Wednesday 12 September 2012

The doctor will see you now... by Skype

The doctor will see you now... by Skype:
An NHS trust in Northamptonshire is among the first in the country to offer video consultations between doctors and some patients. Northampton Chronicle & Echo

Wardipedia - a new resource for inpatient mental health care

Wardipedia - a new resource for inpatient mental health care:
www.wardipedia.org
Star Wards has launched the world's first ever comprehensive resource on providing therapeutic care for mental health inpatients. Wardipedia has over 1,000 examples of good practice from wards across the UK.

This online, collaborative compendium has other features to support ward staff including ideas for enhancing patients’ experiences, the evidence base for these, ideas from related sectors and links to hundreds of useful sites, practical resources and documents.

The site is very easy to use and most of the ideas in Wardipedia are very low-cost, simple to implement and result in immediate improvements to patients' and staff experiences. Well worth a visit! Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Libraries 

DH issue pre-tender for Electronic Staff Record project

DH issue pre-tender for Electronic Staff Record project:
The Department of Heath has confirmed that the Electronic Staff Records project will be re-tendered in the autumn.It has sent out a pre-tender for provision of the ESR project, which is currently provided by McKesson Information Solutions and comes to a close on 31 August 2014. According to an update on the NHS ESR website, the Department of Health has "concluded that there is a clear economic case for ongoing... Healthcare Today

Report recommends which specialised services should be commissioned nationally

Report recommends which specialised services should be commissioned nationally:
A report by the Clinical Advisory Group for Prescribed Services (CAG) has been published, recommending which specialised services for people with rare conditions should be commissioned nationally in England.
Read the CAG report (PDF, 1411K)
The services listed in the report will be commissioned by the NHS Commissioning Board from April 2013, rather than by Clinical Commissioning Groups. The list will be agreed by Ministers and the Commissioning Board in the autumn.
The CAG was established to advise the government on which specialised services should be commissioned nationally. The group is chaired by Dr Kathy McLean and includes clinical specialists, health professionals and GPs. Department of Health

Commissioning board promises CCGs a lighter planning 'ask'

Commissioning board promises CCGs a lighter planning 'ask': Clinical commissioning groups will need to report only a “minimum” set of quality, performance and finance information to the centre to support the NHS planning process, they have been told by the NHS Commissioning Board. HSJ

NMC pin cards will no longer be issued

NMC pin cards will no longer be issued: From the end of September the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) will no longer be issuing pin cards to registered nurses and midwives. Employers should use the NMC's free online service to confirm professional registration. NHS Employers News

HPA survey reveals poor flu vaccine uptake amongst London midwives

HPA survey reveals poor flu vaccine uptake amongst London midwives
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has published the findings of a survey of seasonal influenza vaccine uptake amongst London midwives (June-August 2011).
 
Out of 266 survey responders, 43% chose to have the vaccine compared to an uptake rate of 36% among London healthcare workers (winter season 2011/12).
 
The survey found that the main reasons for midwives declining the flu vaccine were doubts about the necessity of vaccination (34%); vaccine safety (25%); vaccine effectiveness (10%); and poor arrangements in the workplace for midwives to be vaccinated (11%).
 
Dr Ishola, lead investigator, concluded: "Our recommendations for employers would be to establish effective publicity to promote having the flu vaccine at work and making it available at more convenient times and places. There is a need for clear and appropriate information to be made available to midwives, with transparent guidelines, evidence and direction, in addition to adequate ...Health Protection Agency (HPA)

Suicide prevention strategy launched

Suicide prevention strategy launched:
The strategy builds on the successes of the 2002 suicide prevention strategy. Real progress has been made in reducing the already relatively low suicide rate to record low levels. NHS Networks

Healthcare network member survey results: infographic

Healthcare network member survey results: infographic:
A breakdown of what members said about the reforms, outcomes to patients, and the impact of social care cuts. Guardian