Keeping patient safety on the agenda

Keeping patient safety on the agenda: At the Health Foundation, patient safety remains a great concern to us, especially as we believe that these competing demands may divert attention away from the provision of high quality, harm free care, says Jane Jones. Health Foundation

New end of life care primary care trust profiles

New end of life care primary care trust profiles:
Each profile provides a snapshot of the PCT’s position compared to England. This will help commissioners and providers of end of life care to understand the specific needs and characteristics of their local population to help with service planning.
The data is also presented in the InstantAtlas tool which enables users to view the data in map, chart and table format and make comparisons across indicators and PCT areas. All the data can also be exported from the InstantAtlas tool for local analysis. NHS Networks

Change to the requirements for a second opinion appointed doctor’s opinion for a consenting patient on supervised community treatment

Change to the requirements for a second opinion appointed doctor’s opinion for a consenting patient on supervised community treatment:
The rules about when the treatment of patients on supervised community treatment (SCT) has to be approved by a second opinion appointed doctor (SOAD) change on 1 June 2012. Section 299 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 changes this aspect of the Mental Health Act 1983. The effect of the changes is that SOAD approval is generally no longer necessary if the patient is able to consent to the treatment in question.
There is a new statutory form (CTO12) to be used by the approved clinician in charge of the patient’s treatment to record that the patient has the capacity (or competence if under 16) to consent to the treatment in question and has done so. The form is introduced by The Mental Health (Hospital, Guardianship and Treatment) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012.
SOADs will continue to complete the current form (CTO11) when an SCT patient either does not consent or is not able to consent to the treatment.
An SCT patient who has consented may at any time withdraw that consent or could lose the capacity to consent. In either case, this will mean that a form CTO12 would no longer be valid, and a SOAD will have to record an opinion on form CTO11 instead.
Treatment may continue when a patient has lost capacity to consent, but it cannot continue against the wishes of a patient who still has capacity to consent, unless the patient is recalled to hospital. There is no legal authority to treat an SCT patient even if a SOAD has completed form CTO11.
There is no change to the rule that clinicians may not give electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) to patients under 18 without the approval of a SOAD. But they may give medication or ECT without a completed form CTO11 or CTO12 in an emergency, where it is immediately necessary.
Read The Mental Health (Hospital, Guardianship and Treatment) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2012
Printed copies of form CTO12 will be available from the NHS forms website soon. For immediate use, download Form CTO12 Regulation 28(1A) (PDF, 29K) Department of Health

New clot drug for heart patients

New clot drug for heart patients: Hundreds of thousands of heart patients could benefit from new blood thinning drugs to cut their risk of stroke, guidelines recommend BBC News

NHS trusts 'ration eye surgery'

NHS trusts 'ration eye surgery': A growing number of primary care trusts are placing restrictions on access to eye surgery, figures obtained by campaigners show. BBC News

NHS 'paid £17 for pizza base'

NHS 'paid £17 for pizza base': Two prescription gluten-free pizza bases can cost the NHS as much as £35, BBC Newsnight has learned. BBC News

Renewal of the GPS framework agreement for the supply of temporary nursing staff

Renewal of the GPS framework agreement for the supply of temporary nursing staff: Government Procurement Service (GPS) is in the process of renewing the framework agreement for the supply of temporary nursing staff NHS Employers

Junior doctors to be quizzed on patient safety

Junior doctors to be quizzed on patient safety:

A national survey of junior doctors is to quiz them on the issue of patient safety.
It is the first time trainee doctors in the UK have been given the opportunity to raise concerns in this way over the safety of their patients.
The annual National Training Survey has been organised by the GMC and it wants every one of the country’s 55,000 trainee doctors - who provide much of the basic care in the NHS... Healthcare Today

Improve your knowledge on guidance for common mental health problems

Improve your knowledge on guidance for common mental health problems: Common mental health disorders affect one-in-six adults, and cost UK employers £25 billion each year through lost work days. NICE

Deep concerns over government plans to cut benefits for alcoholics and drug addicts who refuse treatment

Deep concerns over government plans to cut benefits for alcoholics and drug addicts who refuse treatment:
Doctors and addiction charities today expressed deep concerns over government plans to cut the benefits of people suffering from alcoholism or drug addiction who refuse treatment. The Independent

Controversial plans to change the way NHS spends its £100bn budget being considered

Controversial plans to change the way NHS spends its £100bn budget being considered:
Senior health service managers are considering controversial plans to change the way the NHS spends its £100bn annual budget across different parts of England. The Independent

New local authority staff to maintain access to NHS Pension Scheme

New local authority staff to maintain access to NHS Pension Scheme: It has been confirmed that NHS staff transferring to local authority employers next year will retain access to the NHS Pension Scheme. RCN