NHS patient data at risk after hack exposed passwords of hospital staff

NHS patient data at risk after hack exposed passwords of hospital staff THE MEDICAL RECORDS of 'millions' of NHS patients could be at risk after a hack exposed the passwords of 10,000 care home and hospital staff.

An investigation by The Sunday Telegraph found that Embrace Learning, a Cheshire-based online training business that claims to offer "cost-efficient, engaging and effective" e-learning to healthcare workers, was hacked in 2016.

This attack exposed the email addresses and passwords of registered NHS staff, details that were then flogged on the dark web for "ten times more" than credit card details.

An as-yet-unknown hacker also published 500 email addresses and passwords were also online in December 2016, likely to provide a sample to prospective customers looking to purchase the full database

19 NHS trusts and organisations were affected by the breach, including the Royal Free Hospital in London and Northampton General Hospital. The INQUIRER

Promising practices for health and wellbeing at work: A review of the evidence landscape: (RAND RR2409)

Promising practices for health and wellbeing at work: A review of the evidence landscape: (RAND RR2409) Research demonstrates that the support of wellbeing in the workplace has a positive impact on staff, business and organisations. It includes benefits in terms of reduced absenteeism and presenteeism as well as improved productivity. Whilst the landscape of health and wellbeing interventions is a broad one, it can be difficult to understand ‘what works’: or rather, the confidence which can be placed in a particular intervention that it will have a positive impact on staff health and wellbeing outcomes. Rand Corporation

Your future nurses: the different routes to recruiting your workforce

Your future nurses: the different routes to recruiting your workforce This infographic explores the different routes into nursing for employers. Until recently, the routes to developing registered nurses within the workforce have been limited, with the university degree being the main way to train this group of staff. The introduction of the nursing degree apprenticeship gives a new opportunity for employers to train nurses, while the creation of the new nursing associate role can help to be a bridge between healthcare assistants and graduate registered nurses. NHS Employers

Assessment of delirium in hospital for people with dementia

Assessment of delirium in hospital for people with dementia The National Audit of Dementia (NAD) is commissioned by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership to examine aspects of care received by people with dementia in general hospitals in England and Wales. In addition, NAD provides national and local reports to support hospitals to identify areas for quality improvement and share good practice, helping to improve outcomes for patients. This spotlight audit on delirium has been carried out to look in more detail at an area where hospitals have seemed to be underperforming and to clarify inconsistencies in the data. Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership

Norfolk hospital plans 'in-patient' care at home

Norfolk hospital plans 'in-patient' care at home A hospital preparing for forthcoming winter bed pressures has confirmed plans to treat dozens of people classed as "in patients" at their own homes.

Norfolk and Norwich Hospital has approved plans to trial its "virtual ward" later this year.

A hospital spokesman said the idea was in response to "very high levels of demand last winter". BBC News

NHS under pressure over fresh patient record error

NHS under pressure over fresh patient record error The government is facing another NHS IT scandal, as it scrambles to confirm whether discrepancies between two databases have affected patient care.

NHS England confirmed The Register that it was working to establish the impact of thousands of mismatches, which saw patient records present on one database and absent from another. There are concerns that the error could mean patients have missed appointments for disease screening and vaccinations. The Register

Hadiza Bawa-Garba: Doctor at centre of sepsis death case should be able to return to work, Court of Appeal rules

Hadiza Bawa-Garba: Doctor at centre of sepsis death case should be able to return to work, Court of Appeal rules The doctor struck off over mistakes that led to the death of six-year-old Jack Adcock in 2011 could return to work after the Court of Appeal upheld her challenge against the decision.

On Monday, Dr Hadiza Bawa-Garba won her appeal against a High Court ruling earlier in 2018 which said erasing her from the medical register was the only way to maintain confidence in the profession.

But the Court of Appeal found the earlier judgement was “wrong” and overturned its decision that Dr Bawa-Garba should be erased, reinstating a 12-month suspension. The General Medical Council (GMC) has said it will not challenge the Court of Appeal judgement further. The Independent

See also:

• Bawa-Garba's removal from Medical Register overturned BMA
• Statement on Court of Appeal’s judgment on the Bawa-Garba case General Medical Council
• Dr Bawa-Garba case: RCGP response Royal College of General Practitioners
• RCPCH response to Court of Appeal ruling on Hadiza Bawa-Garba case Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
• RCP statement following the court of appeal ruling on the case of Dr Bawa-Garba Royal College of Physicians
• Struck-off Dr Hadiza Bawa-Garba wins appeal to work again BBC News
• Doctor convicted of gross negligence manslaughter after death of boy, six, wins appeal over decision to strike her off The Daily Telegraph
• Dr Hadiza Bawa-Garba wins appeal against decision to strike her off The Guardian

Long journeys caused by A&E closures 'will not lead to more deaths'

Long journeys caused by A&E closures 'will not lead to more deaths' Patients may face longer journey times but will get improved care quality, says study

Shutting A&E units does not lead to more patients dying because they have to travel further for life-saving treatment, according to the first British research into the impact of closures of emergency departments.

The study also found that even if journey times to hospital become longer after an A&E shuts, the improved quality of care patients receive at the alternative hospital means their health does not suffer. Continue reading... The Guardian

More than 200 suicides recorded at mental health units over seven years

More than 200 suicides recorded at mental health units over seven years Care Quality Commission figures show overall number falling but more women have begun taking their own lives than men

More than 200 patients killed themselves in mental health units over seven years, new figures have revealed, prompting concern about the safety and quality of care.

Data collected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) shows that 224 people died of self-inflicted injuries between 2010 and 2016 in mental health hospitals in England. Continue reading... The Guardian

Patients suffered 'severe harm' after NHS hospital lost track of them

Patients suffered 'severe harm' after NHS hospital lost track of them Patients suffered “severe harm” after a hospital lost track of its waiting lists, a report has found.

St George’s Hospitals Foundation trust has reviewed millions of files after discovering that its records did not determine whether patients had completed treatment or were in need of further checks.

As a result, a clinical harm review examined 646 cases in detail - and has now found that 15 patients have been found to have suffered “severe harm” - meaning “permanent or long-term” damage - with a further four suffering moderate harm. The Daily Telegraph

AI programme can spot diseases as well as world's top consultants

AI programme can spot diseases as well as world's top consultants Eye diseases that cause blindness in millions can now be rapidly detected by computer thanks to a 'revolutionary' breakthrough.

The new artificial intelligence system is just as good at detecting eye diseases as the very best consultants - with a 94 per cent accuracy.

The technique now promises to slash the time needed to be seen by a consultant from weeks to days.

Early results from tests of the scanning technology are so promising researchers believe it could be rolled out across 30 UK hospitals in less than three years.

The research is a collaboration between Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, UK-based Google DeepMind, UCL and Southampton University. The Daily Mail