Abandoned Northampton office block to become flats for nurses, police and teachers

Abandoned Northampton office block to become flats for nurses, police and teachers An office block that has stood empty for years in Northampton town centre is to become flats in a partnership between the borough council and Legal & General.

Belgrave House, in Greyfriars, is owned by the company behind the Grosvenor Centre, Legal and General, which has struggled to generate interest from tenants or buyers.

Now, in order to create affordable town centre housing for key workers - such as people working in the emergency services, health or education - Northampton Borough Council intends to convert the building into 120 flats. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Insight report: High intensity users of A&E departments

Insight report: High intensity users of A&E departments Dr Foster has carried out a detailed analysis of accident and emergency (A&E) attendances nationally with the aim of uncovering common characteristics of high intensity users (HIUs) - people who attended 10 or more times in a 12-month period - and patterns in HIU attendances to provide valuable insight and a better understanding of the reasons they attend with such high frequency.

See also:

• Ten NHS patients visited A&Es more than 200 TIMES in the last year The Daily Mail
• Patient who went to A&E 400 times in one year among 'frequent flyer' list The Daily Telegraph

Two cases of resistant gonorrhoea diagnosed in the UK

Two cases of resistant gonorrhoea diagnosed in the UK Public Health England is reminding people of the importance of practising safer sex and seeking help if they are worried they may have an STI.

Public Health England (PHE) is investigating 2 cases of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in heterosexual females with similar resistance patterns to the antibiotics (ceftriaxone and azithromycin) that are used as the first line treatment for gonorrhoea. While this type of resistance is unusual, there have been cases in other countries. Both cases were successfully treated and we are following up sexual contacts to minimise the risk of any onward transmission.

One of these cases appears to have been acquired in Europe and the other has links to Europe but was acquired in the UK.

See also:

• Super-gonorrhoea spread causes 'deep concern' BBC News
• Safe sex warning after two women infected with super-gonorrhoea The Independent

Local auditor reporting in England 2018

Local auditor reporting in England 2018 The number of NHS and local government bodies with significant weaknesses in their arrangements for delivering value for money for taxpayers is unacceptably high and increasing, according to today’s report by the National Audit Office (NAO).

In 2017-18, 495 local authorities, local police and local fire bodies were responsible for around £54 billion of net revenue spending and 442 local NHS bodies received funding of approximately £100 billion. Each year, local auditors give an opinion on whether these bodies produce financial statements that comply with reporting requirements and if they have arrangements to properly manage their business and finances. Auditors can draw attention to weaknesses by ‘qualifying’ their opinion and issuing a ‘non-standard’ report. Local bodies should take any issues raised seriously and address them appropriately.

See also:

• Four in ten NHS organisations do not have a grip on their spending The Daily Telegraph

Cheap common drugs may help mental illness

Cheap common drugs may help mental illness Cheap and widely used drugs for diabetes and heart health have potential for treating severe mental illness, a study hints.

It showed the number of times patients needed hospital treatment fell by up to a fifth when they took the drugs.

The researchers at University College London say their findings have "enormous potential".

But they, and independent experts, say the results now need to be tested in clinical trials. BBC News

See also:

• Association of Hydroxylmethyl Glutaryl Coenzyme A Reductase Inhibitors, L-Type Calcium Channel Antagonists, and Biguanides With Rates of Psychiatric Hospitalization and Self-Harm in Individuals With Serious Mental Illness JAMA Psychiatry

The NHS 10-year plan has cleared a path for total privatisation of our health service

The NHS 10-year plan has cleared a path for total privatisation of our health service The latest strategy for Britain’s National Health Service has made some bold projections and headline-grabbing commitments. The endgame though is a corporate NHS.

The 1990s internal market introduced competition into the NHS. The NHS Plan 2000 ramped up outsourcing and public-private partnerships, and gave us the disastrous legacy of private finance initiatives, or PFI.

The Health and Social Care Act 2012 doubled private sector outsourcing to 8 per cent of the budget. It also enabled foundation trust hospitals to make up to half their income from private patients. There is a thread running through: a narrative of marketisation and privatisation. The Independent

The Priory faces multi-million pound fine following death of 14-year-old girl with a history of suicide attempts

The Priory faces multi-million pound fine following death of 14-year-old girl with a history of suicide attempts A private mental health care group is facing a fine of millions of pounds for breaching health and safety laws after a 14-year-old girl with a history of suicide attempts died in its care.

A criminal investigation was launched by the Health and Safety Executive into The Priory after the death of Amy El-Keria, who was treated at its Ticehurst House psychiatric hospital in 2012, Brighton Magistrates' Court heard.

The London-based company indicated a guilty plea after being charged under health and safety laws with being an employer failing to discharge its duty to ensure people were not exposed to risk, in what is thought to be the first prosecution of its kind. The Daily Telegraph

Writing complaints against NHS doctors 'could lead them to suicide', leading expert warns

Writing complaints against NHS doctors 'could lead them to suicide', leading expert warns Complaints about NHS doctors could lead them to depression and even trigger suicide, an expert has warned.

Dr Clare Gerada, the medical director of the NHS Practitioner Health Programme (PHP), said the number of complaints against NHS staff is rising.

But they can cause a spiral of events which can harm the doctor's mental health, their colleagues and future patients, she warned. The Daily Mail

'Traditional masculinity' is harmful, top psychologists say in new guidelines

'Traditional masculinity' is harmful, top psychologists say in new guidelines 'Traditional masculinity' is harmful, damaging the men who ascribe to it and everyone around them, according America's top psychologists.

The warning was issued in a 36-page document by the American Psychological Association, its first set of guidelines on male mental health in 127 years.

Experts said the traditional ideology of what makes a man 'a man' constrains men.

It also can drive them to feel or act aggressively towards other groups who are not masculine, fueling misogyny, sexism, sexual assault, bullying and homophobia. The Daily Mail

See also:

• APA Guidelines for the Psychological Practicewith Boys and Men American Psychological Association