Here's where Covid infections are rising fastest in Northamptonshire as ‘Freedom Day’ approaches

Here's where Covid infections are rising fastest in Northamptonshire as ‘Freedom Day’ approaches Areas in and around Northampton, Daventry, Wellingborough where infection rates have risen by up to 1,000 percent in a week. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Three St Andrew's Hospital patients to feature in documentary to raise awareness of mental health

Three St Andrew's Hospital patients to feature in documentary to raise awareness of mental health Three Northampton hospital patients will feature in a documentary to raise awareness of mental health and to help quash the stigma associated with it.

‘I’m Not Mad, I’m Me’ follows Kayleigh, Charlie and Jo as they prepare to leave St Andrew’s Hospital. Northampton Chronicle and Echo 

Kettering General Hospital NHS FT commences major records digitisation

Kettering General Hospital NHS FT commences major records digitisation Kettering General Hospital has embarked on a major medical records digitisation project with partners System C, IMMJ Systems and SPS that will see more than 220,000 medical records securely scanned into the IMMJ Systems MediViewer™ Electronic Document Management System (EDMS). National Health Executive

Expansion of clinics at Brackley's new medical centre provides services on patients' doorstep

Expansion of clinics at Brackley's new medical centre provides services on patients' doorstep Travelling to Banbury, Oxford or Northampton will be less likely for some Brackley patients with the expansion of outpatient clinics at the town's new medical centre. Banbury Guardian 

‘Blame culture’ in maternity safety failures prevents lessons being learnt

‘Blame culture’ in maternity safety failures prevents lessons being learnt A wide-ranging report by the Health and Social Care Committee on maternity safety in England finds that improvements in maternity services have been too slow, with the CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals reporting evidence of a ‘defensive culture’, ‘dysfunctional teams’ and ‘safety lessons not learned’. Professor Ted Baker told the inquiry that more than a third of CQC ratings for maternity services identified requirements to improve safety, larger than in any other specialty. MPs recommend urgent action to address staffing shortfalls in maternity services, with staffing numbers identified as the first and foremost essential building block in providing safe care. 

See also:

• Culture of blame holding back maternity safety, report finds BBC News
• ‘A cascade of catastrophic failings’: the UK’s baby death scandals The Guardian
• MPs say 1,000 babies die preventable deaths in England each year The Guardian
• Ministers must invest £350m to make maternity units safe, MPs say The Independent
• Maternity services in England need urgent improvement and at least £200m more to reduce unnecessary deaths, says MPs' report Sky News

Government pledges £2.45 million to improve childbirth care

Government pledges £2.45 million to improve childbirth care  Maternity safety minister Nadine Dorries has announced £2.45 million funding which will benefit NHS maternity staff and improve the safety of the women and babies they care for. Department of Health and Social Care

Covid: Most rules set to end in England, says PM

Covid: Most rules set to end in England, says PM Face masks will no longer be legally required and distancing rules will be scrapped at the final stage of England's Covid lockdown roadmap, Boris Johnson has confirmed.

The rule of six inside private homes will be removed and work-from-home guidance abolished as 16 months of on-off restrictions on daily life end.

The PM said he expected the final step would go ahead as planned on 19 July. BBC News

See also:

• Covid: Fully jabbed people to be treated differently - Javid BBC News
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson announces 'five point plan for living with Covid' BBC News
• Covid: Johnson, Whitty and Vallance on when they'll still wear face masks BBC News
• Covid-19: New rules for schools in England to be set out BBC News
• Covid-19: 'For us it's not freedom day, is it?' BBC News
• Covid: What's the roadmap for lifting lockdown? BBC News
• Covid: Why is social distancing coming to an end? BBC News
• Coronavirus: When can we stop wearing face masks or coverings? BBC News
• What next for the NHS Covid-19 contact tracing app? BBC News
• So just how long will your jab protect you from Covid? The Daily Mail
• Covid UK: 27,334 new daily cases and nine deaths as infections rise 20% in a week The Daily Mail
• Daily cases could hit 50000 by July 19 but Britain can start to live with Covid, says Sajid Javid The Daily Telegraph
• Lifting Covid rules in England: what has Boris Johnson announced? The Guardian
• Chris Whitty: keeping Covid restrictions will only delay wave The Guardian

Blood test to spot pancreatic cancer could be available within months

Blood test to spot pancreatic cancer could be available within months A test that spots pancreatic cancer from a single drop of blood could improve survival rates. The first blood test for early diagnosis of the hard-to-spot disease, it could be available within months.

Pancreatic cancer has the lowest survival rate of the common cancers, with 7.3 per cent of patients alive five years after diagnosis, compared to 58.4 per cent of bowel cancer patients and 85 per cent of breast cancer patients. The Daily Mail