Health Secretary visits new assessment unit at Northampton General Hospital

Health Secretary visits new assessment unit at Northampton General Hospital  Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health, has praised staff at NGH's new assessment unit.

And the minister said he hopes other hospitals copy the Nye Bevan Unit's successful model, which aims to eliminate unnecessary A&E visits.

Mr Hancock said: "The new unit has made a big impact on A&E. It means people can get into a hospital bed, if they need it, faster than before. "I'd like to replicate this elsewhere in the country." Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Older patients spared dementia and falls by NHS tech roll-out

Older patients spared dementia and falls by NHS tech roll-out Digital checks that can prevent dementia and falls in older people, and save lives through diagnosis of sepsis, are among a range of tools being made available in hospitals across the country, as part of the NHS Long Term Plan.

One in eight hospital patients is affected by delirium, which can make people unsteady on their feet, increases the risk of developing dementia and can result in longer hospital stays or admission to a care home.

However, these problems can be avoided through timely and effective care, with a scheme in Salford increasing the number of patients correctly diagnosed with delirium by 34%, through the introduction of screening for all over-65s who are admitted to hospital. NHS England

Age UK’s Personalised Integrated Care Programme: evaluation of impact on hospital activity

Age UK’s Personalised Integrated Care Programme: evaluation of impact on hospital activity Nuffield Trust -Age UK’s Personalised Integrated Care Programme (PICP) aims to improve the lives of older people through practical support, underpinned by a change in the way that the health and care system works together for these people locally. This report analyses the hospital use of 1,996 older people who had received a service from PICP in eight areas in England, compares their activity to that of a carefully selected control group.  King's Fund - Health Management and Policy Alert

Involving NHS staff in research

Involving NHS staff in research The Healthcare Improvement Studies Institute -This report highlights the role of NHS staff in research and explores how the full potential of their involvement could be better realised. It describes the ways NHS staff are making their mark on the research process – from designing studies, to collecting data, to disseminating and implementing research findings. It identifies some of the key reasons NHS staff get involved in research and looks at some of the barriers to active involvement. King's Fund - Health Management And Policy Alert

NHS hospitals are the fullest they have been all winter with 95% of beds occupied

NHS hospitals are the fullest they have been all winter with 95% of beds occupied NHS figures for last week have revealed hospitals in England had the fewest free beds of any week so far this winter, as a spike in norovirus, diarrhoea and vomiting has led to more bed closures. Mail Online

NHS to screen for lung cancer in trucks in supermarket car parks

NHS to screen for lung cancer in trucks in supermarket car parks Health chiefs hope £70m spend will save lives in areas with high death rates from disease

The NHS is spending £70m placing mobile scanning trucks in supermarket car parks in a bid to cut deaths from lung cancer by encouraging patients to undergo a check-up.

NHS England chiefs hope the initiative will improve Britain’s poor record on the early diagnosis of lung cancer and survival rates. Lung cancer is one of the deadliest forms of the disease. The Guardian