Assessing demand and supply in general practice

Assessing demand and supply in general practice It seems that hardly a week goes by without a new story in the press about general practice under pressure. Anecdotal evidence is that people are finding it increasingly difficult to get GP appointments. This is backed up, to an extent, by the most recent national patient survey, which suggests that general practice is becoming so pressured it cannot meet demand.

So what is causing this pressure on general practice? How many consultations are carried out each week? Do people have more complicated health issues? Or are people more demanding? The King's Fund

Care Act first-phase reforms and local government new burdens

Care Act first-phase reforms and local government new burdens The Department of Health has taken a collaborative approach to the first phase of the Care Act, working with local authorities to plan its implementation. However, this report raises concerns that carers and the people they care for may not get the services they need because of continuing reductions to local authority budgets and demand for care being so uncertain. House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts

Female Genital Mutilation: Quarterly statistics published

Female Genital Mutilation: Quarterly statistics published Experimental statistics showing the number of women and girls identified by the NHS in England as having Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), have been published. Health and Social Care Information Centre

See also:

• Female genital mutilation victims are still suffering in silence The Daily Mail

Patients set to book 10m GP appointments online this year

Patients set to book 10m GP appointments online this year Patients are set to arrange 10m appointments with their GPs and order 15m prescriptions online by the end of this financial year, NHS England has revealed. GP Online

See also:

• Patients will arrange 10 million GP appointments and order 15 million repeat prescriptions online this year NHS England

Stroke patients still not getting care they need

Stroke patients still not getting care they need Stroke care has improved steadily in some respects, and age discrimination has been vastly reduced, but patients are still missing out on important interventions and assessments on hospital admission so further improvements are needed, according to the latest official audit. OnMedica

OECD analyst says Britons 'aren't healthy enough to work into their late 60s'

OECD analyst says Britons 'aren't healthy enough to work into their late 60s' Mark Pearson, a senior analyst at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), claimed that raising the UK state pension age to 68 may ‘not be viable’ unless public health is improved. The Daily Mail

Better solutions needed to support older people leaving hospital care

Better solutions needed to support older people leaving hospital care Many older adults do not have a strong family network to fall back on after they are discharged from hospital

In last week’s autumn statement, George Osborne announced that councils across Britain will be allowed to increase council tax by up to 2% to fund adult social care, as well as a top up of £1.5bn to the Better Care Fund. This funding for the struggling care sector is, of course, very welcome.

However, the obvious fact remains that vast numbers of older people with non-critical needs won’t qualify for formal care but will still need support after a hospital stay. The situation we face is there simply isn't sufficient provision of care to go around when older people leave hospital. Continue reading... The Guardian

Woman, 50, who won legal fight to refuse life-saving dialysis after losing her 'sparkle' dies

Woman, 50, who won legal fight to refuse life-saving dialysis after losing her 'sparkle' dies Mother of three who refused treatment as she did not want to grow old dies as daughter says she will 'raise a glass' to 'the life, soul and sparkle of any party'. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Woman who lost 'sparkle' dies BBC News
• Socialite who lost her 'sparkle' has the right to die, court rules The Independent

Hospitals with more overseas nurses get worse rated

Hospitals with more overseas nurses get worse rated Hospitals with a high proportion of nurses who trained abroad fare far worse in patient ratings, a major study finds, with concerns raised about difficulties understanding staff. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Patient satisfaction and non-UK educated nurses: a cross-sectional observational study of English National Health Service Hospitals BMJ Open
• Hospital patients say they feel happier with British NHS nurses The Daily Mail
• Patients less happy with foreign-educated nurses, says report The Independent