Page 6 - Malcolm Morrison News Today

Billions spent on NHS should go to frontline

To mask or not to mask? That is the question (with apologies to Shakespeare). To those who want to abandon the wearing of masks – for whatever reason – I would pose another question. Why do surgeons put on masks (and wash their hands) before operating? It is not, primarily, to protect themselves from catching an infection from the patient (though it does act as a filter if the patient is infected). It is to protect the patient from catching any infection that the surgeon may have pi...

© Supplied by Design team amalgama James Mather at Cape Wrath Sign up for our daily newsletter featuring the top stories from The Press and Journal. Thank you for signing up to The Press and Journal newsletter. Something went wrong - please try again later. Sign Up The rugged and remote terrain at Cape Wrath takes its name for the Norse for turning point. James Mather hopes that’s the case for his bus service as he restarts business after a 21-month break. With lockdown restrictions e...

Surgery appointments Since the start of the pandemic the way we are communicated with by doctors at our local surgery has for most people changed considerably. My own mum has been lucky and has always been seen when she has asked to see a doctor. However a friend of mine who has a serious conditionas well as other medical problems had a real struggle before she was eventually given an appointment, she found it was hard to get past the reception team at her surgery. She was eventually give...

Letters: No need for party politics in local government File photo dated 01/10/17 of a Union flag. Members of the diplomatic community were responsible for scores of crimes last year, with roughly one alleged offence committed every two days, new figures show.. Flag waving has no place in politics We are used to seeing the likes of Boris Johnson, Matt Hancock, Gavin Williamson and other Tories giving interviews with the Union flag draped behind them, now we see the leader of the opposition Ki...

Vaccine nationalism "No, EU cant have our jabs!" screamed the Daily Mail. In the week the UK marked 100,000 coronavirus deaths, brexit fanatic newspapers have grabbed onto this defend-our-vaccines campaign to try to make a bogeyman of the EU once again, saying we could approve the vaccine faster because weve left the EU. However, we were still in the transition period, under Single Market rules until January and we were perfectly free to order the vaccine early then, just as any EU or EFTA co...

Medics knew hospital would be too small

Opening of the vaccine centre at Steam Museum..Pic - gv.Date 16/12/2020.Pic by Dave Cox. Debt of gratitude Last Friday, I had the privilege of attending the Steam museum for my first Covid vaccination and what an experience. From the car park attendants to the lady who administered the vaccine, everyone was so very kind, friendly, efficient and helpful. The icing on the cake was that my own doctor from the Merchiston surgery was there disinfecting the chairs, where we sat for the 15 minut...

Credit: steve parsons/pa SIR – On Friday morning I received the Pfizer vaccine. No side effects, or anything else. The arrangements were like a military operation: smooth-running and very competent. The jab was completed in seconds, done by a young doctor whom I did not know in a community hall, with volunteers guiding patients at every stage. All were charming and helpful. The sense of relief afterwards is something to be so grateful for. Janet E Hotter   SIR – Back in the Seventies, in t...

Covid jab Covid lessons to be learned I am sure many will want to put the year 2020 behind them and try to forget it. I am equally sure that most people hope that 2021 will be a lot better. However, it can be useful to reflect on the old year, to look at the things that went wrong, and why; and try to learn from our mistakes so we do not repeat them! We should also try to identify any good things that we may learned and try to hang onto them. So, what can we learn from the Coronavirus pan...