FoI: NHS Highland data-only FOUR 'COVID' deaths in 2020

Yet more revealling Foi data from NHS Highland.

NHS Highland is one of the fourteen regions of NHS Scotland. Geographically, it is the largest Health Board, covering an area of 32,500 km² (12,500 sq mi) from Kintyre in the south-west to Caithness in the north-east, serving a population of 320,000 people. It provides prehospital care, primary and secondary care services. The largest and main hospital is the Raigmore.

For such a large health board area i was curious to discover the effect on population health of the COVID pandemic. As with other articles, the official data may suprise you.

Year-1  

In 2020, just 3 months after the pandemic was declared the West Highland Free Press referred to it as:

‘’the country’s greatest crisis since the war.’’

Technological saviours-Fourth Industrial Revolution?

In the early days of the pandemic NHS Highland was a testing ground for new technologies. Skyports, a drone delivery service provider, began delivering pathology samples, medicine, essential personal protective equipment and COVID-19 testing kits in Argyll and Bute. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NHS_Scotland

NHS Highland was also looking to deploy technology in care homes which aimed to help reduce the spread of Covid-19.  The Scottish health board together with Highland Health Ventures and Wyld Networks are hoping to instal technology which uses an app on smartphones and geozones, software-based virtual walls surrounding the care home. The software decides whether visitors and staff can or cannot enter the facility based on peoples’ health status and level of risk.Rules you would expect to see in Communist China not in a liberal democracy like Scotland.

https://www.digitalhealth.net/2020/09/nhs-highland-tech-covid-19-care-homes/

Highlands media reporting

One of the main media outlets in the Highlands is The Northern Times which prides itself on ‘’TRUSTED NEWS’’.

https://www.hnmedia.co.uk/

Just four months into ‘the pandemic’ they reported:

‘’A total of 97 people have now died in the NHS Highland area from either confirmed or suspected Covid-19 – up from 88 a week ago.’’ 

Fact check

However NRS figures show there were only 49 deaths ‘’involving’’ COVID-19 during that period covering all locations. This is the broadest defintion of recording virus deaths. That is 49 deaths from 300,000 people which is 0.01%.

Meaning 99.99% of the population had survived the deadly ‘first wave of the virus’. 

The article goes on:

‘’For the health board area in total, 31 of those deaths occurred in care homes, 13 were at home and 53 were in hospital.’’

Freedom of Information Act Revelations 

Foi data covering every hospital in NHS Highland for the full 12 months of 2020 shows remarkably only FOUR deaths occured where COVID-19 was the sole cause of death. The majority of those deaths in those aged 75+. 

For the whole of 2020 46 deaths were listed as underlying cause in the hospital setting. 94% of these deaths in ages 65 years and over.

I am therefore at a loss to explain the Northern Times calculation of 53 ‘COVID’ deaths in NHS Highland hospitals deaths in just a few short months??!

NON COVID deaths no problem

Throughout 2020 mainstream media reporting all over Scotland was always laser focused on ‘COVID’ death figures whilst ignoring the far greater NON COVID death toll being accrued on the population. 

Are these lives to be viewed as less important than those dying ‘with’ or from ‘the COVID virus’ ?

Care home data

Over 15 months of available care home data for the Highland area shows during the peak of ‘the pandemic’ there were only 80 deaths ‘involving’ the virus. Half of all care homes in the region only registered 5 or less deaths.

Deaths from all causes shows normal hospital mortality in 2020

As is seen in other health board foi data there was no unusual change in the death rate in 2020. In fact, the largest hosptial, the Raigmore deaths from all causes were 5% BELOW the five year average. 

What is concering however is by years end in 2022 the hospital recorded the highest death rate on record and the majority of these excess deaths are not related to the virus. More people are dying now (by end 2022 with 2023 rates to be determined) than during the peak of ‘the pandemic’ and yet for some reason, there is no media or political will to acknowledge this reality and investigate the cause/s.

‘Vaccine’ efficacy and mask hypocrisy

Just 5 weeks into the mass ‘vaccination’ campaign NHS Highland hospitals were treating more patients for Covid-19 coronavirus than since April 2020

and

8 months after the ‘vaccination’ rollout schools were being closed.

On August 25th 2021 Scotland's record number of Covid cases was said to be partly being fuelled by the return of schools after the summer holidays, the deputy first minister has said. John Swinney said the data showed that high numbers of young people had tested positive in recent days. And he said the case for secondary pupils continuing to wear facemasks in school was growing "ever stronger".

Yet as we can see just 6 days later from this 31st August 2021 clip Scottish parliamentarians including Mr.Swinney were exempt from mask wearing in almost identical circumstance to children who were at statistically zero risk from being seriously effected by the virus, unlike Mr.Swinney at 57 years of age (at the time his speech was made).

One has to ask why were children to be frightened and masked when older members of society at higher risk of severe disease and in more full knowledge of ‘the virus’ devestating impacts clearly were not ?

Scottish Government Debate: First 100 Days – Delivering for the People of Scotland - 31 August 2021

2023 Spring Booster campaign

Despite 2023 ‘COVID’ deaths (with 12 weeks remaining) almost already on par with the 2020 death rate without mass innoculations the novel injection programme continues at pace.

Dr Tim Allison, Director of Public Health for NHS Highland, said: 

“COVID-19 is still with us so it’s really important that you get your spring booster if you’re eligible. Booster doses are safe, effective, and help to top up your protection against serious illness from the virus.

As can be seen below, there has been a 60% increase in the ‘COVID’ death rate in the region each year following the vaccination rollout compared to 2020 with no vaccine despite the well promoted emergence of weaker viral variants and less mass testing. A concerning trend that runs counter to repeated claims of high efficacy which is not supported by the real world data. All cause mortality has also significantly increased during the rollout.

Long COVID Foi relevations

In February 2023 Pamela Dudek, Chief Executive of NHS Highland wrote to Siobhian Brown MSP Convener of COVID-19 Recovery Committee on concerns around the disease in the area, mainly to point out that: 

‘’There is no long-term Condition Management Service in NHS Highland currently.’’

However contrary to media claims the healthboard has acknowledged there has not been a single reported diagnosis of ‘Long COVID’ (aka Post COVID-19 condition) within NHS Highland hospitals in 3 years !

‘’There are no patients who were admitted to hospital as either an inpatient or day case patient what were discharged with a diagnosis code of Post Covid Condition.’’

Is saving lives post pandemic no longer a top priority ?

NHS Highland announced in early 2022 that they would defund the Inverness PICT Team, (Prehospital Immediate Care and Trauma) in steps which will leave the Highlands and Inverness without a seven-day physician-led enhanced care service.

The team was the winner of the 2022 Highland Heroes awards in the category of Emergency Services. PICT operates 12 hours per day, seven days a week, responding to around 150 patients a month. The PICT Team responds by land to major trauma and critically unwell patients in the Highlands of Scotland. The PICT Team have attended a variety of incidents, including aircraft crashes, road traffic collisions, stabbings, shootings and critically unwell patients.

“Lives should not be put at risk by reducing the life-saving PICT service down to four days….This pioneering service is essential when responding to major trauma incidents across the Highlands – we simply cannot afford to lose it.”

-Highland MSP Edward Mountain

Funeral data 2016-2022

The council released funeral data shows no unusual change in the death rate in 2020 comapred to prior years. Sadly by the end of 2022 there were significantly more cremations than normal driven by NON COVID causes of death. (As can be seen from increases in the death rate at the Raigmore, the regions largest hospital).

Why no MSPs for the area, especially Douglas Ross leader of the Scottish Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition would not want to urgently investigate and understand the cause/s of these excess deaths in his constituents is baffling when more people have been dying in 2022 and likely also into 2023 than in 2020. 

A reminder that in 2020 the West Highland Free Press reported the pandemic as- 

‘’the country’s greatest crisis since the war.’’

If that was true then why are they not raising any concerns about even higher death rates in the following years ? It really does appear as far as the media and our MSPs are concerned that ‘COVID’ deaths are indeed much more important than ANY other cause of death and these can and will be ignored in perpetuity. 

End

Links:

https://www.whfp.com/2020/06/12/coronavirus-in-the-highlands-health-and-care-workers-showing-solidarity-in-rising-to-the-challenge/

https://www.northern-times.co.uk/news/national-records-show-coronavirus-deaths-in-nhs-highland-area-now-number-97-199559/

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/covid_hospitilisations_in_childr_4/response/2454134/attach/3/FOI%20Response%20Ref%2018512.pdf

https://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/16-coronavirus-deaths-in-the-nhs-highland-area-196116/

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/hospital_mortality_data_2010_202_211/response/2352487/attach/4/FOI%20Response%20Ref%2017254.pdf

https://www.strathspey-herald.co.uk/news/covid-hospital-patient-numbers-in-nhs-highland-area-higher-than-at-any-point-since-last-april-225101/

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-58331525

https://www.nhshighland.scot.nhs.uk/news/2023/03/nhs-highland-begins-covid-19-spring-booster-programme-with-at-risk-groups-offered-additional-dose/

https://www.parliament.scot/-/media/files/committees/covid19-recovery-committee/correspondence/2023/nhs-highland-long-covid-inquiry.pdf

https://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/msp-calls-for-medical-trauma-response-team-to-be-saved-266492/

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/funeal_statistics_2015_2022_2033/response/2263304/attach/2/FS%20Case%20488184761.pdf