Fresh call for people in Northamptonshire to get their Covid-19 vaccinations

Fresh call for people in Northamptonshire to get their Covid-19 vaccinations As infection levels rise in Northamptonshire, the NHS is urging those eligible for Covid-19 vaccinations to come forward as soon as possible.

People aged 75 and over or 12 and over with a weakened immune system are particularly being reminded to get a spring booster vaccine. Northamptonshire Telegraph

More than a quarter of GP and general practice nursing posts could be vacant in 10 years

More than a quarter of GP and general practice nursing posts could be vacant in 10 years New analysis published today by the Health Foundation’s REAL Centre warns that without urgent, significant policy action, the NHS in England is facing a crippling shortage of GPs and general practice nurses over the coming decade. 

The REAL Centre’s projections show that the shortage of qualified, permanent GPs is set to get substantially worse over this decade. The Health Foundation

See also: 

• Projections: General practice workforce in England The Health Foundation
• Royal College of GPs response to Health Foundation report warning of escalating crisis in general practice Royal College of General Practitioners
• Quarter of GP posts vacant within a decade in England, study warns BBC News
• NHS on course for shortfall of 11,000 GPs within a decade GPonline
• NHS faces 'disastrous' shortfall of 10000 GPs by 2030, report warns The Independent

Policy paper: A plan for digital health and social care

Policy paper: A plan for digital health and social care The plan for digital health and social care sets out a vision for a digitally enabled health and social care system and how we can achieve it – it collates existing digital strategies, plans and guidance into one single action plan. Department of Health and Social Care

Archie Battersbee parents win appeal to reconsider case

Archie Battersbee parents win appeal to reconsider case The parents of a 12-year-old boy at the centre of a life support dispute have won an appeal for his case to be heard again.

Archie Battersbee was found unconscious at his home in Southend, Essex, on 7 April.

A High Court judge previously ruled Archie was dead and told doctors they could end his life support treatment. BBC News

NHS cancer care's 'culture of over treatment' is wasting time and money, report reveals

NHS cancer care's 'culture of over treatment' is wasting time and money, report reveals The NHS is wasting time and money due to a ‘culture of overtreatment’ in cancer care, a report has revealed.

An All-Party Parliamentary Group paper released on Tuesday on minimally invasive cancer treatments (MICTs) found only 10 per cent of cancer patients are offered non-invasive treatments. The Independent

NHS privatisation drive linked to rise in avoidable deaths, study suggests

NHS privatisation drive linked to rise in avoidable deaths, study suggests The privatisation of NHS care accelerated by Tory policies a decade ago has corresponded with a decline in quality and “significantly increased” rates of death from treatable causes, the first study of its kind says. The Guardian

See also:

• Outsourcing health-care services to the private sector and treatable mortality rates in England, 2013–20: an observational study of NHS privatisation (open access) The Lancet Public Health

Coroner issues warning on NHS mental health services after girl’s suicide

Coroner issues warning on NHS mental health services after girl’s suicide A coroner has said Britain is failing young people and more will die because of under-resourced mental health services, as she ruled that neglect led to the death of a 14-year-old girl.

Penelope Schofield, the senior coroner for West Sussex, said she would write to the health secretary, Sajid Javid, to raise concerns after the case of Robyn Skilton, who killed herself after being let down by “gross failures” in NHS mental health services. The Guardian

Doctors condemn sexism and racism within the British Medical Association

Doctors condemn sexism and racism within the British Medical Association Britain's doctors have slammed their own union, the British Medical Association, for being sexist and racist.     

At their yearly meeting in Brighton yesterday, members passed a motion that it was union was 'failing to value and support female members and members from minority groups including BAME, IMG (international medical graduates) and locum doctors'.  The Daily Mail

Seeing the same GP is good for your health... but only HALF of patients are able to do so

Seeing the same GP is good for your health... but only HALF of patients are able to do so Only half of NHS patients regularly get to see the same GP — even though it's better for their health, it emerged today.

Queen Mary University of London experts looked at appointments given to 1million adults registered at 126 GP practices in east London.

Just 52 per cent frequently saw the same family doctor, results showed. The Daily Mail

 

See also:

• Measuring continuity of care in general practice: a comparison of two methods using routinely collected data (open access) British Journal of General Practice