Are electrolyte drinks good for hydration during the summer?
These products facilitate faster hydration than plain water by utilizing sodium and glucose co-transport in the small intestine, which rapidly pulls water and nutrients into cells.
Experts suggest using hydration multipliers primarily during extended periods of exercise or following significant heat exposure, especially when plain water might not efficiently restore electrolyte balance.
Some hydration multipliers contain high levels of sugar and sodium, which can be harmful for individuals with chronic conditions such as diabetes.
Excessive intake of electrolytes can lead to adverse effects like weakness, headaches, or muscle cramps, and medical consultation is advised, particularly for those with pre-existing health conditions.
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The Independent
29 minutes ago
- The Independent
Waste of time and money in hospitals makes you want to cry, NHS England chief says
NHS England 's new chief has lamented the waste of time and money within the health service and said it makes her 'want to cry'. Dr Penny Dash, chair for NHS England, said there is poor management in hospitals which means the NHS 'absolutely' wastes too much money. The former hospital doctor and management consultant, who was appointed in March to help Health Secretary Wes Streeting's reform of the NHS and oversee the abolishment of NHS England, also said that erratic care across England – which leads to the poorest people receiving some of the worst treatment – is a 'stain on our country'. Speaking two days after the publication of the government's 10-year plan for the NHS, she told The Sunday Times: 'We've got some GP practices where less than 2 per cent of people with diabetes get the right care but in other GP practices it's 80 per cent. That cannot be right. 'I think it is a stain on our country that we have some of the poorest communities receiving the poorest care. We've got fewer GPs per head of population in the parts of the country that need them most than we do in the parts of the country that need them least.' According to the paper, Dr Dash will use an upcoming report on patient safety, due to be published on Monday, to highlight that £6 billion a year is being lost due to poor disease management where best practice is not followed. Addressing stories of patients suffering and missing appointments due to admin errors, Dr Dash said 'you just want to cry'. She added: 'There is poor management — we have operating theatres that don't start on time and that has a really high cost.' A major feature of the 10-year plan was ambitions to use ambient AI to help cut the time spent by staff on admin duties. She added that there were empty buildings not being used and still costing money to run, with a lot of the buildings only being used 30 to 40 hours a week. When asked by The Sunday Times if she thinks the NHS wastes too much money, she said: 'Absolutely. I do.' But she added that 'all other healthcare systems and businesses' also waste too much money. The NHS chief also pointed out that having patients forced to go to A&E as the only place open was 'ridiculous'. She said: 'We have this rather ridiculous system at the moment where the only place with the doors open and the lights on seven days a week is A&E. So, not surprisingly, if you really want to be seen, you go to A&E.' She explained the NHS would need to change the way money is used by the service, shifting money into community-based care instead of hospitals. This was a key element of the 10-year plan. 'No one wants to see their mum in a hospital bed for the last few weeks of her life when she doesn't need to be in that hospital bed and we could have looked after her better in her own bed with lots of care and support in the community,' she said. 'But at the moment it doesn't really matter financially to anybody, whether you do that or not. The reality is, as well as being pretty grim for your mum, it costs an enormous amount of money. Hospitals are really expensive places.' This year, the NHS faces major reform and savings demands from ministers, with commissioners forced to reduce costs by 50 per cent and hospitals making hundreds of staff cuts.
Telegraph
an hour ago
- Telegraph
How ‘net zero stupidity' inspired an NHS spending spree
When Sir Simon Stevens unveiled plans for the NHS to become the first healthcare system in the world to hit net zero, the former NHS chief made 'no apologies' for setting the target during Covid. In his words, putting the health service at the forefront of the fight against climate change was vital in tackling the 'most profound long-term threat to the health of the nation'. The NHS has set an ambition to reach net zero emissions from its own activities by 2040 – 10 years ahead of the national target. However, this 'world-leading' objective is now under increasing scrutiny as the NHS faces the biggest crisis in its 75-year history, with more than 7m people stuck on waiting lists and financial pressures mounting. It is not only hospitals and GP surgeries that have been set stretching targets. Suppliers of medicines and medical equipment will also have to hit net zero by 2045 if they want to keep working with the health service. Crucially, the rules will also force all NHS suppliers to publicly report their emissions by 2027, excluding them from bidding for contracts if they fail to make progress on net zero by the end of the decade. Such bold goals are now becoming a target for politicians on the Right, who fear it is adding unnecessary strain on the beleaguered health service. Zia Yusuf, the former chairman of Reform UK, made the point in a damning social media post last month, as he advanced the party's pledge to scrap a target to hit net zero by 2050. 'Instead of prioritising the record waiting lists or the tens of thousands who wait more than three days in A&E each year, the Westminster elite decided the NHS should achieve net zero by 2040 and for NHS suppliers by 2045,' he said. 'All these insane rules result in taxpayers endlessly forced to put more into the NHS and yet struggle to see a doctor.' Underpinning the argument are concerns that strict net zero targets will increase costs for the 80,000 suppliers that work with the NHS, pushing up a procurement bill already at £27bn a year. The timing of the debate is also key, coming just days after the Labour Government announced its 10-year plan to reform the NHS. Despite growing strain on the public finances, Sir Keir Starmer has demanded that every part of the country must offer access to care six days a week in what he promised was 'one of the most seismic shifts in care in the history of the health service'. Edward Argar, the shadow health secretary, says this planned and costly overhaul makes it even more important to avoid distractions such as net zero. He says: 'The NHS needs to be focusing its energy and its funding first and foremost on what makes a direct difference for patients, what will improve the quality of their care, and what will improve their access to it.' Chris Naylor, a senior fellow at the King's Fund charity, argues that the strict climate targets will help businesses that work with the NHS to plan ahead and prepare for the future. 'What suppliers for the NHS often say is, 'We just want to know what it is we're going to be required to do and to be given some notice of that,'' he says. 'I think this supplier roadmap does that.' Yet even he admits that the impact on smaller suppliers could be disproportionate. 'I do think it's really important that support is available to them around stuff like carbon measurement,' he says. According to a recent report from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), only 15pc of small firms have measured their carbon footprint, posing a significant challenge for many suppliers if they want to compete for NHS contracts in future. Of the small businesses that have been asked to measure their emissions by the Government, only 35pc were able to do so. This highlights the growing risks associated with embracing decarbonisation too quickly, even if the NHS argues some of its net zero plans will help save money. A spokesman points to a planned £59m of savings in travel and transport, which they say will be reinvested into patient care. Yet such small savings will do little to help win the argument against net zero sceptics, particularly as more hospitals lose money and battle high waiting lists. Research published earlier this year by the think tank Nuffield Trust found that 55pc of NHS trusts had a deficit in 2023-24, an increase from 48pc in 2022-23. Despite the growing financial constraints, NHS trusts are also pushing their own sustainability drive, with one London hospital trust launching a contract to decarbonise its hospitals. Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust has asked energy companies to pitch green power systems for one of its central London hospitals, with the potential to expand the work across other public sector buildings. Richard Tice, the energy spokesman for Reform, claimed to have found examples of unnecessary NHS green spending in his own constituency of Boston and Skegness. He took aim at a new £42m, 19-bed mental health unit in Boston, Lincolnshire, that will be entirely carbon-neutral, arguing its focus on net zero would take away from other resources the NHS needs. 'That means that other facilities are denied, whether it's extra staff, whether it's extra medicines, whether it's another facility, a bigger A&E,' Tice said. The Pilgrim hospital in Boston has been awarded £23m to upgrade its energy infrastructure, including making its heating system net zero-compliant. Tice said the NHS was wasting millions on 'net zero stupidity' in Boston, adding: 'It's the patients who suffer because the money spent on this means it can't be spent on patient care.' Mark Platts, chief finance officer at Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, said: 'In line with all new NHS buildings, the unit will meet high national standards of sustainability and the NHS commitment to net zero. Doing so will also help reduce our energy costs in the future, which can be reinvested in clinical care.' Tice isn't the only person concerned about unnecessary costs. Last month, Sir Jim Mackey, the head of the NHS, said the health service was too often 'deaf' to criticism and 'wasted a lot of money'. In recent years the NHS has become increasingly reliant on the costly services of US tech giants such as Palantir and Larry Ellison's Oracle. Mackey's comments came as he warned that failing to listen to public frustration could mean the end of a publicly funded state health service. Indeed, while Reform has said that the NHS should remain free at the point of use, Nigel Farage has previously called on its funding model to be re-examined. 'Everyone knows we are not getting value, let's re-examine the whole funding model and find a way that's more efficient,' he told the BBC in March. Meanwhile, questions remain over how achievable the NHS's net zero ambitions really are. Nick Watts, the founding chief sustainability officer of the NHS, told the New Statesman last year that there was a '50-50' chance that it would reach the 2040 target. Lord Mackinlay, former chairman of the net zero scrutiny group, says net zero spending adds to growing scrutiny of just how much cash is being sucked up by the health services. 'The NHS one is very serious because it's an institution that absorbs money like it's going out of fashion,' he says. 'It is a very, very hungry beast and it's not doing the stuff which is customer-focused.' A Government spokesman said: 'We are helping hospitals across the country save hundreds of millions on their energy bills so they can reinvest those savings into frontline services. 'Thanks to this Government's investments, money that is currently being wasted in high energy bills will be redirected to patients and services - we are providing over £1bn of funding over three years to fund hundreds of local energy schemes to decarbonise public buildings and help them access clean, affordable power.'
Telegraph
2 hours ago
- Telegraph
Does the new NHS plan mean I'll finally get to see a GP? Doctors answer your key questions
The 10-year plan for the NHS revealed by the Government yesterday might be the single biggest health announcement made since Labour took over a year ago. At its core is a plan to make our health service 'digital by default', with an app where people can access same-day GP appointments, as well as receive tips on healthy living and preventing illnesses like cancer and cardiovascular disease. It's a massive document, coming in at a full 168 pages, and it's certainly an ambitious plan. What's clear from the announcement is that it will pivot the NHS into a prevention-first organisation, and that the Government will rely on tech like AI and genetic screening to do it. So we asked our trusted experts, the doctors and GPs who are working with patients every day – to tell you exactly what it all means for your health – and whether it's really enough to fix a system that has been letting many in Britain down for years. Skip to: Will this mean I can get a same-day GP appointment? The promise: All patients who need one will be able to get a same-day GP appointment through the NHS App by 2028, according to the 10-year plan. As it stands, 44 per cent of consultations are same-day, while 31 per cent occur a week or longer after booking, according to the latest GP appointment data for England. To help achieve this, a 'My NHS GP' section will be built into the NHS App. This will be an AI-powered advice tool that offers around-the-clock information, directs patients to the care they need and helps them book a remote or face-to-face consultation, if they need one. Additionally, thousands more GPs will be trained to increase the number of appointments available and digital phone systems will be used so that patients who call their GP practice get through faster. The doctors' verdict: 'All patients who need same-day appointments have been getting them for many decades,' says Dr Carter Singh MBE, a GP in Nottingham and spokesperson for the Rebuild General Practice campaign. 'This is just another route by which they can get one. We need to intelligently and accurately differentiate the 'wants' from the 'needs', as on many occasions, the patient is going to want a same-day appointment. We live in an 'Amazon-Prime' culture where expectations are such that we expect everything right now, at the push of a button.' On the use of AI within the app to direct patients to GP appointments, Dr Singh is less confident. He doesn't believe AI currently is 'intuitive or intelligent enough to sensitively or specifically direct patients based on their reported symptoms and severity of illness to the right part of the NHS within the right timeframe'. 'A person who didn't need to be seen today for their ingrown toenail or runny nose could deny a same-day appointment for an elderly, vulnerable patient who has diarrhoea, vomiting, dehydration and is at risk of falling and breaking their hip,' he says. Without extra funding and more doctors in general practice, it's simply 'rearranging the deck chairs and ignoring the elephant in the room', Dr Singh adds. However, Dr Amos Ogunkoya, a GP in north London and resident doctor in sports medicine, believes the NHS App will be an 'excellent solution' for helping patients book appointments. 'I think we have to embrace AI and technology which allows patients greater access. In theory, it should work out really well but in practice there will need to be some oversight,' he says. 'It's going to give people another way they can access appointments. It essentially gives people an option and people will naturally go to the one that's easier for them. Some patients might prefer explaining their symptoms over the phone – it's not getting rid of that option. I think it's really important we move from an analogue system to a digital one.' Do I need to be tech-savvy to benefit from the changes? The promise: The NHS App – which can be accessed through a smartphone or tablet – is at the centre of the plan to modernise the health service. It will act as a 'front door' to the NHS, with the Prime Minister saying it will become an 'indispensable part of life'. The app will offer patients advice, allow them to access their GP, book tests, hold consultations, manage their medicines and oversee the care of their children or people they care for. The doctors' verdict: The focus on the NHS App for accessing the health service risks creating 'winners and losers', according to Dr Singh. 'I think the people without that tech may be left behind, whether that's older adults, people in deprived areas or individuals with learning disabilities.' 'For example, in my area, where we've got massive levels of deprivation, digital illiteracy follows,' he says. There will also be patients who live in areas with poor internet connectivity who may struggle to use it, Dr Singh adds. 'They might be uncertain whether hitting their 'submit' button has really sent through their request.' Additionally, many patients prefer to receive health advice from a doctor directly, rather than from AI, he notes. 'You come to the doctor for more than just medicine – it's the sensitive nature of that doctor-patient relationship, which may be lacking through chat bots and apps.' However, the option of using the app rather than phoning a GP could be beneficial for patients who are not tech savvy, according to Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs. 'Ideally, what we will see is that with more people using the app to access services, it will actually free up capacity for other, more traditional methods of access – such as phonelines – so that those who are less tech-savvy have a better chance of getting through that way,' she says. 'So in that sense, if things are implemented correctly, it should be a win-win.' Dr Ogunkoya is also more optimistic. 'This isn't going to be a complete replacement of the processes we already have in place – it is something we'll see happen slowly and responsibly. 'It's not about replacing, it's about accessibility and giving people the option and allowing things to become more efficient. People are normally sceptical of new technologies and we need to be understanding of that but also actually have an open forum so people can discuss their concerns and we have to be listening to voices that do say that.' Will my cancer get treated more quickly? The promise: Currently, the median wait time for patients to begin treatment after a screening or urgent GP referral is over 90 days. This falls far short of NHS targets which state that 85 per cent of patients should start treatment within 62 days. The Government's 10-year plan states that 'advances in technology continue to change the way hospital care is delivered' and highlights that AI is already used to allow for quicker diagnosis (and therefore treatment) of skin cancer. The plan does not mention an updated target time for cancer treatment. The doctors' verdict: Aside from promoting new technologies, the 10-year plan 'puts a lot of focus on prevention through lifestyle issues like obesity and tobacco use,' says Prof Richard Sullivan, director of the Institute of Cancer Policy and a medical doctor who qualified through work on the NHS. Between the two improvements, which could lower the number of cancer cases that occur in the first place, 'there's some indication that this might lead to greater resources in treatment and therefore quicker treatment overall,' he explains. However, he isn't convinced that this will translate to faster or better-quality care for most patients. 'There's also an emphasis on patients being able to shop around the country for where they want to be treated. In theory, that's a good thing, but in practice, people with cancer would get treatment more quickly if everyone had access to good care on their own doorstep,' he says. 'Using AI and targeted prevention can't replace the need for more doctors and more actual space in operating theatres to treat people. Cancer is a very complicated disease and this idea of shopping around could actually hold things up.' What is really needed is 'more joined up thinking so that people with cancer are cared for effectively and quickly through their journeys,' says Prof Sullivan. 'For that to become quicker, care needs to be more integrated in cases where people are visiting multiple hospitals.' The plan does not adequately address this need, he believes. Will I get more preventative screenings? The promise: The 10-year plan sets out how the Government will 'transition the NHS from a sickness service to a prevention service, powered by the new engine of genomic science'. Genetic screening will be used more widely to test for the inherited causes of different diseases like cancer (such as the BRCA genes, which have been linked to breast and prostate cancer) and cardiovascular disease (such as familial hypocholesteraemia, which causes high levels of 'bad' cholesterol even when people eat healthily and exercise). These tests could be offered at local hubs. There will also be more targeted screening rolled out to some groups. There are plans to roll out lung cancer screening to everyone with a history of smoking, and women who haven't taken up cervical screenings will be sent home sample kits. It is also hoped that the new NHS app will lead more people to take up the screenings they are already offered. In practice, this might mean that people are offered many more kinds of screening for different diseases or risk factors throughout their lifetimes. The doctors' verdict: 'Only four percent of cancers are picked up through screening, and a lot of the analytical uses of AI that are discussed in this plan are only speculative at this point,' says Prof Sullivan. There are also plans to screen people for risk of different illnesses on the basis of characteristics like being overweight, and target help towards them to support lifestyle change. This might seem like a good plan, but Prof Sullivan is not optimistic that it will work. 'We know from research that it's incredibly difficult to get people to change their habits in this way,' he says. 'A real boost to NHS resources would require engineering at a social, cultural and economic level, rather than telling individuals to change their behaviour.' Will there be more NHS dentist appointments available? The promise: NHS dentistry is in crisis – satisfaction levels are at a record low, with over one in four adults struggling to source public dental care, according to the British Dental Association. More people are turning to private treatment, whilst those who can't afford it are left unable to eat or work properly, or tragically forced to resort to DIY dentistry. The NHS pledges to 'fix the foundations in dentistry' by focusing on prevention to improve children's oral health, overhauling the dental contract to increase the number of dentists in the system, and integrating care in neighbourhood health teams. By 2035, the dental system will be 'transformed'. The doctors' verdict: 'There's a specific target within the plan to help with urgent appointments which is going to be incredibly impactful,' says Dr Deepak Aulak, a dentist who has worked both in the NHS and privately. One of the ways that the NHS plans to increase the number of appointments is by ensuring new dentists work in the system for a minimum of three years. Dr Aulak says this change offers 'hope' for both patients and dentists. 'For the first time, there's [...] real recognition that the contract isn't operable and the current state of dental care isn't a workable model.' Overall, he believes the plan is promising for NHS dental patients. 'They want to make dentistry more prevention-focused and they want it to be integrated in our local communities, with hygienists, therapists, and nurses. I think it's a sensible and viable plan rather than sound bites.' Patients should benefit through more appointments and improved accessibility via new technologies, however Dr Aulak says that '[they] should keep putting the pressure on, because a lot of the successes in this report have come not just from dentists, but from the patients themselves speaking up. 'The key question many patients will still have is: when will they start to see meaningful improvements in the service? This is where a concrete, actionable plan from the Government, with clear milestones and deliverables, would be greatly welcomed.' Will I be rewarded for being healthier? The promise: 'Citizens clearly have a role to play in managing their weight and diet,' the 10-year plan states. 'Incentives are embedded in many other parts of our lives, from supermarket shops, to buying a morning coffee, or choosing who to bank with. Evidence shows that incentives can also help people make healthier choices.' The NHS will therefore implement a similar model by introducing 'NHS points' that rewards healthy behaviours. While the exact way this scheme will work is yet to be finalised, the plan cites a recent NHS pilot which gave cinema tickets, clothes and food vouchers to people in Wolverhampton who increased their step count and ate more fruit and vegetables. It also mentions a similar initiative in Singapore, which sent e-vouchers to people who improved their diet, sleep and exercise levels. The doctors' verdict: 'I've got a degree in psychology and we studied this token economy approach 25 years ago,' Dr Singh says. 'Positive reinforcement can be quite effective in the short-term, whether that's giving people cash for physical activity, smoking cessation or improving their diet and weight management. 'However, as soon as you remove those tokens or points, then the health behaviours revert back to baseline and sometimes become even worse. So, in terms of sustainability of positive health behaviours, I don't think it's that effective. You have to have it as part of an integrated approach where patients are supposed to live healthier lifestyles because they want to, rather than knowing they can press a button and get a token. 'Without a strategy addressing the wider determinants of health and adequate funding and continued support and motivation, these kinds of schemes usually do fail – that's what all the research and evidence points towards.' However, Dr Ogunkoya notes that there are some examples of health incentives working. 'If it didn't work, Vitality wouldn't use a point system for their insurance. People stay healthier for longer when they are incentivised to move and exercise more. 'I'm a sports and exercise medicine specialist as well as a GP and I know that there's nothing worse for our health than sedation, so not moving. Even if it only encourages a little bit more every day, that will improve the health of our population.' Prof Hawthorne believes schemes that aim to tackle obesity, change patients' behaviour and encourage them to live healthier lives 'have to be a good thing'. 'It's good to see the 10-year plan not only rely on weight loss medication, which has a lot of potential, but shouldn't be seen as a silver bullet to tackling rising levels of obesity,' she says. 'The focus on some quite innovative schemes to support healthy living is encouraging to see.'
