A massive round of job cuts planned for this year has been leaked to the media. The government is planning to slash around 37000 jobs in an effort to balance their books. With Patricia Hewitt particularly targeting medical staff, when she told the Commons Health Committee “The NHS target for hospital doctors was to get to 74,590 by 2007. By 2004 the NHS was already employing over 78,000 hospital doctors and by 2005 over 82,000.”

This will have sent alarm bells ringing throughout the medical profession, not even consultants will be immune from the fall of Ms Hewitt's axe. This comes after Ms Hewitt had declared that last year had been "the best" year for the NHS. This will come as bad news to fresh medical graduates with large debts incurred during their studies, as they will now be faced with the prospect of having to abandon their dreams amidst stiff competition for limited training posts. At last years GP VTS selection for the Mersey Deanery, there was over 5000 applicants for less than 30 posts.

As one year ends and another begins, the constant bad news for the medical profession continues to be sowed by the Government. If you are reading this, then you too have already felt the winds of uncertainty. It is your choice whether to stay apathetic and hope it will not affect you personally, or do something about it. For too long, doctors have remained silent, hoping that our senior leaders will speak for the rest of us. This state of delusion has gotten us into this situation, if we do not speak up, then our legacy will be that of the generation that lost the NHS.