feb 2004	Extra cash for performing trusts
	Hospitals and ambulance trusts will be given a cash bonus if they meet government targets for faster and better emergency care. (BBC News)
30 Jan 2004	'Inappropriate' 999 calls tackled
	A man who was scared of thunder and would not get off the phone until the storm ended was just one of a number of "inappropriate" calls made to the Westcountry Ambulance Service (WAS). (BBC News)
29 Jan 2004	Ethnic minorities and the disabled staff – the most harassed in the NHS
	NHS staff in London who are sick or disabled are more likely to face harassment and discrimination - from colleagues and patients alike – than other staff, according to a new survey.
28 Jan 2004	Deaths in 999 crash 'accidental'
	The death of two sisters who died when their car collided with an ambulance on a 999 call was accidental, an inquest has ruled. (BBC News)
26 Jan 2004	Lorry driver denies death charge
	A man died in an ambulance after it was hit by a lorry whose driver had fallen asleep, a court has been told. (BBC News)
24 Jan 2004	Thieves target ambulance
	Life-saving equipment was stolen from an ambulance as its crew attended an emergency. (BBC News)
23 Jan 2004	Working while sick is the new epidemic
	Too many people are going into work when they are ill, according to a new TUC report. A poll of 1,000 people found that as many as three staff in four have been to work while sick. One in five of those questioned had gone in sick in the last month alone.
23 Jan 2004	NHS to get 'dirty bomb' detectors
	NHS hospitals and ambulance crews are to get radiation equipment to enable them to detect dirty bombs. (BBC News)
23 Jan 2004	Mercy dash ambulance in accident
	An ambulance answering a 999 call overturned on the A64 dual carriageway near York late on Thursday night. (BBC News)
21 Jan 2004	Las UNISON Branch Launches Computer Course
	On the 19 January 2004 UNISON held their first course exclusively for LAS stewards.
16 Jan 2004	Health Workers face HIV infection threat
	Seventeen health workers may have been infected with HIV at work, and four have died as a result, according to a parliamentary report.
13 Jan 2004	Death crash medic loses job appeal
	A trainee paramedic cleared of killing a woman when he jumped a red light on a 999 call has lost his fight to get his job back. (BBC News)
12 Jan 2004	Major crisis in ambulance paramedic registration
	The Health Professions Council (HPC) has notified UNISON of a major crisis, which is quickly approaching with the failure of some 820 Paramedics to fully register. These are all paramedics who have returned their registration fees so indicating their intention to register but as yet they have not returned in full the required forms with signatures.
7 Jan 2004	UNISON ambulance conference report 2003
	Another successful UNISON national ambulance conference was held in Leeds on the 13 November and was attended by one hundred members. There was a lively and vociferous debate throughout the day at all the workshops with many members participating in the question and answer sessions.
7 Jan 2004	Ambulance technicians’ band 5 negotiations continue
	UNISON has been having long and detailed discussions with the employers about the production of a National Ambulance Technician job profile under the Agenda for Change proposals. These negotiations are continuing. In December 03 we submitted our arguments to the employer justifying the introduction of a Band 5 Technicians post..........
6 Jan 2004	Red tape cut for ambulance fines
	The government has promised to make it easier for ambulance staff to contest speeding tickets. (BBC News)
1 Jan 2004	Paramedic car stolen in raid
	An ambulance station in Cheshire has been broken into and an emergency vehicle stolen. (BBC News)