Monday 12 May 2014

Hospital plans pioneering bid to improve care of the elderly

Hospital plans pioneering bid to improve care of the elderly Kettering General Hospital is to become a pioneer in a new style of care for the 36,000 elderly patients it treats each year. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Hospital can have a ‘strong and positive future’, says new boss

Hospital can have a ‘strong and positive future’, says new boss Kettering General Hospital’s new chief executive has predicted a strong future for the hospital as it serves the area’s rapidly growing population. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Nurse cuts proposal could affect 770 Northamptonshire patients

Nurse cuts proposal could affect 770 Northamptonshire patients More than 770 Northamptonshire patients regularly visited by community nurses could be affected by a proposal to make NHS staff redundant. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Safe nursing levels recommended

Safe nursing levels recommended Hospitals in England should be wary about having nurses care for more than eight patients each on wards during the day, draft NHS guidance suggests. BBC News

See also:

UK mental health cost of Afghan war

UK mental health cost of Afghan war There has been a "significant increase" in the number of Afghanistan veterans seeking mental health treatment, charity Combat Stress says. BBC News

Lack of exercise 'highest risk' for women over 30

Lack of exercise 'highest risk' for women over 30 "Heart disease warning: Lack of exercise is worse risk for over-30s women than smoking or obesity," The Independent reports. It is important to stress that this headline is based on a result that is applicable to a population, not to an individual.

The Australian study the headline is reporting on looked at population attributable risk, or PARs. PARs can be used to estimate the proportion of cases of a disease, such as heart disease, that would not occur in a population if the risk factor, such as inactivity, was eliminated.

New medicines, better medicines, better use of medicines

New medicines, better medicines, better use of medicines This report summarises the role pharmacists and pharmaceutical scientists have played and continue to play in the development and use of medicines. It highlights the major challenges and opportunities faced when creating new medicines, improving existing medicines or ensuring the better, safer, use of medicines. It contains seven recommendations arising from the challenges, and which identify areas for development, expansion, change and innovation for the future. Royal Pharmaceutical Society

NHS hit by new tech failure as it scraps patient booking system

NHS hit by new tech failure as it scraps patient booking system Choose and Book outpatient appointments system set to be replaced by a potentially more expensive e-referral scheme.

The NHS is quietly ditching an electronic booking system for outpatient appointments, Choose and Book, which has cost £356m since 2004, in a further sign of the difficulties of introducing efficient IT systems into the health service.

The decision to replace it with a potentially even more expensive e-referral scheme by 2016 follows a drop in its use by doctors and patients. Continue reading... The Guardian

Pensioners to pay double cap for care home fees

Pensioners to pay double cap for care home fees Elderly pensioners face 'shocking' care home costs as most will pay double the Government's cap of £70,000 because many costs are not included, Institute of Actuaries warns. The Daily Telegraph

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Top nurse warns on NHS whistleblowers

Top nurse warns on NHS whistleblowers NHS whistleblowers need more protection, top nurse warns. The Daily Telegraph

Mental-health patients driven hundreds of miles for treatment

Mental-health patients driven hundreds of miles for treatment A crisis in mental health care has been declared by NHS staff in East Anglia, across a region covering the constituencies of two government health ministers. The Independent

Brain injury victims suffer savage cuts in services

Brain injury victims suffer savage cuts in services

Savage cuts in rehabilitation services are resulting in thousands of brain injury victims being denied help and ultimately costing the taxpayer more money, according to a new study by the brain injury charity, Headway. The Independent