Will the Coffey plan work for the NHS this winter?

The recurring NHS winter ‘crisis’

The question on everyone's tongue right now is will the NHS be in crisis this winter? The headlines say it all: NHS faces its worst bed crisis this winter; NHS faces another winter of crisis, and homeless people failed by the NHS. 

Do you recognise these headlines? You probably do, but did you realise that they date from - 2000, 2001 and 2002? 

If you have a good memory, you see that virtually every year, there is a problem with either the ‘cash’, the mood, the debt or the crises within the workforce (or all of them together).

In 2005 the Labour party promised sustained investment to reduce waiting times, expand the NHS workforce and improve buildings and facilities. Specifically, it pledged to triple spending. As a result, spending increased from £33.5 billion in 1997/8 to £76.4 billion in 2005/6.

So what happened? More of the same: bed-blocking, phone lines in crisis, and record numbers off sick.