St Andrew's Healthcare: Up to 50 patients stuck in secure units

St Andrew's Healthcare: Up to 50 patients stuck in secure units Up to 50 patients, some with learning disabilities and autism who should be released, are stuck in secure units run by a mental health hospital charity.

St Andrew's Healthcare, which treats up to 900 patients, told the BBC there was a lack of suitable community places.

Footage of a teenager locked in seclusion, able to touch their parent only through a door hatch at one of its units, has been shown to the BBC.

The hospital said seclusion was used as an emergency response only. BBC News

Outstanding models of district nursing

Outstanding models of district nursing This report, written in conjunction with the Royal College of Nursing, calls for urgent investment in district nursing, as new figures show the number of district nurses working in the NHS has dropped by almost 43 per cent in England in the last ten years. It explores all the elements which need to be in place to support an outstanding district nursing service. Queen's Nursing Institute

Learning Disability Mortality Review (LeDeR) programme: action from learning

Learning Disability Mortality Review (LeDeR) programme: action from learning This report provides examples of the local changes that have been made to services so far and highlights the extensive work which is happening nationally in response to common themes raised through LeDeR reviews across the country. NHS England

Independent review of local government spending need and funding

Independent review of local government spending need and funding This report identifies a funding gap of over £50bn over the next six years for councils in England. It estimates that by 2025, 78 per cent of the 36 county authorities’ spending will relate to four key service areas: adult social care, children’s services, public health and education services. County Councils Network

Taking the p***: the decline of the great British public toilet

Taking the p***: the decline of the great British public toilet The report explores the state of the UK’s public conveniences, the impact this has on health and wellbeing, and public perceptions of what should be done. It sheds light on the health burden of this declining public toilet provision, which falls disproportionately on people with ill health or disability, the elderly, women, outdoor workers, and the homeless. For example, fear of or knowledge of a lack of facilities nearby can tie people to within a small distance of their home, acting as a ‘loo leash’ for many. Royal Society for Public Health

Mumps and measles cases in England prompt vaccine call

Mumps and measles cases in England prompt vaccine call A significant increase in mumps cases and continuing outbreaks of measles in England have led to calls for people to ensure they are immunised.

Public Health England said even one person missing their vaccinations was "too many".

There were 795 cases of mumps in the first three months of 2019, compared with 1,031 in the whole of 2018.

Most mumps cases are linked to teenagers mixing when they go to university. BBC News

See also:

• MMR vaccination call following high numbers of measles cases Public Health England
• Research and analysis: Measles, mumps and rubella: lab-confirmed cases in England 2019 Public Health England
• Scientist behind anti-vaxxers' favorite study says 'it's just not even a valid' The Daily Mail
• Measles outbreaks in Europe spark calls for children to be vaccinated The Daily Telegraph

Surgeons warn of serious hand injuries from dog leads and collars

Surgeons warn of serious hand injuries from dog leads and collars Surgeons are warning dog owners not to wrap leads around their fingers or wrist because of the dangers of serious hand injury.

They say thousands of people could be at risk from lacerations, friction burns, fractures and ligament injuries.

There were 30 serious hand injuries caused by dog leads last year in Cornwall alone, the British Society for Surgery of the Hand said. BBC News

See also:

• Dog owners are suffering hand injuries because they’re holding their leads wrong The Daily Mail

GPs must maintain commissioning role as CCGs merge

GPs must maintain commissioning role as CCGs merge The role of GPs in organising care must be maintained as part of significant changes to commissioning arrangements in the NHS in England, according to a report published yesterday.
The report by NHS Clinical Commissioners, the representative body of clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), warns that planned changes to commissioning as part of the NHS Long Term Plan must not result in any less of a role for GPs and clinicians in this area.

The report The changing face of clinical commissioning highlights the strengths and successes of nine CCGs across England while stressing that clinical leadership must not be lost as the NHS works towards the ambitions of the NHS Long Term Plan. OnMedica

NHS and care regulator missed care home abuse of vulnerable patients on multiple occasions

NHS and care regulator missed care home abuse of vulnerable patients on multiple occasions Health watchdogs had no concerns when they twice visited a private hospital at the centre of a police investigation into the abuse of patients in the months after it had been inspected, The Independent has learnt.

The government said it was “deeply sorry” for the abuse of patients at Whorlton Hall in County Durham, which cares for people with learning disabilities, autism and complex needs.

See also:

• Whorlton Hall: Care home abuse missed despite at least 100 official visits BBC News
• Care minister Caroline Dinenage 'deeply sorry' over hospital abuse BBC News
• Years after my son died in NHS care, state-sanctioned torture continues The Guardian

Big pharma poured £57m into UK patient charities which could influence NHS drug decision makers, report finds

Big pharma poured £57m into UK patient charities which could influence NHS drug decision makers, report finds Drug companies poured £57m into UK patient groups who research and lobby for new treatments into specific conditions – in many cases the same drugs being marketed by their donors.

An investigation by Bath University researchers into donations by big pharma and other industry bodies found the number of donations between 2014 and 2016 rose by a third and the value more than doubled. The Independent

See also:

• Exposing drug industry funding of UK patient organisations (open access) The BMJ

NHS to sign up patients for 'virtual' A&E in tech revolution

NHS to sign up patients for 'virtual' A&E in tech revolution Exclusive: Patients checking systems will be told by chatbot if they need to go to hospital

Millions of patients will be encouraged to use digital technology to assess how ill they are under a groundbreaking initiative by a leading NHS hospital, as part of a drive to reduce the use of A&E and outpatient appointments.

A revolution in the NHS’s embrace of technology will see patients in Birmingham advised to use online – live and automated – chat services, online symptom checkers and video consultations with doctors and nurses to help relieve the “unsustainable” pressure on services. The Guardian

Four pharma companies ‘worked together to inflate a drug price 700% in just four years’

Four pharma companies ‘worked together to inflate a drug price 700% in just four years’  The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has accused pharmaceutical firms Alliance, Focus, Lexon and Medreich of breaking competition law by setting up a controlled supply of a medicine. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Drug firms accused of illegal market sharing over anti-nausea tablets Competition and Markets Authority
• Colluding drug firms 'cost the NHS millions of pounds' BBC News
• Collusion by drug firms cost NHS millions of pounds, watchdog finds The Independent

Nurses are routinely told by NHS bosses to put up with sex pest patients

Nurses are routinely told by NHS bosses to put up with sex pest patients Nurses are routinely told by hospital bosses to put up with sexual harassment at work because it is an ‘occupational hazard’, a conference heard.

Staff said the ‘sexy nurse stereotype from Carry On films’ persists and meant patients felt they could get away with inappropriate comments or touching.

Speaking at the Royal College of Nursing annual congress in Liverpool, nurses said they had received rape threats, sexual comments and been followed to their cars – only for NHS managers to laugh it off. The Daily Mail