New smear test campaign launched in Northampton to tackle decline in women getting tested

New smear test campaign launched in Northampton to tackle decline in women getting tested Public Health England has today launched a major campaign in the East Midlands ‘Cervical Screening Saves Lives’, to increase the number of women attending their cervical screening.

The campaign will encourage women to respond to their cervical screening invitation letter, and if they missed their last screening, to book an appointment at their GP practice.

Around 258 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer in the East Midlands each year and around 69 women die from the disease. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Public satisfaction with the NHS and social care in 2018: Results from the British Social Attitudes survey

Public satisfaction with the NHS and social care in 2018: Results from the British Social Attitudes survey The latest survey was carried out between July and October 2018 and asked a nationally representative sample of 2,926 people about their satisfaction with the NHS overall, and 973 people about their satisfaction with individual NHS and social care services. The 2018 BSA survey questions reported here were jointly sponsored by the Nuffield Trust and The King’s Fund.

See also:

• Why is public satisfaction with the NHS still falling? The King's Fund
• British public’s satisfaction with the NHS at lowest level in over a decade Nuffield Trust
• What does the British public think about social care? Nuffield Trust
• Satisfaction with NHS 'hits 11-year low'  BBC News
• British public's satisfaction with the NHS falls to just 53% - the lowest level since 2007 The Daily Mail
• Public satisfaction over the NHS is lowest in a decade, despite £20bn ‘birthday boost’ The Daily Telegraph
• Satisfaction with NHS falls to lowest level for a decade The Guardian
• Public satisfaction with government’s running of NHS at lowest level since financial crisis, research shows The Independent

Consultation response: The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Additional Voluntary Contributions and Injury Benefits (Amendment) Regulations 2019

Consultation response: The National Health Service Pension Scheme, Additional Voluntary Contributions and Injury Benefits (Amendment) Regulations 2019 The original consultation ran from 18 December 2018 to 28 January 2019 and proposals included changes to contribution rates, providing civil partners and same sex spouses with the same survivor pension rights as widows, and extending the current forfeiture of pension benefits rules. The government received almost 1,500 responses to the consultation. This report summarises the consultation findings and the government’s response. Department of Health and Social Care

Care home performance across England

Care home performance across England This briefing assesses the state of care home performance across England and looks at what is being done to tackle poor performance. The report uses publicly available inspection data from the Care Quality Commission to work out a total figure for the percentage of care homes in each local authority that are rated either “Inadequate” or “Requires Improvement”. The briefing also outlines how Independent Age want to see care home quality develop and what factors are key to ensuring that care home quality does improve. Independent Age

Transgender teen care 'needs urgent regulation'

Transgender teen care 'needs urgent regulation' Young transgender people are being let down by the "terrible" quality of evidence underpinning their treatment and care, a leading researcher warns.

Prof Carl Heneghan, from Oxford University, said there was an "urgent" need for a new regulator in the field.

He said much more "rigorous" and "robust" research was needed into the effects of drugs given to young transgender people.

But the Department of Health says it has no plans to create a new regulator. BBC News

Two-thirds of pregnant women under-25 show signs of mental health problems, 'alarming' research finds

Two-thirds of pregnant women under-25 show signs of mental health problems, 'alarming' research finds As many as two-thirds of young, pregnant women may have a mental health disorder, according to UK research which found “shockingly high levels” among under 25s.

Academics from King’s College London found 67 per cent of women aged 16 to 24 met the criteria for a mental health condition, including anxiety, depressionand post-traumatic stress disorder. This compared to around one in five women 25 and over.

The researchers said their “alarming” findings come amid increasing recognition of rising unmet mental health needs among young people. The Independent

See also:

• Young pregnant women and risk for mental disorders: findings from an early pregnancy cohort (open access) British Journal of Psychiatry Open

Private ambulances increasingly used by NHS ‘putting patients at risk’, damning report finds

Private ambulances increasingly used by NHS ‘putting patients at risk’, damning report finds A damning report has warned that the increasing use of private ambulances is leading to examples of poor care, including a dialysis patient left to wander the streets.

Private ambulances are being used by the NHS more and more to transport patients to appointments and hospital, and to respond to emergency 999 calls.

But the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said it was concerned about the quality of care, staff training and use of medicines. The Independent

See also:

• The state of care in independent ambulance services Care Quality Commission

NHS cancer centre loses scanning contract to private firm

NHS cancer centre loses scanning contract to private firm Doctors express disgust after eminent hospital fails to win tender for PET-CT services

NHS chiefs are pushing through plans to let private companies take over scanning services that are vital in treating cancer patients, having told ministers last week that privatisation was harming patient care.

Despite its international reputation for cancer care, Churchill hospital in Oxford has lost its contract to carry out PET-CT scans to InHealth, a private company, as part of the tendering process, the Guardian can reveal.

Ketamine-based drug approved for treating severe depression in the US

Ketamine-based drug approved for treating severe depression in the US A variant of the party drug Ketamine has been licensed in the US for treatment-resistant depression.

The decision comes as the European Medicines Agency (EMA) considers a similar application, which could see British patients given the powerful anaesthetic better known as an illegal club drug.

The US Food and Drink Administration (FDA) yesterday licensed the nasal spray for use by those who have already tried at least two medications for depression, without success. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Esketamine: US regulator approves nasal spray to treat depression BBC News

‘Devastating' loophole means bladder cancer patients face FIVE MONTH wait for treatment

‘Devastating' loophole means bladder cancer patients face FIVE MONTH wait for treatment Patients with bladder cancer are being made to wait up to five months for treatment because of an NHS loophole, it has been revealed.

Health service guidance counts a biopsy – the removal of a small sample of cells to be tested – as the beginning of treatment.

This means the NHS's 62-day treatment waiting limit stops once a patient has had a biopsy, and they are being left to wait up to 144 days to start actual therapy.

Politicians and campaigners have written to the Government urging it to act to improve care for patients with the illness, which kills around 5,000 Britons per year. The Daily Mail