It's Snow Joke

THIS past week, snow has caused massive issues throughout the UK, but on Merseyside the effects have been minimal. Thankfully, the snow was only very light, but ice has brought some problems and rail services have been affected at times. The knock-on effects though have meant that many businesses have struggled to get work done, leading to many of them having a very slow week. Merseyrail have had to reduce services at times across the network as have the bus service providers. Liverpool Airport was also affected for a short time, as runways had to be cleared after a light snow fall on Thursday. We might not have had the same levels of snow as large parts of the UK have seen, but the cold temperatures are leading to many issues for the disabled and elderly. Over the next few days, the temperature is still set to fall below 0 and people are being asked to check on elderly and vulnerable people to see if they are ok. Small actions, like popping round and saying:- "Hi" can have a massive impact, so you don't need to go to extremes to be a good neighbour. Those who are homeless in Preston, Southport and in Liverpool can get temporary accommodation as temperatures continue to drop.

Time for solutions after 'worst winter' says NHS Confederation

COMMENTING on the remarks made by Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, on the latest winter performance figures, Niall Dickson, Chief Executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents organisations across the healthcare sector, said:-  "Simon Stevens is right, but we have to stop describing the problem and start putting forward solutions. There is now a danger everyone starts to accept the unacceptable.  A recent poll of our members showed nearly ⅔ believe this to be the most difficult winter in their careers, and that's despite extensive planning. And of course, the last few days have been horrendous in some areas of the country, not least for community staff going out to support the most vulnerable."

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