Inclusion and diversity in the NHS: let’s be bigger and bolder

Inclusion and diversity in the NHS: let’s be bigger and bolder This week marks NHS Employers’ Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Week. In the past year, the NHS has started to make progress in this area, particularly in terms of raising awareness – a crucial first step. However, measuring diversity and setting quotas are not ends in themselves; they are part of the progression towards inclusive, successful organisations and cultures of high-quality care.

There is increasing evidence that a diverse, inclusive workforce can bring economic and strategic advantages. McKinsey’s Diversity matters report makes the case that diversity is business-critical and no longer about piecemeal policies, one-off interventions and well-intentioned recruitment drives. Diverse companies, it says, are ‘better able to win top talent, improve their customer experience, improve employee satisfaction and decision-making, leading to a virtuous cycle on increasing returns'.

The election, the result - but what does the future hold for integrated services?

The election, the result - but what does the future hold for integrated services? Integration means health and social care working as one. We have to treat them as two parts of the same whole, giving them equal consideration, and equally fair funding too, says Izzi Seccombe. The Health Foundation

A glazier or a window breaker?

A glazier or a window breaker? A glazier or a window breaker – which approach do we need from our Secretary of State for Health over the next five years? A bit of both, says Jennifer Dixon. The Health Foundation

International recruitment - quick guides for employers

International recruitment - quick guides for employers A range of quick guides on the subject of international recruitment developed by NHS Employers

Peer support: what is it and does it work?

Peer support: what is it and does it work? This review found evidence that peer support can help people feel more knowledgeable, confident and happy, and less isolated and alone. It also showed that there is a limited understanding of the different forms of peer support, how best to deliver support and the forms of training and infrastructure to get the most impact from it so concludes that further evidence is needed to fully understand the impact it has on the health service and individuals with long-term health conditions. National Voices

Do patients choose hospitals that improve their health?

Do patients choose hospitals that improve their health? Patients in the English NHS can choose which hospital to attend for planned surgery. Among other things, their choice depends on the quality of care that each hospital provides. But the existing information on hospital quality is often limited and focuses only on the negative experience of patients, for example how many patients died after surgery or were readmitted for unplanned care. Patients increasingly have access to better information on hospital quality. The NHS has recently begun to publish information on improvements in health as reported by patients themselves. This paper tests whether hip replacement patients in England are more likely to attend a hospital that achieves larger improvements in their patients’ health. It finds that health improvements are more important for the choice of hospital than readmission or mortality rates. However, patients’ reaction to quality information is generally limited: even for large changes in quality patients would only be willing to travel few kilometres more. Centre for Health Economics

Could testing grip strength predict heart disease risk?

Could testing grip strength predict heart disease risk? "Poor grip can signal chances of major illness or premature death," the Mail Online reports. An international study has provided evidence that assessing grip strength could help identify people who were at higher risk of cardiovascular incidents such as a heart attack.

The study authors wanted to see whether muscle strength, measured by grip, can predict the chances of getting a range of illnesses, and of dying, in high-, medium- and low-income countries. To find out, they tested 142,861 people across 17 countries and tracked what happened to them over the course of four years. The study found that the chances of dying during this period were higher for people with weaker grips, as were the chances of having a heart attack or stroke.

The grip test predicted death from any cause better than systolic blood pressure did, but the blood pressure test was better at predicting whether someone would have a heart attack or stroke.

Grip tests may be a quick way of assessing someone's chances of having cardiovascular disease, or dying from it, but the study doesn't tell us whether muscle weakness causes illness, or the other way around.

VIDEO: 'Simple shaving cut could kill you'

VIDEO: 'Simple shaving cut could kill you' Economist Jim O'Neill, the head of a UK government-appointed team looking at the impact of superbugs, tells Victoria Derbyshire the antibiotics crisis could cost millions of lives. BBC News

See also:

• Superbugs could kill 10m people a YEAR without new antibiotics costing £25bn The Daily Mail

More cities to control health budgets

More cities to control health budgets Chancellor George Osborne has opened the way for more big cities to take control of local healthcare budgets. E-Health Insider

GPs service put into special measures over patient safety concerns

GPs service put into special measures over patient safety concerns The Leicester City, Leicestershire and Rutland out-of-hours service was rated 'inadequate' by the Care Quality Commission. Inspectors raised concers over patient safety, waiting times and inadequate equipment. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Foundation trust in emergency takeover of GP practices hit by financial problems GP Online

'The tools to cope': Pioneering treatment at South London and Maudsley NHS trust turns lives around

'The tools to cope': Pioneering treatment at South London and Maudsley NHS trust turns lives around
The trust is one of two areas offering talking therapy to people with severe mental illness; it has seen waiting times cut while access to treatment has increased dramatically

Rosemary first started suffering from severe depression after the birth of her daughter and was experiencing several panic attacks a day.

It was the start of a mental illness that lasted more than 20 years. Despite attempting to get professional help, she felt nobody was really listening and couldn't escape from a destructive cycle of mood swings, paranoia and hallucinations. Continue reading... The Guardian

Boy who suffered brain damage due to Harrogate hospital failings to get £10m

Boy who suffered brain damage due to Harrogate hospital failings to get £10m Kit van Berckel suffered significant brain injury at his birth in 2008 after medical staff failed to recognise that he was in distress

A six-year-old boy with cerebral palsy is to receive a £10m care and rehabilitation package from Harrogate hospital NHS trust after it admitted failing to provide proper care during his birth that resulted in devastating neurological injuries.

Kit van Berckel, from Harrogate, north Yorkshire, was born without a heartbeat and needed resuscitating after medical staff failed to recognise that he was in distress for a prolonged period of time when his mother, Joanna, was admitted to hospital on 31 May 2008, 10 days over her due date. Continue reading... The Guardian

Private healthcare companies accused of using tax relief to undercut the NHS

Private healthcare companies accused of using tax relief to undercut the NHS Private healthcare companies have been accused of getting unfair tax relief when competing with the NHS to provide treatments such as chemotherapy for patients at home. The Independent

Single mothers more likely to suffer ill health, research finds

Single mothers more likely to suffer ill health, research finds Single mothers in England were found to be more likely to suffer poor health later on in life in an international study of women over 50. The Independent

See also:

• Single mothers in England more likely to suffer ill health because their families 'do not support them' The Daily Telegraph