Monday 5 February 2018

State of child health: one year on

State of child health: one year on Report from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health following up ‘The State of Child Health 2017‘ which uncovered alarming inequalities in the health and wellbeing of children across the UK and a clear disparity with the rest of Western Europe. One year on, our scorecard reveals that although progress has been made in some areas, in general, the picture for infants, children and young people remains largely unchanged across England. Lancashire Care Library and Information Service

Skip the pay and display machines at Northampton General Hospital with cashless app

Skip the pay and display machines at Northampton General Hospital with cashless app

Parking at Northampton General Hospital can now be paid using an app.

Visitors can now skip the pay and display machines and buy tickets for the hospital's seven onsite car parks from their phone with "PayByPhone".

The app offers the same options as the machines with text message reminders before tickets expire as well as the ability to extend parking duration remotely. Northampton Chronicle & Echo

Not to be sniffed at: flu vaccination for NHS staff

Not to be sniffed at: flu vaccination for NHS staff Fears of a flu pandemic hit the headlines this winter and influenza-confirmed hospitalisations reached a level of ‘very high intensity’. The last flu pandemic in 2009 claimed 500,000 lives globally. During a mild flu season around a quarter of frontline staff may become infected with the virus, of which up to 59 per cent may not realise they are infected, so they could infect others, including the patients they care for. So, flu is not to be sniffed at.

However, only 63.9 per cent of NHS staff chose to take up the offer of a free flu vaccination this year. This begs the question: what more can the NHS do to improve rates of staff vaccination? King's Fund

Investigation into clinical correspondence handling in the NHS

Investigation into clinical correspondence handling in the NHS In October 2017 NHS England informed the Committee of Public Accounts that it had discovered a backlog of 162,000 items of clinical correspondence that had not been redirected. NHS England stated that a small proportion of GPs had not been complying with guidance and had erroneously been sending clinical correspondence and other material to Capita, the current provider of primary care support services for NHS England. Capita has no contractual responsibility for redirecting clinical correspondence. This investigation sets out the facts around the backlog of unprocessed correspondence. National Audit Office

In and out of hospital

In and out of hospital British Red Cross - This report proposes introducing automatic home assessments and other simple interventions for elderly and vulnerable people who are often admitted to hospital to reduce avoidable hospital admissions in vulnerable patients. The report contains analysis of first-hand accounts of frontline health and care workers who argue that there are too many missed opportunities to prevent many of these avoidable admissions. British Red Cross

The risks to care quality and staff wellbeing of an NHS system under pressure

The risks to care quality and staff wellbeing of an NHS system under pressure Picker Institute - This report, written in conjunction with The King's Fund, considers the relationships between the self-reported experiences and wellbeing of NHS staff, measures of workforce pressures in the health system, and patients’ experiences of their care. It uncovers striking associations between NHS staff and patients’ experiences in hospitals and NHS trusts’ reliance on agency health care workers. King's Fund

Record numbers of patients dying malnourished in NHS hospitals with nearly one case a day - Telegraph.co.uk

Record numbers of patients dying malnourished in NHS hospitals with nearly one case a day - Telegraph.co.uk Record numbers of patients are dying malnourished in NHS hospitals, with almost one case a day, new figures show. Charities last night said the figures were “shocking”... The Telegraph

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NHS 'should be funded by new tax' - BBC News

NHS 'should be funded by new tax' - BBC News A new ring-fenced tax to fund the NHS and social care has been proposed by a panel of health experts. The panel, set up by the Liberal Democrats, says the NHS in England should be given an extra £4bn on top of inflation in the next financial year. BBC News

NHS is crippled 'by a bossy culture' - The Times

NHS is crippled 'by a bossy culture' - The Times Autocratic management is a leading cause of poor NHS care, according to the compiler of a European health service league table that ranks Britain 15th. The Times

Up to 60,000 cancer test results may have to be reviewed after women wrongly given the all-clear

Up to 60,000 cancer test results may have to be reviewed after women wrongly given the all-clear
Up to 60,000 cancer test results may have to be reviewed after women were found to have been wrongly given the all-clear, the Sunday Telegraph can reveal.

The failings by NHS screening services could mean more than 1,000 women have been given the wrong result, after errors in one laboratory.

NHS screening services have begun reviewing a sample of cervical cancer screening results, after inspectors raised fears that mistakes were being made. The Telegraph

After Carillion and Capita, is PFI itself on the critical list?

After Carillion and Capita, is PFI itself on the critical list? Private providers have been entrusted with much of Britain’s infrastructure: even hospitals. What does the future hold now?

Long before the collapse last month of Carillion, one of the government’s go-to outsourcing and building groups, the signs of strain inside Whitehall over the future of financing public projects with private cash were clear. Since 2010 the government has signed 80 contracts under the private finance initiative (PFI). In the 13 years before 2010 it signed 620. The Guardian

Fix the NHS: Protesters rally in London to call for government action

Fix the NHS: Protesters rally in London to call for government action Nurses, doctors, campaigners and unions call for funding and resource gaps to be filled

Health workers, activists and unions are marching in central London on Saturday to protest against government inaction over the NHS winter crisis.

Hospitals have been overwhelmed in recent weeks by a surge in admissions that has led to delays of up to 12 hours on emergency wards, patients left on trollies for hours and thousands of patients forced to wait in ambulances before receiving urgent care. The Guardian

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Patients having to travel 70 miles to see a dentist amid NHS hiring crisis

Patients having to travel 70 miles to see a dentist amid NHS hiring crisis Patients are facing a 70-mile journey to see a dentist and the NHS faces an imminent recruitment crisis, a professional association has warned.

Low morale among NHS dentists has left practices are struggling to recruit, the British Dental Association (BDA) said.

A survey for the association found more than two thirds of NHS practices in England who had tried to hire in the past year had struggled to fill their vacancies.

Dentists carrying out the most NHS work are more likely to be disillusioned than those conducting more private work. The Telegraph

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New mothers to be offered NHS counselling by Skype to tackle post-natal depression

New mothers to be offered NHS counselling by Skype to tackle post-natal depression New mothers will be offered counselling by Skype under NHS plans to tackle post-natal depression.

An estimated 140,000 mothers each year - one in five - suffer depression, anxiety and other mental health problems during pregnancy or in the months after their baby is born.

But thousands do not get support, with suicide the leading cause of death in expectant and new mothers.

Health officials today pledged to offer more help to women struggling with the "hugely emotional experience" of becoming a mother. The Telegraph

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Hospitals cancelling urgent surgery despite NHS bosses' orders

Hospitals cancelling urgent surgery despite NHS bosses' orders Exclusive: shortage of intensive care beds in England leading to operations being postponed

Hospitals have been cancelling urgent surgery for patients with cancer, heart disease and other life-threatening illnesses, despite NHS bosses’ orders not to delay such operations.

Some patients have had their procedure cancelled several times, even though their poor health means the surgery is urgent. Others have had operations cancelled on the day they were scheduled to take place. The Guardian

Annual charge paid by migrants for using the NHS to double

Annual charge paid by migrants for using the NHS to double Immigration health surcharge, which doctors fear may encourage racial profiling, will increase to £400 a year

Charges paid by temporary migrants to the UK to use the NHS are to double, the government has announced. Ministers said the move would raise around £220m a year for the health service while ensuring that migrants made a “fair contribution” towards its costs. The Guardian

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