Brain-damaged Northampton Hospital patient can be allowed to die

Brain-damaged Northampton Hospital patient can be allowed to die A brain-damaged woman is to be allowed to die despite sometimes still smiling at hospital staff, a judge has ruled.

The patient, in her 50s, was injured in 2008 and has received life-support treatment at Northampton General Hospital for a decade. Her family and treating doctors all thought that the woman, who also has a number of physical difficulties, should be allowed to die. The judge said she was satisfied with the evidence provided by doctors. She approved a plan to implement a palliative care regime.

The case was considered at the Court of Protection in London, which rules on behalf of people who do not have the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. BBC News - Northamptonshire

Concerns about transport of children by a Northamptonshire ambulance service

Concerns about transport of children by a Northamptonshire ambulance service Inspectors have raised several concerns about the NHS non-emergency ambulance service that covers Northamptonshire, including infection control and the transport of children.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) visit was carried out in November at the premises of Thames Ambulance Service Ltd, which transports Northamptonshire patients for free to NHS appointments.

Although an inspection report has still not been published, a paper written for NHS Nene board members has revealed a long list of worries. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Fertility clinics selling £3,500 IVF 'add-ons' including glue that 'helps embryos stick to womb'

Fertility clinics selling £3,500 IVF 'add-ons' including glue that 'helps embryos stick to womb' Fertility clinics selling expensive IVF 'add-on' treatments have been warned they must tell couples there is no evidence that they work.

Almost three-quarters of patients desperate to be parents bought at least one add-on in the past two years, a patient survey found.

They cost up to £3,500 a time and include 'glue' or a painful 'scratch' which is claimed to help an embryo stick to the wall of the womb.

But the fertility regulator has concluded there is 'no conclusive evidence' that any of them boost the chances of falling pregnant. Mail Online

See Also:

• Fertility regulator calls for clinics to be more open about treatment add-ons Human Fertilisation and Embyology Authority (HFEA)

New guidance on instant messaging for the NHS

New guidance on instant messaging for the NHS The NHS has published new guidance to help CCGs and others to decide how and when to use instant messaging in acute clinical settings. NHS Networks

Welcome focus on primary care but NHS plan also raises difficult questions

Welcome focus on primary care but NHS plan also raises difficult questions The NHS Long Term Plan includes a promise of £4.5bn of ring-fenced funding for primary care and community services. Among its bolder ambitions are that integrated care systems (ICS) will cover the country within two years and that all GP practices will be members of primary care networks by this April. NHS Networks

Overstretched 'sandwich carers' trying to help parents and children

Overstretched 'sandwich carers' trying to help parents and children An exhausted, overstretched generation of carers, are in need of emotional support themselves, say researchers.

A report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) says more than a quarter of such "sandwich carers" are suffering from depression or stress. "Sandwich carers" look after their elderly parents and their children.

There are 1.3 million people in the UK with such multi-generational caring responsibilities, say researchers, with many feeling ignored and undervalued. BBC News

What is the right age to lose your virginity?

What is the right age to lose your virginity? Having sex too soon is the biggest regret of young people losing their virginity, a survey of British sexual behaviour suggests. More than a third of women and a quarter of men in their teens and early 20s admitted it had not been "the right time" when they first had sex. People must be 16 or over to legally consent to sex.

The latest National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles poll says many people may not be ready at that age. The Natsal survey, carried out every decade or so, gives a detailed picture of sexual behaviour in the UK.

For this latest work, published in BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health, researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine looked at the responses of nearly 3,000 young people who had completed the survey between 2010 and 2012. BBC News - Health

See Also:

• Did YOU have sex too YOUNG? Study reveals 40% of women and 25% of men claim they did not lose their virginity 'at the right time' Mail Online
• Many in UK lose virginity before they are ready – study The Guardian
• Prevalence and correlates of ‘sexual competence’ at first heterosexual intercourse among young people in Britain BMJ Sexual and Reproductive Health

Breast cancer risk test 'game changer'

Breast cancer risk test 'game changer' Experts have developed a potentially "game-changing" test to predict a woman's risk of breast cancer. It combines information on family history and hundreds of genetic markers with other factors, such as weight, to give the most comprehensive assessment possible, says Cancer Research UK.

The test is not yet routinely available on the NHS - some GPs and specialists are trialling it first. It is part of a push to spot cancers earlier through tailored screening. BBC News - Health