Friday 4 September 2015

Nurse returns to Kettering General Hospital after helping people with Ebola in Sierra Leone

Nurse returns to Kettering General Hospital after helping people with Ebola in Sierra Leone A nurse from Kettering General Hospital has described the importance of the international aid effort to prevent the spread of Ebola. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Northampton war veteran with Alzheimer’s told he’s ‘too ill’ for care home ‘not ill enough’ for specialist care fund

Northampton war veteran with Alzheimer’s told he’s ‘too ill’ for care home ‘not ill enough’ for specialist care fund A war veteran from Northampton has been left with no nursing care despite having Alzheimer’s after a disagreement between social services and care home bosses. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

We need to step into the world of digital innovation

We need to step into the world of digital innovation The NHS mantra should be: “Every patient needs a barcode”.

That was the revolutionary thought outlined by Tim Kelsey, NHS England’s National Director for Patients and Information and Chair of the National Information Board, as he opened day two of the Health and Care Innovation Expo 2015 conference in Manchester.

He told delegates: “Hospitals across the country are spending more than one million pounds a year carting around records with staff driving around trucks of paper. Fax machines, treasury tags…these are entrails, the legacy of a dead world that we need to put behind us.

“Not so long ago I met a doctor who said that patients didn’t want computers and neither did he. We in the NHS have a moral responsibility to tell the story of why change is needed.

“If doctors have digital tools to remind them to get the right medication to the right patients at the right time, errors are halved. NHS England

See also:

Research and analysis: Improving patient flow: evidence to help local decision-makers

Research and analysis: Improving patient flow: evidence to help local decision-makers This article links findings from 3 Monitor publications offering evidence that may help local NHS decision-makers evaluate options for improving patient flows through local health and care systems.

Research and analysis: A&E delays: why did patients wait longer last winter?

Research and analysis: A&E delays: why did patients wait longer last winter?In quarter 3 2014/15, the performance of accident and emergency departments (A&E) against the 4-hour standard reached its lowest in 10 years.

Our detailed report shows that the target 4-hour emergency care indicator is a measure of the performance of the whole health and care system, not just emergency care departments; the findings show that across England the rest of the hospital struggled to cope with the increase in admissions because of very high occupancy rates. Our supporting documents include:

  • our findings at a glance
  • conclusions from 10 tested hypotheses
  • our econometric analysis
  • next steps
Monitor

See also:

New service to manage cyber security threats in health and care

New service to manage cyber security threats in health and care  A new national service will provide expert advice and guidance on cyber security threats and best practice to the NHS and other health and care organisations. CareCERT (Care Computing Emergency Response Team) will be run by experts at the Health and Social Care Information Centre and will aim to enhance cyber resilience across the health and social care system. Health and Social Care Information Centre

Care of dying 'still inconsistent'

Care of dying 'still inconsistent' Palliative care experts say more investment is needed to improve the care of dying patients. BBC News

See also:

Exclusive: Huge variation in CCG antibiotic spending per patient revealed

Exclusive: Huge variation in CCG antibiotic spending per patient revealed CCGs in some parts of England spend more than twice as much per registered patient on antibiotic treatments than their counterparts elsewhere in the country, GP Online can reveal.

Life-extending cancer drugs to be axed by NHS

Life-extending cancer drugs to be axed by NHS NHS England de-lists costly Kadcyla drug, among 16 others, in wake of ‘overspent’ Cancer Drugs Fund.

New and costly cancer drugs developed to extend the lives of patients are expected to be axed on Friday from an NHS list. Among the drugs NHS England is expected to “de-list” from the Cancer Drugs Fund is Kadcyla, which holds the record as the most expensive cancer drug brought to market, costing £90,000 annually per patient.

Kadcyla, made by Roche, was rejected from general NHS use by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), the body that assesses new medicines for their cost-effectiveness. Continue reading... The Guardian

Colchester hospital still falling short after two years, watchdog finds

Colchester hospital still falling short after two years, watchdog finds Care Quality Commission discovers disorganised care records and failings in medicine rounds at Essex hospital put in special measures in 2013

The standard of care given to patients at an NHS hospital that has been in special measures for nearly two years remains inadequate, a health watchdog has said.

At Colchester general hospital in Essex, between 80% and 100% of the nurses on some shifts are agency or temporary workers, a report on the latest inspection by the Care Quality Commission(CQC) reveals.
Continue reading... The Guardian