University of Northampton and Northampton General Hospital join forces for foot pain research project

University of Northampton and Northampton General Hospital join forces for foot pain research project
A two-year research study into pain in the big toe joint is being carried out by a team from the University of Northampton and Northampton General Hospital. Northants Herald and Post

Going home alone Counting the cost to older people and the NHS

Going home alone Counting the cost to older people and the NHS Royal Voluntary Service’s research found that over a quarter of patients who were readmitted within three months had not felt ready to go home at initial discharge, compared to only 5% of people who had not been readmitted within three months. The research also showed that the number of people saying they had support needs which were not met was higher amongst those who were readmitted.

See also:

• Support fears 'delay' NHS discharges BBC News

Love 'em or loathe 'em, NHS targets are here to stay

Love 'em or loathe 'em, NHS targets are here to stay Targets in some form are likely to be with us for the foreseeable future and we won’t help ourselves if we don’t at least try to learn from past successes and failures in how targets have been approached, says Tim Gardner. The Health Foundation

Population health systems: going beyond integrated care

Population health systems: going beyond integrated care Integrated care has become a key focus of health service reform in England in recent years, as a response to fragmentation within the NHS and social care system. Yet efforts to integrate care services have rarely extended into a concern for the broader health of local populations and the impact of the wider determinants of health. This is a missed opportunity. This paper aims to challenge those involved in integrated care and public health to ‘join up the dots’, seeing integrated care as part of a broader shift away from fragmentation towards an approach focused on improving population health. The King's Fund

VIDEO: The smart bandage treating wounds

VIDEO: The smart bandage treating wounds Dan Simmons looks at the medical devices of the future. BBC News

Hospital 'black alerts' extended

Hospital 'black alerts' extended "Black alerts" in hospitals have been extended across south-west England showing services are overwhelmed by demand, NHS bosses say. BBC News

Many deaths of mentally ill in custody 'avoidable'

Many deaths of mentally ill in custody 'avoidable' “Hundreds of deaths in mental health units ‘were avoidable’,” says a report on the front page of today’s Independent. The Guardian highlights 662 mentally ill detainee deaths from 2010 to 2013.

Both stories follow an inquiry by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) into the deaths of people with mental health conditions while detained in police custody, prisons or psychiatric hospitals.

The inquiry looked at whether people who were detained had been treated correctly according to EHRC guidelines. The inquiry focused on two basic rights: the right to life and the right to non-discrimination.

Over the period 2010 to 2013, there were 367 deaths from non-natural causes of adults with mental health conditions while detained in psychiatric wards and police custody. A further 295 adults died in prison, many of whom had mental health conditions.

The inquiry identified many areas of concern, including a lack of information sharing between professionals, insufficient involvement of family members, inappropriate use of restraint, and failure to learn from past incidents.

Meet the Spanish nurses desperate for a job in the NHS

Meet the Spanish nurses desperate for a job in the NHS

Despite a creaking health system at home, lack of jobs means graduates are flocking to interviews in the UK. But for many, language skills are the highest hurdle

Résumés tightly in hand, the group of young nursing graduates nervously compared their English as they waited to be called for interview. Few had ever left Spain, and only one had been to Britain. But if all went well, they would walk out of the hotel in the centre of Madrid with an NHS nursing job in a hospital near London.

“The situation in Spain is terrible. If you want to work as a nurse, you have to leave the country,” said one candidate, José, who declined to give his surname. He had travelled six hours by train to attend the interviews. “Why not leave? Our future is now other countries.”

I wouldn’t want to work in England without perfect English. What happens when you administer dangerous medications? Continue reading... The Guardian

Revealed: £15bn hidden cost of eating disorders

Revealed: £15bn hidden cost of eating disorders Eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia cost the country more than £15bn a year, according to the first analysis of the financial effects of the problems. The Independent


See also:

• The Costs of Eating Disorders - Social, Health and Economic Impacts B-Eat
• Eating disorders cost UK around £15bn per year OnMedica