Friday 25 January 2019

Primary care networks: work needed to fulfil expectations

Primary care networks: work needed to fulfil expectations With the Long Term Plan expecting big things from primary care networks, Rebecca Rosen explains what will be needed for them to be successful. Nuffield Trust

Detailed guide: Mental health: migrant health guide

Detailed guide: Mental health: migrant health guide Advice and guidance on the health needs of migrant patients for healthcare practitioners. Public Health England

Open consultation: Revising the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice: Call for evidence

Open consultation: Revising the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice: Call for evidence The call for evidence will aim to seek views and contributions from a range of stakeholders, to develop a robust evidence base which will inform revisions made to the Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice. Ministry of Justice

'High' survival for many cancers diagnosed at stages 1-3

'High' survival for many cancers diagnosed at stages 1-3 Adults diagnosed with stage-1 skin, prostate or breast cancer have the same chance of still being alive a year later as the general population, data from the Office for National Statistics and Public Health England suggests.

For many cancers, one-year survival rates are high if they are diagnosed in stages 1-3, but lower in stage 4.

Pancreatic cancer has the lowest rates of survival, for men and women.

The estimates are based on cancer diagnoses in England from 2012-16. BBC News

NHS app launched but fraction of patients will have full functionality before April

NHS app launched but fraction of patients will have full functionality before April A new app which allows patients to book appointments, order prescriptions and view their medical records has been launched by NHS England, although the vast majority of people won’t be able to use it until the summer.

Despite a pledge that it would end the 8am scarmble for appointments, a large majority of GP surgeries have yet to sign up for it.

As a result, it has been criticised by users on the Google Play store, with one describing it as “almost, but not entirely, functionless”. The Independent

75,000 patients stuck in ambulances as winter at A&E starts to bite

75,000 patients stuck in ambulances as winter at A&E starts to bite Hospitals forced to divert patients, while 11 trusts report bed occupancy of 99% or more

More than 75,000 patients have had to spend at least half an hour this winter with ambulance crews waiting to be treated by A&E staff as the NHS has come under extra pressure.

As the first prolonged cold spell of the winter caused problems last week, 13 hospital trusts were forced to temporarily send patients to other nearby NHS trusts 35 times. The Guardian

‘We predict more deaths’: GPs on the frontline of UK homelessness crisis

‘We predict more deaths’: GPs on the frontline of UK homelessness crisis A day in a specialist homeless GP practice in London reveals some of the struggles staff have helping their migrant patients

Dr Dana Beale suspects the woman sitting in front of her has bowel cancer. She’s already complained of pain and bleeding when she goes to the toilet and Beale, a GP, has referred her for a hospital appointment. The woman is glad but also hesitant and asks whether she might have to pay for the appointment. Beale says yes.

The woman starts to cry. She is Roma and is in the UK alone, living rough on the streets of Westminster after she was lured here by a man promising work. She is destitute and doesn’t speak English; Beale is communicating with her using a telephone interpreting service. Beale worries the woman is at risk of being exploited as a slave, like some of her other patients. The Guardian

Bacteria and viruses are fighting back, but will big pharma save us?

Bacteria and viruses are fighting back, but will big pharma save us? | Sarah Boseley Experts warn of an apocalypse but new drugs won’t be developed unless they can turn a profit

An apocalypse is looming, warn the public health experts. The spectre of a benighted world where humankind again falls prey to bacterial plagues, wiping out the frail and the young, has been hanging over us for many years now. Infections we have conquered, such as pneumonia and typhoid, will return to kill us. Surgery and chemotherapy for cancer will carry huge risks.

It’s a distant scenario as yet, but it cannot be dismissed as alarmist rhetoric. Antibiotics are no longer the cure-all for bacterial infections that they once were. Antimicrobial resistance is real. Microbes – both bacteria and viruses – are fighting back, developing resistance to the drugs invented to wipe them out. It’s an evolutionary thing. Bugs were here before we were and are evolving to survive us. The Guardian

Tougher food labelling proposed to prevent allergy deaths

Tougher food labelling proposed to prevent allergy deaths The Government has set out new proposals to toughen food labelling laws and protect the two million food allergy suffers across the country.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has launched a consultation into food labelling laws focusing on overhauling the labelling of pre-prepared foods such as sandwiches and salads which are made, packaged and sold in the same stores. The Daily Telegraph

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Health officials announce ANOTHER recall of blood pressure pills in the UK

Health officials announce ANOTHER recall of blood pressure pills in the UK More blood pressure and heart medications have been recalled today amid concerns they contain a chemical linked to cancer.

The recall is the latest in a months-long scandal with irbesartan, a drug prescribed to patients with high blood pressure or kidney disease.

Pharmacies have been told not to dispense three batches of the pills, just a day after a US company announced a similar recall there.

Today's announcement concerns 150mg and 300mg irbesartan pills supplied by Macleods Pharma UK. Other recalls have concerned other firms. The Daily Mail

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