Thursday 8 December 2016

Specialist dementia care village in Northampton will offer residents a cinema, gym and bar if given green-light

Specialist dementia care village in Northampton will offer residents a cinema, gym and bar if given green-light A specialist dementia care village playing host to around 300 flats in Northampton is set to go ahead on the Wootton Hall site in 2018. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

What have we learnt about keeping people safer?

What have we learnt about keeping people safer? Despite the availability of well-evidenced guidance and the best intentions of health and social care staff, there is still an ‘implementation gap’ between what we want to do to keep patients and service users safe and what actually happens in practice. We need to have a better understanding of what sustains this gap and what we can do to narrow it. The King's Fund

Guidance: Improving the mental health of children and young people

Guidance: Improving the mental health of children and young people These reports describe the importance of mental health and wellbeing among children and young people and the case for investment in mental health. They also summarise the evidence of what works to improve mental health among children and young people in order to inform local transformation of services. Public Health England

The frontline battle: an inquiry into the impact of alcohol on emergency services

The frontline battle: an inquiry into the impact of alcohol on emergency services The report reveals the full extent of the pressures and dangers that alcohol related problems place on emergency services. It discusses the impact on staff, the impact on service provisions and the effect on time and resources. It makes recommendations to reduce the demand on emergency services including greater partnership working, price limits on alcohol and greater public education on alcohol harm. All-Party Parliamentary Group on Alcohol Harm

Latest experimental statistics about female genital mutilation published

Latest experimental statistics about female genital mutilation published New official figures published today provide experimental statistics on female genital mutilation (FGM) in England, from July 2016 to September 2016. NHS Digital

Midwife units see one in four mums transferred by ambulance to hospital

Midwife units see one in four mums transferred by ambulance to hospital One in four women are transferred from midwife-led units to traditional labour wards after facing complications when giving birth, a BBC investigation finds. BBC News

Some psychosis cases an 'immune disorder'

Some psychosis cases an 'immune disorder' Some patients sectioned with psychotic conditions, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, may actually have a treatable immune disorder, say Oxford University scientists.

A study in the Lancet Psychiatry suggests up to one in 11 cases of psychosis may involve antibodies attacking parts of the brain.

Blood samples were taken from 228 people in a UK-wide trial.

The finding is controversial, but opens up a new way of treating patients. BBC News

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Exclusive: GP uses covert recording of CQC inspection to challenge rating

Exclusive: GP uses covert recording of CQC inspection to challenge rating A single-handed GP who covertly made audio and video recordings of his CQC inspection is using them as evidence to challenge the 'inadequate' rating given to his practice. GP Online

Pfizer fined a record £84.2m for overcharging

Pfizer fined a record £84.2m for overcharging Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has been fined a record £84.2 million for charging the NHS “excessive and unfair prices”.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) imposed the fine, along with a £5.2 million fine on the distributor Flynn Pharma, after finding each broke competition law “by charging excessive and unfair prices in the UK” for the anti-epilepsy drug phenytoin sodium capsules.

The CMA has ordered the companies to reduce their prices, but Pfizer says it will appeal the decision. OnMedica

Sharp rise in 'trolley waits' for hospital beds in England

Sharp rise in 'trolley waits' for hospital beds in England Figures show 473,453 patients waited more than four hours for a hospital bed - a fivefold increase since 2010-11

There has been a sharp rise in “trolley waits” – the length of time people wait for a hospital bed in England after being admitted in an emergency, figures show.

Data analysed by the BBC shows 473,453 patients waited more than four hours between October 2015 and September 2016 – almost a fivefold increase since 2010-11. Continue reading... The Guardian

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NHS whistleblowers 'gagged and blacklisted', says petition group

NHS whistleblowers 'gagged and blacklisted', says petition group Doctors, staff and patients criticise Care Quality Commission and call for radical change in health service regulation

NHS whistleblowers face being “fired, gagged and blacklisted” while disclosures go uninvestigated owing to the healthcare regulator’s lack of powers and resources, a group of doctors, staff and patients has warned.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) was criticised for being “low value” by the group, which has called for radical change in how the health service is regulated. Continue reading... The Guardian

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Patients waiting week longer to see consultant than four years ago experts warn

Patients waiting week longer to see consultant than four years ago experts warn Overall, the typical waiting time for patients to start NHS treatment has increased by just over a week, from 5.5 weeks in April 2012 to 6.6 weeks in April 2016, according to new figures. The Daily Mail

Local authorities in England spend less than 1% of public health budget on mental health

Local authorities in England spend less than 1% of public health budget on mental health Less than one per cent of local authorities' public health budget is spent on mental health problems, an the figure is shrinking annually, according to new data obtained by the charity Mind. The Daily Mail

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