Friday 20 October 2017

Northampton A&E swamped by over 400 patients in 'busiest day ever'

Northampton A&E swamped by over 400 patients in 'busiest day ever' Northampton General Hospital A&E saw its "busiest day ever" this week with over 400 patients asking for help in a single day.

The hospital has been running at the highest level of escalation - OPEL 4, previously known as "black alert" - for most of the week, meaning the lack of free beds might send patients out of town for treatment.

The department also saw its second busiest day ever this week, but hospital officials say they were able to deal with the record numbers and managed to see four-out-of-five patients within four hours.

Northampton General Hospital A&E saw 402 patients on Monday and 355 on Tuesday. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Northamptonshire people urged to take up flu vaccine offer

Northamptonshire people urged to take up flu vaccine offer People in Northamptonshire who are the most vulnerable to flu are being urged to protect themselves and their family this winter by having a vaccination.

Flu is a highly contagious viral infection that anyone can catch and is most common over the winter period.

Getting the flu jab or nasal spray is one of the most effective ways to reduce potential harm from the seasonal flu virus.

The vaccination is offered for free to those at increased risk from the effects of flu, including: children aged two to eight, people aged 65 and over, pregnant women, people with long-term health conditions, carers and front-line health and social care workers. Northamptonshire Telegraph

How does the NHS work? A never-ending story

How does the NHS work? A never-ending story ‘Nobody knew that health care could be so complicated.’ So said Donald Trump earlier this year as he set out to overhaul Barack Obama’s signature health care policy, the Affordable Care Act.

It may have come as a surprise to the US President, but those working in health policy across the globe have long been aware of the complexities of providing health care for millions of people in a way that is efficient, safe and equitable. The King's Fund

Policy paper: Personalised health and care 2020: service user vision

Policy paper: Personalised health and care 2020: service user vision How the government and national health and care organisations aim to use information technology within current programmes, to improve health and social care services in England. Department of Health

Care home bed provision and potential end of life care need in people aged 75 or older in England

Care home bed provision and potential end of life care need in people aged 75 or older in England This briefing presents data that describes the availability of residential and nursing home places together with the older population and the number of deaths. National End of Life Care Intelligence Network

Literature review: the economic costs of lung disease and the cost effectiveness of policy and service interventions

Literature review: the economic costs of lung disease and the cost effectiveness of policy and service interventions This report, conducted by York Health Economics Consortium on behalf of the British Lung Foundation and British Thoracic Society, identifies published evidence on the economic costs of lung disease and the cost-effectiveness of different NHS activities, programmes and campaigns to combat lung problems.

Pollution linked to one in six deaths

Pollution linked to one in six deaths Pollution has been linked to nine million deaths worldwide in 2015, a report in The Lancet has found.

Almost all of these deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries, where pollution could account for up to a quarter of deaths. Bangladesh and Somalia were the worst affected.

Air pollution had the biggest impact, accounting for two-thirds of deaths from pollution.

Brunei and Sweden had the lowest numbers of pollution-related deaths.

Most of these deaths were caused by non-infectious diseases linked to pollution, such as heart disease, stroke and lung cancer. BBC News

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'Handful of changes' make cancer

'Handful of changes' make cancer British scientists have worked out how many changes it takes to transform a healthy cell into a cancer.

The team, at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, showed the answer was a tiny handful, between one and 10 mutations depending on the type of tumour.

It has been one of the most hotly debated issues in cancer science for decades.

The findings, published in the journal Cell, could improve treatment for patients. BBC News

Government warned of 'dangerous blind spot' over violent attacks on NHS staff

Government warned of 'dangerous blind spot' over violent attacks on NHS staff The Government has been accused of creating a “dangerous blind spot” over the scale of attacks on NHS staff after it revealed it no longer collects information on hospital assaults.

Ministers admitted for the first time that they will rely on an optional staff survey to tot up the number of attacks - a move branded “totally inadequate” by nursing leaders.

Physical assaults on NHS staff rose by 4 per cent from 67,864 in 2014/15 to 70,555 in 2015/16, according to NHS Protect, which collected data on attacks until it was quietly axed earlier this year. The Independent

NHS waiting times: hospital bosses fear 'a return to 1999'

NHS waiting times: hospital bosses fear 'a return to 1999' Four NHS trust chief executives publicly raise concerns about service struggling amid tight budgets and staffing problems

Hospital bosses have taken the unusual step of publicly drawing attention to the NHS’s declining ability to treat patients quickly enough, with one comparing lengthening waits for care to the huge delays last seen in 1999.

Four NHS trust chief executives in England have posted comments on Twitter since Tuesday lamenting the challenges the service is facing while it struggles with a tight budget and mounting staffing problems.

Difficult to watch - Feels like a return to 1999 - this time with virtually no social care. We need to urgently integrate health & care. Continue reading... The Guardian

Giving birth to my stillborn daughter was horrific. NHS staff saved us from despair

Giving birth to my stillborn daughter was horrific. NHS staff saved us from despair At every stage the experience and understanding of the midwives and doctors guided us through this traumatic experience

One night when I was expecting my first child, I woke up with a start. I was due to give birth any day and it was obvious to me that my baby had stopped moving. At midnight, my husband and I dashed to triage where we were seen by a friendly but unconcerned midwife. She nonchalantly pulled out a Doppler and placed it on my stomach to listen to the baby’s heartbeat. There wasn’t one. She didn’t tell us that, but it was obvious by the silence. At my last checkup two weeks before, the midwife had been able to find the heartbeat almost instantly.

A series of consultants were led to the room, each with increasing seniority. They took turns placing the doppler on different parts of my stomach to find the heartbeat. The silence continued. Someone was found to operate the ultrasound machine so they could see the baby; my husband told me not to look. Eventually a consultant took my hand and told me she was sorry, the baby was gone. The most senior consultant was called to verify that devastating news and from that moment a world of NHS services we never imagined existed enveloped around us. Continue reading... The Guardian

One in five children obese by the time they leave primary school 

One in five children obese by the time they leave primary school Record numbers of children are leaving primary school fat with one in five now obese, shocking figures suggest. NHS data shows that 9.6 per cent of children are dangerously overweight by the time they start school - an increase from 9.3 per cent the year before.

By the time children reach the age of 10 and 11, 20 per cent are obese, the statistics for 2016/17 show. The Daily Telegraph

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NHS 'not screening for some forms of cancer costing lives'

NHS 'not screening for some forms of cancer costing lives' Hundreds of women are dying needlessly each year because the NHS is failing to screen for genetic forms of cancer, a charity has warned.

Some 29 per cent of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer are not offered genetic testing to see if their family might also be at risk.

Ovarian Cancer Action said around one in six cases are linked to the mutated BRCA gene – famously carried by Angelina Jolie – which significantly increases their risk. The Daily Mail

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