Nurse from Northamptonshire struck off after stealing elderly resident’s painkillers

Nurse from Northamptonshire struck off after stealing elderly resident’s painkillers A nurse has been struck off after taking money from two people she shared a house with and stealing medication from a Northamptonshire care home resident. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman - labyrinth of bureaucracy

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman - labyrinth of bureaucracy This report is a follow-up on the November 2014 Patients Association report on the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's handling of NHS complaints. It highlights the improvements that are still needed in the complaints handling service. The Patients Association

Child mental health 'faces overhaul'

Child mental health 'faces overhaul' Mental health services for children and young people in England need a "complete overhaul", the government will admit later. BBC News

See also:

• VIDEO: Child mental health 'needs overhaul' BBC News
• Putting public money into mental health is common sense  The Daily Telegraph

All teens should be vaccinated against rare strain of meningitis

All teens should be vaccinated against rare strain of meningitis "A vaccination for meningitis is to be offered to all 14-18 year-olds in England and Wales, after a spike in a rare strain of the disease," The Guardian reports. The strain – meningitis W (MenW) – is described as rare, but life-threatening.

There has been a year-on-year increase in the number of meningitis cases caused by MenW since 2009, and infection has been associated with particularly severe disease and high fatality rates in teenagers and young adults. The increasing trend looks set to continue unless action is taken, so the government’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the body that advises on vaccination for England and Wales, has advised that immunisation against MenW should be routinely offered to all 14 to 18 year-olds.

Care home residents struggle to get complaints heard

Care home residents struggle to get complaints heard Just one in five councils offer dedicated complaints service for social care and care home users. OnMedica

The biggest privatisation in NHS history: why we had to blow the whistle | Kate Godfrey

The biggest privatisation in NHS history: why we had to blow the whistle | Kate Godfrey Staffordshire was planning a £1.2bn sell-off of cancer and end-of-life care without proper patient consultation. But now a key leaked document reveals all.

I’m not a journalist, but as of this morning I know what it feels like to be part of the biggest leak in NHS history.

Published on openDemocracy, the memorandum of information for the £700m sell-off of Staffordshire cancer services is now available for the 800,000 directly affected and three million indirectly affected patients to read online.

Time and time again we have seen Staffordshire used as the proving ground for the 2012 Health and Social Care Act. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• NHS agrees largest-ever privatisation deal to tackle backlog The Guardian

'Hidden army' of pharmacists could solve lack of GPs crisis

'Hidden army' of pharmacists could solve lack of GPs crisis Patients visiting their GP surgery with long-term health problems such as asthma and high blood pressure could be given an appointment with an in-house pharmacist instead of a doctor, according to radical proposals to bring down waiting times. Under the new proposals, pharmacists would take on a greater role in running surgeries, and even treating patients. The Independent

See also:

• Pharmacists set to work in GP surgeries in radical move to ease pressures on general practice and improve patient care Royal College of General Practitioners
• English Board campaign promotes joined up working between pharmacists and GPs Royal Pharmaceutical Society
• Pharmacists and general practice: A practical and timely partof solving the primary care workload and workforce crisis (report) Royal Pharmaceutical Society and NHS Alliance
• 'Army of pharmacists' to help GPs BBC News
• VIDEO: Pharmacists 'should support GPs' BBC News
• GPs should employ army of pharmacists to ease pressure, says RCGP GP Online

Cuts to 'portage' services hit children with learning disabilities

Cuts to 'portage' services hit children with learning disabilities Vital services that help prepare children with learning disabilities for nursery and school have fallen victim to council austerity cuts. The Independent