Health investment needs long-term thinking

Health investment needs long-term thinking Investing in public health pays off down the line. As the government seeks to restore NHS funding it cannot also ignore this vital policy area.

In the year of its 70th birthday the NHS has quite rightly been made the centre of attention. A government commitment to boost NHS funding is a welcome early present, even if, as Health Foundation analysis has shown, the 3.4% increase promised will at best stem the decline in services. The Health Foundation

Prevention is better than the cure

Prevention is better than the cure In the first of our case study mini series, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust share how they reduced sickness absence and presenteeism at work.

The trust placed staff health and wellbeing at the centre of their strategy by implementing core services and additional interventions staff can call upon. They believe that by helping staff identify stressors and giving them access to immediate and appropriate support helps reduce the amount of absence days. NHS Employers

Homes that help: a personal and professional perspective on home adaptations

Homes that help: a personal and professional perspective on home adaptations This report summarises the findings of a primary research project exploring the lived experiences of individuals who use home adaptations, and practitioners who work alongside them. It shows that people are delaying making vital changes to homes because of the clinical and stigmatising appearance of products like handrails and ramps. Centre for Ageing Better

Emerging sex disease MG 'could become next superbug'

Emerging sex disease MG 'could become next superbug' A little known sexually transmitted infection could become the next superbug unless people become more vigilant, experts are warning.

Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) often has no symptoms but can cause pelvic inflammatory disease, which can leave some women infertile.

MG can be missed - and if it is not treated correctly, it can develop resistance to antibiotics.

The British Association of Sexual Health and HIV is launching new advice.

Its draft guidelines detail how best to spot and treat MG. BBC News

See also:

• 2018 national guideline for the 2 management of infection with Mycoplasma genitalium consultation document British Association of Sexual Health and HIV 
• Warning to thousands of women over STI that could lead to infertility The Daily Mail
• Rare STI could turn into superbug, doctors warn The Daily Telegraph

Study links pollution to hospital visits

Study links pollution to hospital visits Scientists have found a direct link between air pollution levels and hospital admissions in Tayside.

A team at the University of Dundee studied the medical records of 450 patients with bronchiectasis against 15 years of pollution data for the study.

They discovered that many had sought medical help on days when pollution levels spiked.

They concluded that a "fairly modest" cut in pollution would have prevented nearly 1,000 medical interventions. BBC News

See also:

• The impact of acute air pollution fluctuations on bronchiectasis pulmonary exacerbation. A case-crossover analysis (abstract) European Respiratory Journal

Matt Hancock: Who is the new health secretary and what is he going to do to the NHS?

Matt Hancock: Who is the new health secretary and what is he going to do to the NHS? Amid the carnage of Theresa May’s emergency cabinet reshuffle, the studied art of political-forecasting-by-NHS-badge fell by the wayside and Jeremy Hunt called time on his run as longest-serving health secretary in history to fill a Boris-shaped hole.

The prime minister wasted no time appointing Matt Hancock, 39,as his successor, moving from Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) secretary to head the Department of Health and Social Care. The Independent

See also:

• New leadership, same old problems BBC News
• Twitter reacts to Matt Hancock becoming the new Health Secretary The Daily Mail
• NHS crisis: Five problems Jeremy Hunt has left for his successor to deal with The Independent
• NHS 'slipped backwards' under Jeremy Hunt and departure is 'long overdue', health experts say The Independent

Ditch the pills. We’ve found a better medicine for old age

Ditch the pills. We’ve found a better medicine for old age | Stewart Dakers Social prescribing allows GPs to offer activities and support for older people. They just need to know what’s available

We seem rather short of the older generation.” The remark was made by the chair of a meeting I attended last month of an old people’s network, organised by the county council adult care department, where I was indeed the only representative of the older generation. The other 30 or so people were from agencies and charities engaged with the crumbly generation.

The atmosphere was pungent with well-meaningness. The format was presentations followed by questions, culminating in around the table reports, by which time there was a certain restlessness, which put silent pressure on the final few to be brief. There is clearly an art in seat selection on such occasions if you want a decent hearing. The main item was “social prescription”. It takes its format from medical prescription, where you go to the doctor, explain your symptoms and leave with a piece of paper containing the name of a drug. Its “social” sibling would go through the same process, with care as well as health agencies, the piece of paper prescribes an activity, facility, or support group. In theory, an exciting idea but one which, as a potential client, living and working among existing clients, I felt obliged to challenge. Continue reading... The Guardian

CQC head David Behan: ‘Care has got safer and quality has got better’

CQC head David Behan: ‘Care has got safer and quality has got better’ | Denis Campbell The outgoing chief executive of the health and care regulator defends its tougher regime under his watch

“One of my jobs when I came in was to restore political, professional and public confidence in the Care Quality Commission, says David Behan, chief executive of the CQC. “It was shot when I took over and there’s no point in contending that it was anything else”.

Behan is reflecting on the challenge he faced when he took over at the helm of the regulator of health and social care in England in 2012. He succeeded Cynthia Bower, who was forced to resign amid a scandal over the CQC’s failure to uncover the appalling treatment of people with learning disabilities at Winterbourne View hospital in Bristol and a subsequent Department of Health inquiry. Continue reading... The Guardian

Antibiotics frequently supplied without prescription, global review finds

Antibiotics frequently supplied without prescription, global review finds Antibiotics are being doled out without prescriptions in pharmacies around the world, potentially leading to the development and spread of superbugs, a study has found.

Three in four patient requests for antibiotics and three in five consultations at community pharmacies led to the sale of antibiotics without a prescription - often for conditions not needing the drugs.

For the study, the researchers looked at local or country-level studies from 2000 to 2017 on sales of antibiotics by pharmacies around the world. In all but one of the 24 countries in the study (Thailand), providing antibiotic drugs without a prescription is illegal. The Daily Telegraph