Tuesday 17 July 2018

Perfect Patient Information Journey: 7 steps for health services to improve information for people with long term conditions

Perfect Patient Information Journey: 7 steps for health services to improve information for people with long term conditions Embedding high-quality, accessible healthcare information across all patient pathways will enhance patient experience, improve outcomes and support patients with long-term conditions to manage their health. This will help tackle health inequality by empowering more people to make informed choices about their health and care.

The Patient Information Forum has developed 7 steps to support healthcare services to develop and embed patient information across their pathways.

Caring for carers: the lives of family carers in the UK

Caring for carers: the lives of family carers in the UK This report focuses on the demographics and experiences of those who provide family care. The current social care system is putting pressure on families to step in and provide care for relatives where the state does not. The report observes that: there are more women with caring responsibilities in the professional and managerial occupations; the number of hours of care that family carers provide is rising overall; and the more hours of care a person provides, the more likely they are to reduce their hours of work or exit the workforce altogether. The report makes a number of recommendations for the forthcoming social care green paper, several of which are aimed at “nudging” employers into offering more support for working carers. It also suggests much greater use of “care navigators” to help family carers guide elderly relatives through the complex system of public sector bodies likely to be involved in their overall package of care. Social Market Foundation

Nine in ten heart patients live with other long-term conditions, increasing their risk of dying

Nine in ten heart patients live with other long-term conditions, increasing their risk of dying Nine in ten people with coronary heart disease in the UK are living with at least one other long-term condition, such as stroke, dementia and high blood pressure, according to new figures

Our analysis reveals that 90% of people living with coronary heart disease have at least one other long-term condition, while six in ten have at least three. Numerous studies have shown that living with multiple conditions significantly increases the risk of early death.

The growing number of people living with inter-related health conditions – or multi-morbidities – represents a grave challenge for our health system, which is focused on treating individual illnesses. British Heart Foundation

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Editing human embryos 'morally permissible'

Editing human embryos 'morally permissible' Should we or shouldn't we be allowed to modify human DNA in future children?

An inquiry into the ethical issues surrounding genetically altering a human embryo has found there is "no absolute reason not to pursue it".

But appropriate measures must be put in place before it becomes UK law, said the report - which calls for further research both medically and socially.

Inquiry chair, Prof Karen Yeung, said: "The implications for society are extensive, profound and long-term." BBC News

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Private management consultant spending at Department of Health nearly tripled last year, accounts show

Private management consultant spending at Department of Health nearly tripled last year, accounts show Spending on private management consultants at the Department of Health and Social Care nearly tripled last year, despite a push to cut running costs by a third, official figures show.

The department’s annual report reveals that in 2017/18 it spent £12.4m on consultancy services, up from £4.5m in 2016/17.

This extra spending was needed to secure “specialist support not available with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)”, the report said. It comes after it cut hundreds of jobs to meet its pledge on reducing spending by 30 per cent in 2019. The Independent

'Brexit dividend' for health service a myth, Government's official spending watchdog confirms

'Brexit dividend' for health service a myth, Government's official spending watchdog confirms The Office for Budget Responsibility, established in 2010 to provide independent forecasts for the Government, confirmed that Brexit is more likely to weaken than strengthen the public finances. The Independent

NHS decision to fund new asthma drug a 'beacon of hope' to thousands

NHS decision to fund new asthma drug a 'beacon of hope' to thousands Around 100,000 people suffering from the worst form of asthma will be given access to a £12,000 treatment that promises the chance of a more normal life.

Health chiefs have said the NHS will pay for injections of Benralizumab for those who cannot be helped by traditional inhalers or steroids.

Patients groups welcomed the decision saying it offers a “beacon of hope” to people suffering from severe eosinophilic asthma, around 1.3 per cent of the 5.4 million living with all forms of the disease. The Daily Telegraph

GPs posting 'fake reviews' online, health chiefs reveal

GPs posting 'fake reviews' online, health chiefs reveal GPs are posing as patients and writing fake positive reviews on the NHS Choices website, health chiefs have claimed, sparking a row with family doctors.

Officials running the patient information service have revealed they are being forced to remove comments they suspect have been posted by practice staff to preserve the “integrity” of the site.

These are among 3,400 posts investigated for a variety of reasons so far this year, 58 per cent of which have since been removed. The Daily Telegraph

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Men are being left in agony as NHS denies them hernia operations

Men are being left in agony as NHS denies them hernia operations More than half the health boards in England refuse NHS funding for the 45-minute procedure unless patients are in enough agony to ‘impede working life’ or ‘everyday activities’. The Daily Mail

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