Kettering General Hospital CQC inspection report

Kettering General Hospital CQC inspection report The latest inspection report from the Care Quality Commission 

See also:

• Inspectors praise caring staff but say Kettering General Hospital as a whole must improve Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Inspectors praise caring staff but say Kettering General Hospital as a whole must improve Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• ‘I’ve never worked somewhere so dire for staffing levels’, Northamptonshire nurse tells inspectors Northampton Chronicle and Echo

NHS workers in Northampton will continue to strike until Government “listens”

NHS workers in Northampton will continue to strike until Government “listens” Nurses, midwives and radiologists in Northampton have said they will continue to take periods industrial action until the Government starts to listen and negotiate with them. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

The reconfiguration of clinical services is an important but insufficient approach

The reconfiguration of clinical services is an important but insufficient approach In a recent editorial for the BMJ, Nigel Edwards argues that ‘the quality of debate about the role of hospitals has improved’. He cites the work of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) Future Hospital Commission and the NHS five year forward view. Both have moved away from an all-or-nothing approach to the future of acute hospital care and envisage hospitals that are more integrated with primary and tertiary care.

Today The King’s Fund hopes to enhance the quality of that debate even further with the publication of a major report laying out the evidence available to help guide the reconfiguration of hospital services. The evidence supports the direction of travel suggested by NHS England and the RCP, in particular that there are increasing opportunities to sustain services in smaller hospitals. We need to grasp these opportunities if we are to provide a model of hospital care that recognises the huge demographic shift currently under way.

Measurement for improvement: what we can learn from reductions in pressure ulcers

Measurement for improvement: what we can learn from reductions in pressure ulcers It can be really tricky to get better at something. Sometimes it’s even trickier to know when (and if) you’re actually getting better. But there are some things you can do to make improvement easier, and right at the top of the list is measurement. The Health Foundation

News story: Hospital cleaning: revised specification published

News story: Hospital cleaning: revised specification published This revision offers an example that shows the level of risk that poor cleaning standards can pose for patients, staff and visitors. It covers various locations in hospitals and a range of equipment and fittings.

Trusts that adopt it can use it to show how they will comply with Care Quality Commission requirements on cleanliness.

This updated cleaning specification is free to download for all NHS staff and organisations.

Recent assessments show standards of hospital cleanliness are high. Keeping them that way supports all the successful efforts to reduce the incidence of healthcare associated infections such as MRSA.

The standard was first published in 2011 to help acute, community and mental health hospitals prove they have systems in place to ensure they are clean and safe for patients. Its development is sponsored by the Department of Health.

New alliance aims to improve lot of people with long-term conditions

New alliance aims to improve lot of people with long-term conditions The Coalition for Collaborative Care (C4CC) brings together ADASS, National Voices, Diabetes UK, Macmillan Cancer Support and others. NHS England

VIDEO: 'End of life care needs more effort'

VIDEO: 'End of life care needs more effort' Professor Atul Gawande of Harvard University on why more effort needs to be made to improve the last stage in people's lives. BBC News

VIDEO: NHS pay: Staff morale is 'dreadful'

VIDEO: NHS pay: Staff morale is 'dreadful' Thousands of NHS workers in England and Northern Ireland, including nurses, midwives and ambulance staff, have been staging four hour strikes. BBC News

NHSBT log-in via social media

NHSBT log-in via social media NHS Blood and Transplant has enabled users to log-on to its website using their social media credentials as part of a bid to encourage more people to donate blood. E-Health Insider

Therapy reduces risk of suicide or self-harm

Therapy reduces risk of suicide or self-harm“Talk therapy sessions can help reduce the risk of suicide among high-risk groups,” BBC News reports.

The headline is prompted by a large Danish study that took place over a 20-year period.

Researchers matched those who had received different psychosocial (“talking therapy”) interventions after a self-harm attempt with those who had not received a psychosocial intervention, and then compared relevant outcomes.

People who received psychological interventions had reduced risk of further self-harm, but not suicide, within the first year. Looking at longer-term follow-up, psychological interventions were associated with reduced risk of both self-harm and suicide.

However, it may be difficult to isolate the direct effect of the psychological intervention. People who had received psychological interventions were recruited from treatment clinics that required them not to be in need of psychiatric admission.

Scarlet fever rates higher than normal

Scarlet fever rates higher than normal Around 100 cases are being reported across England every week. OnMedica

See also:

• Scarlet fever, the beginning of a new season Public Health England

NHS: Scandal of the sight saving drug doctors are not allowed to prescribe

NHS: Scandal of the sight saving drug doctors are not allowed to prescribe Bill Organ’s sight was saved by injections of the drugs Avastin and Lucentis. Both drugs stop the loss of central vision caused by age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The Daily Mail

In charts and graphs: A&E performance

In charts and graphs: A&E performance As ministers warn that hospitals are coming under 'precedented pressures,' figures from one NHS trust in Kent, Medway NHS Foundation trust, shows patients repeatedly waiting more than 24 hours in A&E. Here, the statistics in depth. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Every year winter comes as a surprise to the NHS The Daily Telegraph
• Patients endure waits of up to 35 hours in A&E The Daily Telegraph