Thursday 17 September 2020

Chair of Northampton mental health hospital steps down due to shielding as former health minister takes on role

Chair of Northampton mental health hospital steps down due to shielding as former health minister takes on role 
A new chair has been appointed for a Northampton mental health hospital after the current chair announced he is to step down.

Peter Carter joined St Andrew’s in July 2019, but has now ended his reign as he feels he can no longer contribute properly to the transformation strategy of the charity while working remotely due to ongoing shielding requirements. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

‘Most vital ever’ health and care worker flu vaccination drive launched

'Most vital ever’ health and care worker flu vaccination drive launched 
The health and social care service’s most senior clinicians and leaders have urged their frontline colleagues to get their annual flu jab as soon as possible, as the first vaccine deliveries start to reach local employers this week.
This comes alongside an expanded flu vaccination programme for both the public and frontline health and social care workers, with a record 30 million people eligible for a free vaccine this year. NHS England

New personalised care training hub will set standards for evidence-based education and aims to reach 75,000 health and care workers by 2024

New personalised care training hub will set standards for evidence-based education and aims to reach 75,000 health and care workers by 2024 The Personalised Care Institute (PCI), a virtual organisation for evidence-based personalised care training, convened by the Royal College of GPs in partnership and funded by NHS England and Improvement launches today. The PCI will set standards for evidence-based training, offering workers from across health and care sectors access to accredited personalised care training and development. RCGP

Making history: health visiting during Covid-19

Making history: health visiting during Covid-19 
Institute of Health Visiting -
This collection of case studies presents a window into the working lives of health visitors and families navigating the ups and downs of the Covid-19 pandemic. The case studies, family stories and creative pieces contained capture the pace and scale of change as health visiting services adapted to working during “lockdown”. King's Fund

Next steps for funding mental healthcare in England: prevention

Next steps for funding mental healthcare in England: prevention The RCPsych has identified four areas that must be fully and sustainably resourced if access to quality of mental health services in England that have been promised by government is to be realised. These are: infrastructure; prevention; people; and technology. This paper focuses on prevention and considers the next steps for funding mental healthcare in England, with a specific focus on public health and prevention, promoting resilience in social care and budgeting for workforce growth, education and training. King's Fund

Maximum jail term for attacking emergency workers to be doubled

Maximum jail term for attacking emergency workers to be doubled 
The maximum penalty for assaulting police officers, nurses or any other emergency workers is to be doubled from one to two years.

It follows a consultation this summer on raising punishments and comes amid a series of reforms to sentencing being announced by the Ministry of Justice this week. The Guardian

Fears Covid may leave thousands in UK with severe kidney disease

Fears Covid may leave thousands in UK with severe kidney disease 
Tens of thousands of people may require kidney dialysis or transplants because of coronavirus, according to experts who warn the long-term effects of Covid are causing an “epidemic in primary care”.

Up to 90% of coronavirus patients admitted to hospital may still experience symptoms two to three months later – from breathlessness to joint pain, fatigue and chest pain – scientists told the Lords science and technology committee on Tuesday. The Guardian

Covid disruption leaves thousands of UK stroke patients disabled

Covid disruption leaves thousands of UK stroke patients disabled 
Thousands of stroke patients have suffered avoidable disability because NHS care for them was disrupted during the pandemic, a report claims.

Many people who had just had a stroke found it harder to obtain clot-busting drugs or undergo surgery to remove a blood clot from their brain, both of which need to happen quickly. The Guardian

UK Covid testing system has 'huge problems', admits Boris Johnson

UK Covid testing system has 'huge problems', admits Boris Johnson Boris Johnson has said the Covid-19 testing system currently “has huge problems” during a sometimes downbeat appearance before an influential committee of MPs, as new figures showed nearly 4,000 UK cases in the 24 hours up to Wednesday morning, the highest daily total since early May. The Guardian

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Plans to record pregnant women's alcohol consumption in England criticised

Plans to record pregnant women's alcohol consumption in England criticised 
Pregnant women’s alcohol consumption could be recorded on their child’s medical records under plans for England being considered by National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), prompting criticism from pregnancy rights advocates.
The proposal from Nice has been drawn up as part of a consultation to cement guidelines for doctors to diagnose and prevent foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). The Guardian

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