Friday 17 January 2014

Meeting to guide Northampton General Hospital inspectors hears good and bad stories

Meeting to guide Northampton General Hospital inspectors hears good and bad stories More than 70 people turned out to a meeting to give their impressions of Northampton General Hospital to inspectors ahead of an audit inspection that starts today. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Two million 'may need weight op'

Two million 'may need weight op' Up to two million people in England could be eligible for weight loss surgery, such as the fitting of gastric bands, experts believe. BBC News

CCGs - saving lives or forcing cuts?

CCGs - saving lives or forcing cuts? Are new NHS groups saving lives or forcing cuts? BBC News

VIDEO: What do we think of the NHS?

VIDEO: What do we think of the NHS? The NHS is almost a national religion to some and the government has committed to ring fencing health spending in England. BBC News

Gene therapy offers hope for sight loss

Gene therapy offers hope for sight loss Gene therapy "could be used to treat blindness," BBC News reports. This is just one of the many headlines reporting on the exciting application of gene therapy in visual impairment.
The news come from a small study involving just six male patients with a rare genetic condition called choroideremia. This condition causes progressive damage to the retina (the light-sensitive film of tissue at the back of the eye). There is currently no effective treatment for choroideremia and most people affected are legally blind by the time they are 50.

Tackling health inequalities: Reformers must check evidence

Tackling health inequalities: Reformers must check evidence Practitioners and policymakers have a moral obligation to do their research and ensure policy changes don't waste society's precious resources.
"The poor are always with us", and in recent decades the gap between the haves and the have-nots in Britain has widened.
Some argue that more equal societies have higher levels of wellbeing. Others see the unexploited talent of the disadvantaged as a morally repugnant waste.
Whatever your perspective, the principal challenge is how to identify interventions that are effective in improving the lot of the poor and reducing inequality at least cost.

Jeremy Hunt trying to undermine trust in us, say four in five GPs

Jeremy Hunt trying to undermine trust in us, say four in five GPs Poll of family doctors finds 94% agree that profession is being unfairly criticised for political purposes.
GPs have responded to Jeremy Hunt's criticisms of how they care for patients by accusing the health secretary of trying to damage the public's trust in them.
In a poll for the Guardian, four in five family doctors say they believe Hunt is deliberately seeking to undermine trust through a series of sometimes trenchant attacks on them, and some complain that they are being used as "political scapegoats".
The poll found that 83% of respondents agreed with the statement that "Jeremy Hunt is seeking to undermine public trust in GPs", and 3% disagreed.

Thousands of doctors accused of malpractice never fully checked

Thousands of doctors accused of malpractice never fully checked One in five allegations about rogue doctors are never properly investigated. The Daily Telegraph

Thousands more elderly care home residents subject to restraints

Thousands more elderly care home residents subject to restraints Steep rise in attempts by care homes to restrain and lock up the elderly, figures show. The Daily Telegraph

Chief Medical Officer highlights 'worrying' trend of delayed pregnancies

Chief Medical Officer highlights 'worrying' trend of delayed pregnancies The trend for many women to choose delaying motherhood is 'worrying', warns England's Chief Medical Officer. The Independent