Wednesday 18 May 2016

Education, education, mental health: supporting secondary schools to play a central role in early intervention mental health services

Education, education, mental health: supporting secondary schools to play a central role in early intervention mental health services This report argues that early intervention mental health for children and young people needs to be 'rejuvenated' and that secondary schools should play a central role in this, complementing wider community and NHS provision. It identifies variation in the availability and quality of school-based early intervention provision and highlights the need for high-level national strategic leadership on the part of the government in leading the change on this. Institute for Public Policy Research

Stroke survivors ‘abandoned’ after treatment

Stroke survivors ‘abandoned’ after treatment Almost half (45%) of stroke survivors in England feel abandoned when they leave hospital, according to new figures published by the Stroke Association

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Perinatal Mortality Surveillance Report for 2014 Births

Perinatal Mortality Surveillance Report for 2014 Births There has been slight fall in the rates of stillbirths and neonatal deaths in the UK compared with rates in 2013 which continues the downward trend in rates from 2003 onwards. However, the overall trend masks variations in rates across the UK. MBRRACE-UK

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'Hidden army' of carers in their 80s

'Hidden army' of carers in their 80s The number of people in their 80s or older who are relied on as carers has rocketed in the last seven years, according to a charity. BBC News

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Abortion rates 'fairly constant'

Abortion rates 'fairly constant' Department of Health figures suggest abortion rates for England and Wales have remained "fairly constant", with 184,571 abortions in 2015. BBC News

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'Road rage' trust to review 10 killings

'Road rage' trust to review 10 killings Ten killings involving patients of a mental health trust will be reviewed after the conviction of a man who stabbed a motorist to death. BBC News

Poor CQC ratings linked to poor practice funding

Poor CQC ratings linked to poor practice funding NHS England must ensure that GP practices receive an uplift in funding that results in every practice in England getting the same high level of support, the BMA has insisted after research revealed a strong link between practices’ level of funding and their Care Quality Commission (CQC) ratings. It said it was wrong to unfairly judge practices when they are not being properly resourced to provide good patient care. OnMedica

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Deal on junior doctors' contracts 'nearly there' after progress in talks

Deal on junior doctors' contracts 'nearly there' after progress in talks Outline of revised contract expected to be published, which will be put to ballot of BMA members

Hopes are rising that the bitter NHS junior doctors dispute could soon be over, with an announcement expexted on Wednesday that peace talks have produced a compromise deal.


The Department of Health and British Medical Association believe that after what both privately describe as positive negotiations in the last 10 days, the outline of a revised contract for junior doctors in England will be published. Continue reading... The Guardian

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Tackling underfunding in children’s mental health services

Tackling underfunding in children’s mental health services The government has promised a national network of crisis and home-treatment teams to cope with increasing demand for services

Ask anyone involved with children’s mental health services what the biggest problem facing them is, and they will say one of two things: funding and demand. “There is a historic legacy of underfunding and neglect,” says Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Claire Tyler, chair of the recent commission set up to look at how to improve mental health services for children and young people. There is also an unprecedented level of need: Wales alone witnessed a 100% increase in demand for child and adolescent mental health services between 2010 and 2014.

But the previous coalition and current Conservative governments have put a focus on improving services. In the March 2015 budget, just before the general election, the government promised an extra £250m a year for five years to mental health services for young people, pregnant women and new mothers. In February, the government endorsed the key targets for children and young people’s services proposed by the independent Mental Health Taskforce. These include a maximum two-week referral for a child or adolescent following their first psychotic episode, and the development of a national network of crisis and home-treatment teams which will offer young people intensive support at home rather than in hospital. It is hoped that these moves will help support at least 70,000 more young people a year with mental health issues by 2020-21. Continue reading... The Guardian

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The cost of mental illness

The cost of mental illness With mental illness costing the UK economy £100bn a year, councils need to ensure mental health receives the same priority and funding as physical health

Mental illness is estimated to cost the UK economy as much as £100bn a year in terms of healthcare, lost jobs, unemployment benefits, homelessness support, police time and prisoner places.

Councils have a vital role in tackling the contributory factors to poor mental health, such as poverty, isolation and stigma, and in improving treatment through early intervention and peer support. Since 2012, local authorities have hosted health and wellbeing boards to coordinate NHS and council services. Their potential to help is huge but their effectiveness has been called into question. Continue reading... The Guardian

How A&E could offer round-the-clock support to mental health patients

How A&E could offer round-the-clock support to mental health patients Mental health liaison teams in every emergency department could help people in crisis and save the NHS money

If you are facing a mental health crisis, sitting in a busy accident and emergency department is unlikely to be the best place for you to be. People with mental health issues are three times as likely to attend A&E and almost five times as likely to be admitted as an emergency. But as theCare Quality Commission reported last year, their experience is not always a positive one, with many A&E departments just not geared up to offer the empathic care they need.

In February, the independent Mental Health Taskforce recommended that 24/7 mental health liaison teams – currently present in only a minority of A&E departments in England – should be rolled out across the country so that people in crisis can get specialised help at A&E when they need it. Continue reading... The Guardian

Cancer patients are being given false hope by juice cleanses and detoxes, leading oncologist claims

Cancer patients are being given false hope by juice cleanses and detoxes, leading oncologist claims Professor Karol Sikora, the founder of Cancer Partners UK, says there is no such thing as a 'magic diet' or evidence that restrictive diets can help beat cancer. The Daily Mail

The couple being charged £12,000 a year by Bupa for health insurance

The couple being charged £12,000 a year by Bupa for health insurance Giant health cover firms are playing on people's fears that it might be tricky to get a deal with another provider if they have suffered a medical emergency and had to make a claim. The Daily Mail

Gardening should be prescribed on the NHS, report says

Gardening should be prescribed on the NHS, report says Gardening enthusiasts have long sung the praises of digging and weeding as a way to keep fit and healthy.

A new reports titled Gardens and Health claims that gardening should be recommended by doctors for people showing early signs of dementia and heart disease.

The NHS should capitalise on Britain’s “love affair with gardening”, the King’s Fund think-tank said, as its authors called on health boards to set up new horticultural projects for patients. The Daily Telegraph

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