Talking-up Scotland

From the ISD site today:

‘Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratios (HSMR) at Scotland level has decreased by 9.9% between January to March 2014 (first quarter after new baseline) and October to December 2017.’

https://www.isdscotland.org/Health-Topics/Quality-Indicators/Publications/2018-05-15/2018-05-15-HSMR-Report.pdf?75555056334

This suggests real improvements in hospital care in the light of a background of persisting levels of crude mortality (above) which can be taken as evidence of pressure or demand on the system.

Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratios (HSMRs) in Scotland cannot be compared directly with those in England and Wales but evidence is emerging there of a system in crisis as excess deaths in hospital soar.

From the Daily Mail on 12^th May 2018:

‘The figures, from the Office for National Statistics, showed there were 20,215 more deaths in the first 16 weeks of 2018 compared to the previous five years – namely, 198,943 compared to an average of 178,778. Statisticians claimed in February that the killer winter flu outbreak was to blame for a 42 per cent spike in deaths across England and Wales. Professor Danny Dorling of the University of Oxford is calling for an investigation by the House of Commons into the worrying trend. The ONS report showed a similar trend in deaths was seen in all nine regions of England and Wales itself.’

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5721383/Why-people-dying-Academics-baffled-20-000-extra-deaths-England-Wales.html