Drop-in Covid jabs clinic at Eid event on Northampton Racecourse this weekend

Drop-in Covid jabs clinic at Eid event on Northampton Racecourse this weekend Health experts are warning Covid-19 is still very much around in Northamptonshire despite things feeling “back to normal”.

Official figures revealed eight deaths linked to the virus in the county in the last week or so despite a huge fall in hospital patients being treated for the virus. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

How artificial intelligence is a 'second pair of eyes' in KGH cancer trial

How artificial intelligence is a 'second pair of eyes' in KGH cancer trial Artificial intelligence (AI) is being used on some patients at KGH as part of a major study which aims to help better detect bowel cancer.

The Rothwell Road hospital is one of just nine NHS endoscopy units taking part in the UK-first clinical trial, called COLO-DETECT. Northamptonshire Telegraph

KGH improving after warning notice - but there's still work to do

KGH improving after warning notice - but there's still work to do Kettering General Hospital has improved safety on its wards after a rocket from health inspectors – but there’s still more work to do.

The Rothwell Road hospital was given a warning notice last year by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for failing to meet two of its legal care requirements. Northamptonshire Telegraph

NHS trust improves safety of mental health patients but more work is needed, say inspectors

NHS trust improves safety of mental health patients but more work is needed, say inspectors An NHS trust which provides mental health services across the city and county has made improvements following a critical inspection report last year but still has work to do, the latest assessment of its work has concluded. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out a follow-up inspection of Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust having previously found that some patients were unable to call for help and staff were walking in on them while they were changing. Leicestershire Live

Party politics and attitudes towards the NHS

Party politics and attitudes towards the NHS The Nuffield Trust and The King's Fund's analysis of the latest NatCen British Social Attitudes survey found that overall public satisfaction with the NHS had plummeted to just 36 per cent. Health is a highly politicised issue in the UK, so how does that picture look when broken down by party-political allegiance?

An analysis of hospital estate spending in the English NHS

An analysis of hospital estate spending in the English NHS Using data on the estate costs of the NHS in England, this research assesses whether there are any potential inefficiencies and best practices that can be identified. As this is taxpayers’ money, politicians and NHS managers should be able to justify any apparent anomalies and inefficiencies that appear and use this to make savings without affecting patient care. TaxPayers' Alliance 

See also:

• NHS trusts waste £220MILLION every year on over-priced gas and electricity deals  The Daily Mail

NHS rolls out life-saving arthritis drug to treat COVID

NHS rolls out life-saving arthritis drug to treat COVID The NHS is rolling out a cutting-edge, life-saving COVID treatment from today, which is proven to save lives when given to the most seriously ill COVID patients in hospital.

The RECOVERY trial carried out through the NHS found that 13% fewer severely ill patients died of COVID when treated with arthritis drug baricitinib compared to existing treatment options.

Typically used to treat arthritis to reduce pain and inflammation, baricitinib can now be given to hospitalised COVID patients in addition to current treatments, and clinical studies show that this can provide benefits on top of existing treatment. NHS England

See also:

• NHS delivers more than half of spring boosters as latest invites land NHS England
• National flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports published UK Health Security Agency

Covid: World’s true pandemic death toll nearly 15 million, says WHO

Covid: World’s true pandemic death toll nearly 15 million, says WHO The Covid pandemic has caused the deaths of nearly 15 million people around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates.

That is 13% more deaths than normally expected over two years.

The WHO believes many countries undercounted the numbers who died from Covid - only 5.4 million were reported. BBC News

See also:

• 14.9 million excess deaths associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 World Health Organization
• Does US really have world's highest Covid death toll? BBC News
• Russia, India and Indonesia have all faced MORE excess deaths than the US, WHO says The Daily Mail
• UK's daily Covid wave shrinks again as hospital admissions fall by a quarter and cases slump The Daily Mail
• UK government accused of ‘explaining away’ Covid race issues The Guardian
• Black and Asian Britons who refused Covid vaccine faced racial discrimination from NHS staff, study finds iNews
• Omicron just as deadly as earlier Covid variants, Harvard scientists claim The Independent
• NHS rolls out life-saving arthritis drug to treat severely ill Covid patients iNews
• COVID-19: the next phase and beyond (open access) The Lancet

Hospitals urged to use retired staff to cut backlog

Hospitals urged to use retired staff to cut backlog NHS bosses in England are urging hospitals to offer staff more overtime and tempt retired employees back, to help tackle waiting lists.

A letter sent by NHS England said tackling the backlog that had grown during the pandemic would require a "number of high impact actions".

And many hospitals were already taking innovative approaches to the issue. BBC News

See also:

• Desperate NHS begs retiring doctors to stay: Medics urged to WFH or part-time amid staffing crisis The Daily Mail
• Focus on doctor retention must equal recruitment efforts, GMC chief warns GPonline
• NHS backlogs: 'majority' of retiring doctors won't heed call to stay amid 'unbearable' conditions says GP iNews

Sajid Javid in crisis talks over HRT shortages

Sajid Javid in crisis talks over HRT shortages The UK’s acute shortage of hormone replacement therapy products for menopausal women has prompted the health secretary to call a meeting with industry representatives and the government’s new HRT supply tsar to discuss the crisis. The Guardian

NHS Inboxes Hijacked to Send 1000+ Malicious Emails

NHS Inboxes Hijacked to Send 1000+ Malicious Emails More than 1000 phishing emails were sent from compromised National Health Service (NHS) inboxes over a six-month period ending this year, according to new research from Inky.

The email security firm claimed the campaign started around October 2021 and escalated “dramatically” in March this year, when Inky detected 1157 phishing emails originating from NHSmail inboxes. Infosecurity Magazine