Thursday 12 January 2017

Cover needed as KGH’s acting chief executive announces she’s leaving

Cover needed as KGH’s acting chief executive announces she’s leaving Hospital bosses are working on arrangements for when the acting chief executive leaves in March. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Tackling wasteful spending on health

Tackling wasteful spending on health This report finds that across OECD countries a significant share of health care system spending and activities are wasteful at best, and harm our health at worst and that one in ten patients in OECD countries is unnecessarily harmed at the point of care. It also finds that more than 10 per cent of hospital expenditure is spent on correcting preventable medical mistakes or infections that people catch in hospitals. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Swimming together or sinking alone: health, care and the art of systems leadership

Swimming together or sinking alone: health, care and the art of systems leadership This report is based on interviews with senior leaders in health and local government on what is happening as managers grapple with the Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) process. It aims to help leaders understand the values, culture and skills they need to survive and thrive as the NHS tries to change from organisations working in silos to local health and care networks focused on the needs of patients. Institute of Healthcare Management

NHS England chief contradicts May over spending

NHS England chief contradicts May over spending The chief executive of NHS England has contradicted government claims that the health service is getting more funding than it asked for.

Simon Stevens told MPs this was "stretching it" and there were "clearly substantial funding pressures".

And, in clashes with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, the PM called claims of a "humanitarian crisis" in the NHS "irresponsible" and "overblown".

But Mr Corbyn said Theresa May was "in denial" over the situation.

There have been several warnings in recent days about the pressure on the health service in England. BBC News

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Retired British expats 'outstrip European pensioners using NHS'

Retired British expats 'outstrip European pensioners using NHS' Many more expat UK pensioners rely on European healthcare under reciprocal healthcare agreements than UK-based European pensioners rely on the NHS.

While 70,000 retired Brits use Spain's health system, 81 Spanish pensioners are registered as covered by the NHS.

Across the European Economic Area (EEA) there are 145,000 UK expat pensioners registered, compared with 4,000 EEA pensioners registered to use the NHS.

The figures were obtained after a BBC Freedom of Information request. BBC News

Mental health care: 'The system is broken'

Mental health care: 'The system is broken' Theresa May has unveiled plans to do more to help those, particularly young people, with mental health conditions.

In her speech at the Charity Commission, the prime minister announced a number of pledges including training at every secondary school, training for employers and organisations, and the appointment of a mental health campaigner.

Here, people have been sharing their experiences of mental health services. BBC News

Everyone the Conservative government has blamed for NHS crisis

Everyone the Conservative government has blamed for NHS crisis Theresa May has defended the Government’s handling of NHS pressures in response to doctors' warnings of a dangerous crisis in the health service.

The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) joined the British Medical Association and other medical authorities to demand an urgent boost to health and social care funding after the British Red Cross warned of a “humanitarian crisis” in NHS hospitals.

But the Prime Minister and Jeremy Hunt have said health funding is already at record levels and have instead suggested steps be taken to reform the NHS – blaming a number of different factors for the problems faced by the service. The Independent

More than 20 NHS hospitals on 'black alert’ amid reports of patients left in ambulances

More than 20 NHS hospitals on 'black alert’ amid reports of patients left in ambulances Overcrowding in NHS hospitals has become so severe that last week more than 20 trusts issued ‘black alerts’, meaning they are unable to guarantee life-saving emergency care.

The top-level alert, considered a “serious incident” by NHS England, can result in scheduled operations being cancelled and patients being diverted to other hospitals as overflowing A&E departments struggle to cope. The Independent

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NHS hospitals in England face £322m tax bill increase from April

NHS hospitals in England face £322m tax bill increase from April Changes to business rates system mean NHS trusts face 21% rise in property tax bill over next five years – but some are fighting for charitable exemption

Cash-strapped hospitals in England face a £322m tax rise from April which threatens to increase the strain on the under-pressure NHS.

Changes to the business rates system mean that the 1,249 NHS hospitals liable for the property tax will see their bill increase by 21% over the next five years, according to research conducted for the Guardian by property consultant CVS. Continue reading... The Guardian

Care home closures set to rise as funding crisis bites

Care home closures set to rise as funding crisis bites Insolvencies among care home operators are at a record high and likely to continue without government action

Care home operators, trade unions and charities have been telling Theresa May for months that the care home industry is in crisis and needs help.

Last week, May got her sternest warning yet – the chairs of three influential Commons committees urged the prime minister to deal with the “immense challenge” of paying for health and social care in the future. Continue reading... The Guardian

BBC doc shows NHS doctors forced to decide between saving cancer patient or pensioner

BBC doc shows NHS doctors forced to decide between saving cancer patient or pensioner A new BBC2 documentary revealing the true crisis the NHS is currently in has left viewers heartbroken.

Doctors were forced to decide between saving a cancer patient or a pensioner bleeding to death during the first episode of Hospital last night.

A woman, known only as Janice, was rushed to the A&E department at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington after suffering from a ruptured blood vessel.

But hospital staff had already prepared Simon, who suffers from cancer in his oesophagus, for life-saving surgery. The Daily Mail

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If you want to kill yourself, the NHS won't stop you. A kinder system could save lives

If you want to kill yourself, the NHS won't stop you. A kinder system could save lives In Theresa May’s speech on Monday, she announced her intention to improve mental health provision and reduce the number of people who die by suicide. She said that there will be more focus on community care.

In the NHS, this is currently provided by crisis resolution and home treatment teams. But too many people are dying under its care: indeed, three times as many as in psychiatric hospitals, according to a national inquiry.

I run a charity which also provides crisis care. So far, no client has died under our care – so we know it is possible to achieve this in a non-residential setting. We have done this with very limited funds; I set up the Suicide Crisis Centre in Cheltenham after experiencing suicidal crisis myself in 2012, and finding that the NHS's approach and methods did not work for me. The Daily Telegraph

NHS to recruit hundreds of GPs from Poland, Lithuania and Greece

NHS to recruit hundreds of GPs from Poland, Lithuania and Greece The health service is to recruit hundreds of GPs from countries such as Poland, Lithuania, Greece with promises of £90,000 salaries and “generous relocation packages” in a bid to tackle a spiralling NHS crisis.

The new scheme run by NHS England will see doctors from across the EU undergoing 12 weeks training in Poland before they start work in Britain.

Health officials are trawling EU countries for medical staff in a bid to plug shortages of family doctors, amid warnings that long waits to see GPs are fuelling the Accident & Emergency (A&E) crisis.

Medics from Croatia, Lithuania, Greece, Spain and Poland have now been recruited, as part of plans which aim to bring 500 doctors in from the EU ahead of Brexit. The Daily Telegraph

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