Petition launched against proposed closure of Finedon Health Centre

Petition launched against proposed closure of Finedon Health Centre A petition has been started against the proposed closure of a medical centre.

Finedon Health Centre in Regent Street in the town is part of Burton Latimer Medical Centre.

However, the medical centre is looking to close the Finedon branch and has launched a consultation with patients. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Health inequalities: the NHS plan needs to take more responsibility

Health inequalities: the NHS plan needs to take more responsibility The NHS has a critical role in reducing health inequalities. When we look at what determines our health, we know that treatment comes in third place: after the wider determinants of health, and our health behaviours. But even third place means that around 10–20 per cent (or more, by some estimates) of our health outcomes are directly determined by the NHS. Crucially, NHS leaders have huge control over that chunk and they can influence beyond that into the wider determinants and our behaviours. We should therefore be expecting a lot from the long-term plan on health inequalities. The King's Fund

Research and analysis: Severe mental illness (SMI): physical health inequalities

Research and analysis: Severe mental illness (SMI): physical health inequalities Comparing physical health conditions between people with SMI and the general population by age, sex and deprivation using primary care data. Public Health England

2.5m patients across England may see their GP surgeries close in the next five years, creating a "catastrophic" impact on patient care, says RCGP

2.5m patients across England may see their GP surgeries close in the next five years, creating a "catastrophic" impact on patient care, says RCGP The College says drastic action must be taken to address the workload pressures that are making a career in general practice untenable – and for more initiatives to be implemented to increase retention of the GP workforce. Royal College of General Practitioners

Leading as a junior doctor

Leading as a junior doctor This toolkit is designed to help junior doctors build, sustain and run their own local leadership and engagement structures. It includes a number of case studies which showcase good practice from across the country as well as some practical guides to help with the day-to-day management of these groups. It also summarises the relevant academic literature and explains how different local leadership structures relate to existing contractual requirements. Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management

Contaminated blood scandal: Where does the UK's blood supply come from now?

Contaminated blood scandal: Where does the UK's blood supply come from now? The UK government has apologised to victims of a scandal that involved thousands being infected with HIV and hepatitis viruses from blood products imported from the US in the 1970s and 1980s.

It has become known as the contaminated blood scandal.

The patients in question, most of whom had haemophilia - a blood disorder caused by a lack of clotting agents in the blood - were actually infected with a product derived from blood called Factor 8.

It is one of the proteins found in plasma (the clear liquid making up most of our blood's volume) which is involved in clotting.

So where does the UK source its blood products from currently and how are they screened? BBC News

Placenta complications: 'Women must know the risks'

Placenta complications: 'Women must know the risks' Expectant mothers should be told that the risk of placenta complications rises after a caesarean or fertility treatment, according to top doctors.

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) guidelines said early diagnosis of conditions placenta praevia and placenta accreta was vital.

They added doctors should discuss with women the safest way to give birth.

The conditions can lead to heavy bleeding and sometimes put mother and baby's lives at risk. BBC News

Female genital mutilation in England and Wales 'not being properly investigated' due to lack of data

Female genital mutilation in England and Wales 'not being properly investigated' due to lack of data The scale of female genital mutilation (FGM) in England and Wales is not being properly investigated due to a lack of consistent high-quality data, according to new research.

FGM, a term which refers to any procedure that intentionally alters female genital organs for non-medical reasons, has been illegal in Britain since 1985 but the law was strengthened in 2003 to prevent girls travelling to undergo FGM abroad.

However, it is estimated that in 2015 there were more than 100,000 women and girls living in the UK who had endured female genital cutting, which is linked with severe long-term complications.

The new report - by experts from The Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, the University of Salford and a prominent barrister - suggested the mandatory reporting of FGM was "more symbolic" than genuinely effective. The Independent

Government spending on children at risk of neglect or abuse slashed by more than a quarter in five years, figures show

Government spending on children at risk of neglect or abuse slashed by more than a quarter in five years, figures show Government spending on children at risk of neglect or abuse has been slashed by 26 per cent over the past five years, new figures show, leading campaigners to claim they were being left to “fend for themselves”.

Budgets for “early intervention” children’s services, designed to help stop family problems such as abuse and neglect spiralling out of control, have dropped by £743m in the last five years, data from the Department for Education shows. The Independent

Black medics in NHS paid thousands less than white medics

Black medics in NHS paid thousands less than white medics Union says findings show BME staff face unacceptable barriers and discrimination

Black doctors in the NHS are paid on average almost £10,000 a year less and black nurses £2,700 less than their white counterparts, the biggest study of earnings by ethnicity has found.

The revelations, based on analysis of 750,000 staff salaries in the NHS in England, prompted claims of racial discrimination. The Guardian

No more excuses: the NHS must fund the drug that stops people getting HIV

No more excuses: the NHS must fund the drug that stops people getting HIV | Timothy Hildebrandt Our research shows that fears of a public outcry over PrEP are fuelled by negative media coverage, not facts.

In a ruling last week, the high court overturned the drug patent extension for Truvada, a highly effective anti-HIV drug, opening the door for generic versions of the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) drug to be made available in the UK at a fraction of the cost. The hope of many sexual health campaigners is that this lower price will compel NHS England to provide full access to the drug.

Despite large studies in the UK and worldwide that have demonstrated its effectiveness in preventing HIV and research showing how access to it could save billions of pounds in lifetime treatment costs for those newly infected with HIV, in June 2016 the NHS decided it would not fund the drug. While the high court overturned this decision just months later, NHS England continued to drag its feet. Claiming that issues around large-scale PrEP implementation were not sufficiently understood, another trial – involving 10,000 individuals over three years – was launched . The Guardian

Breast cancer deaths set to rise as unhealthy lifestyles roll back decades of progress

Breast cancer deaths set to rise as unhealthy lifestyles roll back decades of progress The number of women dying from breast cancer will begin rising for the first time in decades due to unhealthy living, a new report predicts.

By 2022, three decades’ of progress cutting the death toll in Britain will be in reverse, despite improvements in medical science, experts have said.

Breast Cancer Now, which led the new research, said that while modern medicine means an individual woman’s chance of beating cancer is getting better, more are developing the disease in the first place due in part to preventable lifestyle factors. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• UK breast cancer deaths 'set to rise by 2022', new analysis shows Breast Cancer Now
• Breast cancer charity demands action to avert rise in deaths The Guardian
• Breast cancer deaths to rise by 2022 unless government tackles unacceptable care ‘postcode lottery’, charity warns The Independent

Hospitals 'regularly break the law' by not paying invoices on time

Hospitals 'regularly break the law' by not paying invoices on time A third of NHS trusts regularly break the law by failing to pay non-NHS invoices on time, an investigation has revealed.

Not a single trust included in the data made all its payments to suppliers on time last year, and 44 of them paid more than half of their invoices late.

One paid only five per cent of bills on time, while the value of another trust's overdue payments came to more than £404 million.

And combined, all 137 trusts racked up £7.9 billion which they failed to pay within the 30-day time limit during 2017-18. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Revealed: The slowest invoice payers in the NHS Health Service Journal