Northampton care home closure gives residents' families four weeks to find new accommodation

Northampton care home closure gives residents' families four weeks to find new accommodation A Northampton care home is closing, leaving the families of its residents four weeks to find new placements for their loved ones.

Argyle House nursing and residential home broke the news to family members in a letter on Tuesday (March 3), blaming a lack of funds for the closure. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Cardiovascular disease and population health: thinking beyond the hospital ward

Cardiovascular disease and population health: thinking beyond the hospital ward Despite the perception of tremendous advances in modern medicine and the management of cardiovascular disease over several decades, last year the British Heart Foundation revealed that premature death rates for the condition have risen for the first time in 50 years. How can this be explained? The King's Fund

Achieving scale and spread: Learning for innovators and policy-makers

Achieving scale and spread: Learning for innovators and policy-makers In recent years, a significant number of innovators have forged ways to scale and spread innovation in the NHS. However, despite some existing work in this area, less is known about how to achieve greater scale and spread beyond early adopters. The Nuffield Trust was commissioned by the NHS Innovation Accelerator to help fill this knowledge gap.

Feeling the strain What The Commonwealth Fund’s 2019 international survey of general practitioners means for the UK

Feeling the strain: What The Commonwealth Fund’s 2019 international survey of general practitioners means for the UK The Commonwealth Fund surveyed 13,200 primary care physicians across 11 countries between January and June 2019. This included 1,001 general practitioners (GPs) from the UK. The Health Foundation analysed the data and reports on the findings from a UK perspective.

In some aspects of care, the UK performs strongly and is an international leader. Almost all UK GPs surveyed use electronic medical records, and use of data to review and improve care is relatively high.

The survey also highlights areas of major concern for the NHS. Just 6% of UK GPs report feeling ‘extremely’ or ‘very satisfied’ with their workload – the lowest of any country surveyed. Only France has lower overall GP satisfaction with practising medicine. GPs in the UK also report high stress levels, and feel that the quality of care that they and the wider NHS can provide is declining.

See also:

• UK GPs the least satisfied among high income countries with amount of time they have with patients The Health Foundation
• Hurried appointments are leaving GPs stressed and dissatisfied, says RCGP Royal College of General Practitioners
• UK GPs more stressed and dissatisfied than international counterparts GPonline

Mental health crisis services rolled out across England

Mental health crisis services rolled out across England Mental health crisis teams will be strengthened and new alternative forms of provision such as safe havens and crisis cafes will open across the country as part of the NHS Long Term Plan.

More than £200 million of national funding has been allocated to local areas to transform urgent and emergency mental health care through a network of services over the next two years. NHS England

Better Births four years On: a review of progress

Better Births four years On: a review of progress The report shows that good progress is being made over time in reducing perinatal and maternal mortality, despite an overall increase in the complexity of care. However, the picture is complex and in some areas it lacks clarity, partly as a result of data quality, and partly as a result of the time lag in the data. NHS England

Shropshire baby deaths: Trust will return £1m it received for 'good care'

Shropshire baby deaths: Trust will return £1m it received for 'good care' An NHS trust at the centre of an inquiry into preventable baby deaths will repay money it received for providing good maternity care.

In 2018, Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust received almost £1m, weeks before its services were rated inadequate.

The BBC revealed in December the trust had qualified for the payment under the NHS's Maternity Incentive Scheme.

The trust said an "incorrect submission" had been made and it had ordered an independent review. BBC News

See also:

• Maternity safety campaigners head to Downing Street to demand action The Independent

Coronavirus: Older patient becomes first virus fatality in UK

Coronavirus: Older patient becomes first virus fatality in UK A woman with underlying health conditions has become the first person in the UK to die after testing positive for coronavirus.

The Royal Berkshire NHS Trust said the patient, understood to be in her 70s, had been "in and out of hospital for non-coronavirus reasons".

She was admitted and tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday.

It comes as the number of UK people diagnosed with the virus reached 116, a rise of more than 30 in 24 hours. BBC News

See also:

• Second coronavirus case in Northamptonshire is confirmed by health officials Northamptonshire Telegraph
• CMO for England announces first death of patient with COVID-19 Department of Health and Social Care
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) listed as a notifiable disease Department of Health and Social Care
• COVID-19: guidance for health professionals Department of Health and Social Care
• Detailed guide: Coronavirus (COVID-19): latest information and advice Department of Health and Social Care
• How we will continue to regulate in light of novel coronavirus (Covid-19): Joint statement from Chief Executives of statutory regulators of health and care professionals GMC, NMC et al
• Guidance: COVID-19: specified countries and areas Public Health England
• Coronavirus 'community transmission highly likely' BBC News
• Coronavirus: How wash your hands - in 20 seconds BBC News
• Coronavirus: UK moves to part two of virus plan as cases hit 90 BBC News
• Coronavirus: UK is most relaxed, least likely to take precautions The Daily Mail
• Coronavirus can survive on surfaces for three days, says NHS The Daily Mail
• The big danger of coronavirus is that we panic ourselves into a greater crisis The Daily Telegraph
• Medical students and recently retired doctors could help coronavirus response, says CMO GPonline
• CQC to continue inspecting practices despite coronavirus outbreak GPonline
• Why we need worst-case thinking to prevent pandemics The Guardian
• Coronavirus: Doctors and nurses told they can break rules during outbreak The Independent
• Coronavirus: ‘This is not a drill,’ WHO chief says as he warns some nations not grasping reality of disease threat The Independent
• Coronavirus: First person dies after testing positive for virus in UK The Independent
• Coronavirus: What should I do to avoid being infected? The Independent
• Pharmacists could be 'redeployed' to short-staffed areas under NHS COVID-19 plans Pharmaceutical Journal
• NHS England to distribute free coronavirus protective equipment to GP practices Pulse

Boris Johnson close to breaching 100-day promise on social care talks, warn councils

Boris Johnson close to breaching 100-day promise on social care talks, warn councils Next week’s Budget should be used to make urgent progress on the cross-party talk on adult social care which Boris Johnson promised within 100 days of the December election, local councils have said.

The budget falls just 10 days short of the prime minister’s self-imposed deadline, with no sign of the talks getting under way.

Council bosses warned that without a new settlement for social care, local services in England face a funding gap of almost £6.5bn by 2025. The Independent

See also:

• The lives we want to lead - towards change, towards hope Local Government Association

Shocking rough sleeper deaths show the NHS is failing those who need it most

Shocking rough sleeper deaths show the NHS is failing those who need it most | Richard Vize People on the streets are dying decades early, often of treatable conditions

People living on the streets are dying three decades early, but NHS intransigence is undermining attempts to improve services.

Official statistics reveal a shocking story of early, avoidable death. In 2018 the average age of people who died while homeless in England and Wales was around 44. In other words, these 726 souls typically died more than three decades too soon, losing 22,000 years of life between them.

Homeless people find multiple barriers in the health service. The Guardian

'Not a single country' is on course to meet targets to REVERSE spiralling obesity rates by 2025

'Not a single country' is on course to meet targets to REVERSE spiralling obesity rates by 2025 Countries are 'worryingly off-track', World Obesity Federation report says. There is a less than a 10 per cent chance the world will meet targets, research suggests. The UK has 'zero per cent' chance. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Obesity: missing the 2025 global targets (report) World Obesity Federation
• World Obesity Day: ‘All countries significantly off track to meet 2025 WHO targets on Obesity’ World Obesity Federation

NHS test used by GPs to detect adults with autism is UNRELIABLE, academics warn

NHS test used by GPs to detect adults with autism is UNRELIABLE, academics warn An autism test used by GPs to flag adults with the condition in adults is 'unreliable', academics have said.

The Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ10) screens adults who are suspected of having the condition but do not have learning disabilities.

They are asked 10 questions including 'do you notice small sounds others don't?' and 'do you find it hard to read people's emotions from their face?'.

British psychologists examined the effectiveness of AQ10 in measuring autism using data from over 6,500 people in the general population. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Psychometric concerns with the 10-item Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ10) as a measure of trait autism in the general population (open access) Experimental Results