Thursday 8 October 2015

Northamptonshire County Council set for £17.5 million overspend and possible raid on reserves

Northamptonshire County Council set for £17.5 million overspend and possible raid on reserves A bid to slash £68 million from Northamptonshire County council’s budget this year could fall more than £36 million short according to latest figures, prompting fears the authority is in financial crisis. Northamptonshire Telegraph

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A report on the views of parents/carers, staff and volunteers on services for under 5s delivered by Children’s Centres and Library Plus in Northamptonshire

A report on the views of parents/carers, staff and volunteers on services for under 5s delivered by Children’s Centres and Library Plus in Northamptonshire Report on the views of parents, carers, staff and volunteers on what they think of the changes to libraries and children’s centre services in Northamptonshire and how services can be improved. Healthwatch Northamptonshire 

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Hospice nurse used hand cream to insert catheter into Northampton patient

Hospice nurse used hand cream to insert catheter into Northampton patient A nurse who worked at Cynthia Spencer Hospice in Northampton has been struck off for using hand cream to insert an out-of-date and unsterile catheter into a dying patient. Northamptonshire Chronicle and Echo

October ushers in more changes across NHS

October ushers in more changes across NHS Just six months after a raft of new arrangements for health and care services in England came into effect, 1 October saw the introduction of a few more.

Here we provide a comprehensive list of what they are and where to find further information and guidance. NHS Confederation

Waiting time prioritisation: Evidence from England

Waiting time prioritisation: Evidence from England "Following initiatives in other OECD countries, the English NHS and other healthcare systems faced with increasing excess demand for elective surgery should put more emphasis in encouraging further prioritisation on the list and consider formal policies to enforce this." Centre for Health Economics

Flu drug given out "indiscriminately"

Flu drug given out "indiscriminately" The antiviral drug Tamiflu was handed out "indiscriminately" during the last swine flu outbreak, a leading panel of UK scientists warns. BBC News

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First week with no new Ebola cases

First week with no new Ebola cases The three West African countries at the heart of the Ebola epidemic record their first week with no new cases since the outbreak began in March 2014. BBC News

Top Tory claims HALF of NHS beds are facing the axe fuelling fears of health privatisation

Top Tory claims HALF of NHS beds are facing the axe fuelling fears of health privatisation A senior Tory privately suggested that 50% of NHS beds could be axed. Lord Prior – now NHS Productivity Minister – emailed the McKinsey consultancy firm after it paid for him to tour private health facilities in the US. The Daily Mirror

NHS leadership in crisis as running hospitals becomes near-impossible

NHS leadership in crisis as running hospitals becomes near-impossible Health trusts are haemorrhaging chief executives under pressure to balance the books and deliver high-quality care

Three years ago Keith McNeil, a surgeon turned hospital boss in his native Australia, was headhunted to be the new chief executive of the NHS trust that runs Addenbrooke’s hospital in Cambridge, widely regarded as one of the jewels in the health service’s crown. Three years later, he has gone, a casualty of both his trust being put into special measures, after a Care Quality Commission report deemed it to be inadequate, and of its spiralling deficit, which is accumulating at £1.2m a week and expected to reach £64m by the end of the year.

In the statement announcing his sudden departure on 14 September, McNeil said: “This has been a very difficult decision … It is a matter of public record that we face a number of very serious challenges here in Cambridge, including a growing financial deficit, and I feel the time is right to have new leadership in place.” Jane Ramsey, the trust chair, noted that “he has shown great leadership qualities”. But they were not enough to arrest a serious decline in the hospital’s performance over the last year.

They were excellent, values-based leaders, working in tough times … The burden is too heavy, even for superwoman or man Continue reading... The Guardian

What do the government's devolution plans mean for a national health service?

What do the government's devolution plans mean for a national health service? The NHS and local government are being transformed at pace, and we should be asking serious questions about this silent revolution

We thought we had a political narrative on the shape of the NHS. David Cameron famously slams “pointless reorganisations” in 2011 but foolishly allows Andrew Lansley to run amok with his Health and Social Care Act in 2012. Jeremy Hunt is then brought in to steady the ship – Lansley having been deemed politically toxic – and we all settle down to making the 2012 structures work as best we can. Yet now we have a new kid on the block – George Osborne, chancellor of the exchequer – shaking up the NHS in revolutionary ways and with no scrutiny or transparency. What’s going on? Continue reading... the Guardian

Health apps used by NHS staff putting highly sensitive and confidential patient data at risk, new report warns

Health apps used by NHS staff putting highly sensitive and confidential patient data at risk, new report warns Health serivce criticised for 'failing to keep pace with advances in digital technology and to take advantage of online tools and e-health' after researchers found doctors and nurses were sharing information via their unsecured smartphones. The Independent

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Home is not always the best place to die, says end-of-life care expert

Home is not always the best place to die, says end-of-life care expert Dr Kristian Pollock says more 'attention and resources' should be spent on end-of-life care in other locations. The Independent

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U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective: Spending, Use of Services, Prices, and Health in 13 Countries

U.S. Health Care from a Global Perspective: Spending, Use of Services, Prices, and Health in 13 Countries This analysis draws upon data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and other cross-national analyses to compare health care spending, supply, utilization, prices, and health outcomes across 13 high-income countries. The Commonwealth Fund