Child protection 'must improve'

Child protection 'must improve': Child protection services at Northamptonshire County Council must improve, the leader says, after inspectors raised concerns. BBC Northamptonshire

Abuse complaints by vulnerable adults increase

Abuse complaints by vulnerable adults increase: COMPLAINTS of abuse suffered by vulnerable adults in Northamptonshire, passed on by the likes of police, the NHS and care homes, rose by more than a third in 12 months. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

'Whitehall role' in NHS payoffs

'Whitehall role' in NHS payoffs: The Department of Health (DoH) plays a key role in vetting severance payments to NHS staff, including money offered to whistle-blowers, it emerges. BBC News

UK 'lagging in Europe health league'

UK 'lagging in Europe health league': The UK is lagging behind progress by similar countries on many indicators for ill-health, research published in the Lancet suggests. BBC News

See also:

• UK falls behind in early death league table The Independent
• Dementia death toll soars as UK fails in battle to improve health The Independent
• Billions in extra cash fail to stop rot in NHS The Daily Telegraph
• Healthy life expectancy is shorter in the UK than abroad The Guardian
• Alzheimer's jumps from 24th to become the 10th biggest killer in UK in just 20 years The Daily Mail

Auditor in warning to health trusts

Auditor in warning to health trusts: The auditor general tells the health sector that striving to meet targets must not have a detrimental impact on the overall care of patients. BBC News

Increase in NHS spending on independent services

Increase in NHS spending on independent services:

NHS spending on services provided by the private or voluntary sector increased by more than 10% last year Related items from OnMedica Private firms may be made exempt from corporation tax Commissioners and the voluntary sector CCGs’ independence threatened by choice regulations 21 trusts have received £1 billion in bailouts

Cold weather keeps telehealth patients out of hospital

Cold weather keeps telehealth patients out of hospital: Telehealth project in Leicester keeps more patients out of hospital than expected during the cold weather Public Service

Hospital workforce: fit for the future?

Hospital workforce: fit for the future?: This report brings together findings from the medical registrar report and the 2011 RCP consultant census and looks at the key challenges that are facing the medical workforce. It concludes that there needs to be a rethink of the skills in which doctors are trained, in order to better meet patients’ needs; while the role of the medical registrar and the esteem in which it is held must be reassessed and
better valued.

• Report
• Executive summary
• RCP - news

Reports of 'HIV cure' are premature

Reports of 'HIV cure' are premature: Global news coverage has been dominated by the potentially groundbreaking news that a child born with HIV appears to have been ‘cured’ of the infection.

Productivity in the NHS 'stubbornly stagnant', reveals report

Productivity in the NHS 'stubbornly stagnant', reveals report: Growing number of health service organisations getting into financial difficulties, says Nuffield Trust study.
Productivity in the NHS remains "stubbornly stagnant", its workforce is shrinking and GP surgeries are receiving less money than before to spend on patient care, a report has revealed.

Elderly patients diagnosed with 'acopia' - a disease that does not exist

Elderly patients diagnosed with 'acopia' - a disease that does not exist: Elderly patients often do not receive proper treatment because they are subconsciously 'written off' and diagnosed with 'acopia', a condition that does not exist, a former Government adviser on the elderly has said. The Daily Telegraph

Former health secretaries back embattled NHS chief David Nicholson over Mid Staffordshire scandal

Former health secretaries back embattled NHS chief David Nicholson over Mid Staffordshire scandal: Five former health secretaries will tomorrow give their unequivocal backing to David Nicholson, the beleaguered head of the NHS who faces calls for his resignation in the wake of the Mid Staffordshire scandal, in interviews with The Independent.