Mix meditation, yoga and NHS services and get … wellbeing

Mix meditation, yoga and NHS services and get … wellbeing The NHS, local council and university in Northamptonshire have come together to launch a pioneering new company that will prioritise preventive healthcare services

“How many people join a gym in the new year and don’t use it? What if that money went into public health rather than a private company?” These are the questions Akeen Ali, public health physician and strategist at Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, is asking himself.

Not that Ali doesn’t want people to join a gym and use it. He is part of the core team launching Northamptonshire’s Wellbeing Company, a new community interest company (CIC) created by the trust, Northamptonshire county council and Northamptonshire University. Continue reading... The Guardian

GPs shunning Northamptonshire because they do not want to live in the county, NHS says

GPs shunning Northamptonshire because they do not want to live in the county, NHS says GP numbers are falling in Northamptonshire partly because people do not want to live in the county, the NHS has said. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Discrimination and NHS staff: stepping bravely into the grey

Discrimination and NHS staff: stepping bravely into the grey Sadly, but perhaps unsurprisingly, as our recent report for NHS England discusses, a significant number of NHS staff still experience discrimination as a result of being gay, or Muslim, or disabled, or black African.

Our report is based on data in the 2014 NHS Staff Survey. Data is, of course, important, in highlighting the issues but only tells part of the story. For me, what is missing is the conversation, the human part of the story: the real-life experience of the hospital porter, the nurse, the doctor, the patient or carer who is experiencing discrimination. The King's Fund

See also:

• Making the difference: diversity and inclusion in the NHS The King's Fund

Personal budgets as an integral form of NHS care: a discussion paper

Personal budgets as an integral form of NHS care: a discussion paper This paper argues that the use of personal budgets in health care supports the values of the NHS. It asserts that personal budgets in health offer a more targeted form of support that is available free at the point of use, according to need, and via public funds. The paper consolidates the view the idea that personal budgets can be implemented in a way that promotes community ties, rather than individualism and privatisation of health and social care and that they have the potential to improve experience and outcomes for individuals, promoting equity of access to support that can change lives. National Voices

Hospital staffing 'affects death rates'

Hospital staffing 'affects death rates' Fewer patients die after emergency surgery in hospitals that have more doctors and nurses, a study suggests. BBC News

See also:

• Mortality of emergency general surgical patients and associations with hospital structures and processes British Journal of Anaesthesia (Open Athens password required) 
• Shortage of NHS nurses 'kills hundreds of patients after emergency surgery' The Daily Mail

Stafford trust fined over patient deaths

Stafford trust fined over patient deaths The NHS trust that ran Stafford Hospital is fined £500,000 for "basic" blunders linked to the deaths of four patients, a court hears. BBC News

See also:

• Mid Staffs scandal: NHS trust fined £500,000 for 'basic' blunders The Guardian

GPs could face 'collapse' as social care cuts drive up workload

GPs could face 'collapse' as social care cuts drive up workload General practice could face a 'sudden and cataclysmic collapse' as cuts to social care funding increase pressure on primary care, according to one of London's top GPs. GP Online

Hospitals to receive £1.8bn bailout to tackle soaring deficits

Hospitals to receive £1.8bn bailout to tackle soaring deficits New money makes up just under half the £3.8bn NHS funding increase pledged by the Government for next year. The Independent

See also:

• News story: Hospitals get £1.8 billion for sustainability and transformation Department of Health

Families doubt plans to close NHS long-stay units will improve care

Families doubt plans to close NHS long-stay units will improve care People with learning disabilities need to be able to challenge inpatient admissions and discrimination, say campaigners.

It is a year since Claire Dyer’s family successfully campaigned for her release from a medium secure hospital unit in Brighton, a 500 mile, 10-hour round trip from her Swansea home. After a 96,000-signature petition, the local health board reversed its decision and the autistic 21-year-old was granted bespoke, home-based support.

Commissioners need to meet people and their families and the result will be better understanding of people's needs. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• ‘We must stop learning disabled people being dumped in waste bins of life’ The Guardian

What chance do care leavers stand, with support services being shredded?| Lola Okolosie

What chance do care leavers stand, with support services being shredded?| Lola Okolosie The cuts to mental health services for children leaving care is immoral and economically short sighted. This week’s parliamentary inquiry must realise this.

Imagine this: as a baby your cries were regularly ignored and you entered the world addicted to drugs. Or this: as a toddler you spent lots of time crouched in a corner avoiding the blows directed at your mother.

Imagine that you were hardly ever washed, and your home was filthy. You never knew when you would be fed and your primary carer was your older sister, herself only seven. That was your day-to-day reality until you were taken into care.

It's simple: investing in mental health services for children in care will save society money further down the line Continue reading... The Guardian

Only a Royal Commission will get us talking sensibly about the NHS

Only a Royal Commission will get us talking sensibly about the NHS The public view is shifting, but politicians are afraid to think big on financing the health service. The Daily Telegraph