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Life Support
With another winter approaching, the NHS’s condition remains critical

3 Editor’s note
With the issue of Scottish independence always to the fore, there was undoubtedly a nervous intake of breath about how an already fractured nation would react when its one constant binding force – our Queen of 70 years – was no longer there

5 Roundup
Pictures and numbers from the past two weeks
7 Talking Point
Liz Truss’s economic policies are for the rich and the rich alone
8 In Context
Who’s on the Privy Council and what does it do?

9 Political Spotlight: United Kingdom?
What does the Queen’s death mean for Scottish politics?
12 Overview: Testing times
Securing a GP appointment has never been harder. With unrest across the NHS, it is unlikely to get any easier
18 Political Interview: Humza Yousaf
The health secretary admits the state of the NHS is keeping him up at night
23 Mental Health: Centring the person
Nikki Kilburn, from the Pass the Mic initiative, speaks to service users and practitioners five years into the mental health strategy
28 Women’s Health: Rural Scotland
Holyrood speaks to the women who have had enough of unequal access to healthcare in rural areas
33 Political Interview: Jeremy Balfour
The Conservative MSP talks about his early life, his route into politics and his plans for a Disability Commissioner
37 Health TecH: Data diagnostics
How artificial intelligence is transforming the way we diagnose illnesses
41 Interview: Donald Macaskill
The head of Scottish Care on why the energy crisis could make this winter the toughest yet for care homes

44 Getting to know...
Shetland Islands Council leader Emma Macdonald on island life
46 Comment
Neil Findlay says we collectively lost our minds in grieving for the Queen
47 Politician’s Pets
Edinburgh councillor Lesley Macinnes introduces us to Peigi
48 Diary
Thérèse Coffey’s culture war on the Oxford comma
49 Political Spin
With Renfrewshire Council culture connoisseur Lisa-Marie Hughes
50 Last Word
Sketch: Britain forms an orderly Queue to mourn the Queen

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