Northamptonshire mental health services in line for national award

Northamptonshire mental health services in line for national award Northamptonshire’s community services for people in mental health crisis have been shortlisted for a prestigious award.

Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust could win a Health Service Journal (HSJ) Value Award for its services available to manage and reduce the risk of mental health crisis for people in the county.

These community services have reduced the burden on emergency services and acute inpatient mental health, resulting in significant financial system savings. Northamptonshire Telegraph

A modest proposal? Choice and competition in the long-term plan

A modest proposal? Choice and competition in the long-term plan ‘When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?’ That paraphrase of a quote, usually (but not entirely accurately) attributed to John Maynard Keynes, was Simon Stevens’s response at the Nuffield Trust’s Health Policy Summit last week to an entirely fair question from Mark Dayan.

Namely, how is it that the man who was first Alan Milburn’s and then Tony Blair’s special adviser in the early 2000s and did so much to re-inforce the ‘choice and competition’ model in the National Health Service is now systematically unpacking much of it? The King's Fund

Breaking point: the social care burden on women

Breaking point: the social care burden on women This report sets out the challenges facing many women who are carers. The report shows how women are going above and beyond to care for loved ones because good, reliable social care support isn't available. Age UK

Air pollution: Cars should be banned near schools says public health chief

Air pollution: Cars should be banned near schools says public health chief Public health chiefs have called for drivers to switch off their engines when they drop children off at school.

Paul Cosford, medical director of Public Health England, told the BBC children should grow up "free from the scourge and harm of air pollution".

His comments came as PHE published a series of recommendations on how the government can improve air quality.

PHE said 28,000 to 36,000 deaths a year in the UK could be attributed to long-term exposure to air pollution. BBC News

See also:

• Improving outdoor air quality and health: review of interventions Public Health England
• New funding to research health impact of climate change Public Health England
• Ban cars from idling near schools, says UK public health agency The Guardian
• Toxic fumes from ships linked to thousands of UK deaths The Independent

Robot rolls into hospital ward and tells 97-year-old man he is dying

Robot rolls into hospital ward and tells 97-year-old man he is dying A 97-year-old man was told he would die within days via a robot that rolled into his intensive care unit during the night at a hospital in California.

Ernesto Quintana was given the terminal diagnosis by a doctor who appeared on a video screen on the robot after he was admitted to Kaiser Permanente Medical Centre in San Francisco on Sunday.

His family said they were “shocked” the news Mr Quintana would die from his chronic lung disease was communicated via the robot. The Independent

NHS hospitals could face fines for breaches of new sepsis rules

NHS hospitals could face fines for breaches of new sepsis rules NHS England staff told to look out for signs of sepsis in patients attending A&E

Hospitals could face financial penalties if they fail to meet new guidelines for detecting and treating sepsis.

The guidance, mandated by NHS England, includes a requirement for staff to alert senior doctors if patients suspected of having the deadly condition do not respond to treatment within one hour. The Guardian

See also:

• NHS Long Term Plan to reduce toll of ‘hidden killer’ sepsis NHS England
• Hospitals face fines if they fail to spot and treat 'silent killer' sepsis under new rules The Daily Mail

Teenagers kept in temporary mental health units for more than a year

Teenagers kept in temporary mental health units for more than a yearMore than half of young people admitted to short stay mental health units are being kept there for longer than the recommended maximum stay of six weeks, Sky News can reveal.

Some young people end up staying in the units for months, or more than a year.

See also:

• Teenagers kept in temporary mental health units for more than a year, despite six week guideline The Daily Telegraph

Mother in FGM case 'betrayed' three-year-old daughter by mutilating her, as she is sentenced to 13 years

Mother in FGM case 'betrayed' three-year-old daughter by mutilating her, as she is sentenced to 13 years The first person to be convicted of FMG in Britain “betrayed” her three-year-old daughter by mutilating her, a judge said, as she jailed her for 13 years. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Mother jailed for female genital mutilation on three-year-old BBC News
• FGM trial: First ever person convicted of practice in UK jailed for 13 years after mutilating 3-year-old daughter The Independent

Dozens of NHS managers are paid more than Theresa May despite promises to crack down on salaries

Dozens of NHS managers are paid more than Theresa May despite promises to crack down on salaries Dozens of local NHS managers pocket more than the Prime Minister – despite promises to crack down on executive pay.

The Mail on Sunday has discovered that at least 25 bureaucrats at county-level NHS clinical commissioning groups received more than £150,000 in salary and bonuses last year.

According to an analysis of the latest annual reports from CCGs across England, a further 423 individuals were paid more than £100,000, with hundreds more part-time board members earning in excess of Theresa May’s salary on a pro-rata basis.

Doctors accuse Britain's first medical cannabis clinic of making unfounded claims over pain relief

Doctors accuse Britain's first medical cannabis clinic of making unfounded claims over pain relief Britain’s first dedicated medical cannabis clinic has been accused by doctors of making unfounded claims for the drug’s pain-relieving qualities.

The private Medical Cannabis Clinic (MCC) opened in Manchester last week amid complaints that patients have been denied access to the drug by the NHS. Further branches are scheduled for Birmingham and London’s Harley Street.

The MCC website claims the drug can help with chronic pain, but guidelines issued by the Royal College of Physicians state ‘there is no robust evidence’ for such use. The Daily Mail

See also:

• UK’s first medical cannabis clinic opens in Greater Manchester The Independent