Covid: Northamptonshire hospitals limit visits and reintroduces facemasks

Covid: Northamptonshire hospitals limit visits and reintroduces facemasks Hospital visitors are being asked to wear facemasks and limit their time on wards to help prevent the spread of Covid, two NHS trusts said.

Kettering and Northampton general hospitals, in Northamptonshire, have made facemasks mandatory for all visitors to wards and clinical areas.

Visiting inpatients has been restricted to one visitor for one hour a day.

The changes follow an increase in Covid cases in hospital and in the community, both trusts added. BBC Northampton

Northamptonshire ambulance crews join NHS nurses and midwives in strike ballots

Northamptonshire ambulance crews join NHS nurses and midwives in strike ballots Thousands of East Midlands Ambulance Service workers in Northamptonshire are being urged to vote to strike for the first time in 40 years.

Around 2,000 GMB Union members across the region will be balloted after 88 percent voted in favour of taking industrial action in protest over NHS pay. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Cancer patient, 77, sat and slept in chair for 48 hours at Northampton General Hospital as there were no free beds

Cancer patient, 77, sat and slept in chair for 48 hours at Northampton General Hospital as there were no free beds A 77-year-old woman with cancer was left to sit and sleep in a chair at Northampton General Hospital for 48 hours because there were no beds available. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

A renewed vision for the NHS

A renewed vision for the NHS Given the unprecedented events of recent years and the very different operating environment the NHS now faces compared to 2019, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has engaged on plans for the future. To inform this, the NHS Confederation was invited to contribute ideas on why and how a long-term strategy should be different. Engagement with our members has revealed that health leaders broadly believe that any review of a longer-term approach must achieve three key objectives.

This report outlines our members' views on what national bodies and the government should consider when planning for the future, including how LTP priorities may need to be adjusted post COVID-19. NHS Confederation

Every Mind Matters campaign urges people to be kind to their mind

Every Mind Matters campaign urges people to be kind to their mind The public is urged to “be kind to your mind” as the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID)  launches the latest  Better Health – Every Mind Matters campaign.

Ahead of World Mental Health Day, which begins on Monday 10 October, the campaign calls on people to do small things which can make a big difference to their mental wellbeing and directs them to free tips and advice. Department of Health and Social Care

See also:

• Need to address deep-rooted factors behind poor mental health NHS Providers
• The Provider Podcast - Mental health: Changing needs and access to care NHS Providers

Hidden waits force more than three quarters of mental health patients to seek help from emergency services

Hidden waits force more than three quarters of mental health patients to seek help from emergency services Nearly a quarter of mental health patients (23%) wait more than 12 weeks to start treatment, due to lack of consultant psychiatrists according to research released by the Royal College of Psychiatrists for World Mental Health Day.

A Savanta ComRes poll of 535 British adults diagnosed with a mental illness including eating disorders, addiction, bipolar disorder, anxiety and depression reveals the damaging consequences of hidden waiting lists on the lives of patients.

Over two fifths (43%) say that the wait between initial referral and second appointment – the point when treatment usually starts – has caused their mental health to worsen.

See also: 

• Patients turning to A&E as wait times for NHS mental health treatment spiral The Guardian

NHS urges six million people to get their Covid autumn booster

NHS urges six million people to get their Covid autumn booster More than six million at risk people or over 65s who are yet to get their autumn booster will be reminded to book a jab next week, ahead of winter.

The fastest and largest vaccination programme in NHS history has already delivered over 5.5 million life-saving autumn top-ups to combat Covid since its launch just a month ago. NSH England

See also:

• Guidance: COVID-19: guidance for people whose immune system means they are at higher risk Department of Health and Social Care
• Guidance: SARS-CoV-2 variants of public health interest UK Health Security Agency
• Research: Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 variants: technical briefings UK Health Security Agency

Covid: Protect elderly from rising virus levels in UK

Covid: Protect elderly from rising virus levels in UK Covid is on the rise again in the UK and people who feel unwell should avoid vulnerable friends, colleagues and relatives as a precaution, say experts.

Data suggests 1.3 million or one in 50 has Covid, with a "marked increase" in infections among over-70s in England.

There are no new restrictions, but people are being reminded to take extra care and protect the elderly. BBC News

See also:

• Covid-19 UK: Health chiefs issue advice not to see elderly relatives if feeling unwell The Daily Mail
• Head of UK's vaccine taskforce KATE BINGHAM reveals painful bureaucracy behind jab programme The Daily Mail
• Are people suffering from Covid-19 vaccine fatigue? The Daily Mail
• More than 1m people report long Covid in UK a year after infection The Guardian
• Ex-vaccine head accuses Hancock of ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ behaviour in meeting The Guardian
• NHS may cancel appointments and reduce visiting times over Covid and flu 'twindemic', leaders warn The Independent
• Even mild Covid-19 during pregnancy ‘exhausts placenta and damages immune response’ The Independent
• COVID-19: 'Concerning' increases in COVID hospitalisations - with 250% rise in one region Sky News

Freeze state pensions and slash 'non-frontline' NHS and schools staff, said No 10's economic adviser

Freeze state pensions and slash 'non-frontline' NHS and schools staff, said No 10's economic adviser Liz Truss’s top economic adviser suggested freezing the state pension, halving the government’s publicity budget and slashing “non-frontline” staff in health and schools by 10%, as part of a manifesto designed to win an election while also cutting spending. The Guardian

See also:

• GP demand outstripping supply as NHS faces £7bn budget gap GPonline
• Public sector job losses could pass 100000 if government refuses pay rises, says IFS The Guardian
• Cabinet Office clamps down on trust spending freedom Health Service Journal
• Schools and hospitals ‘must find £11bn of cuts’ after Kwarteng spending freeze The Independent
• NHS faces cuts to cancer, mental health and GP services due to £21bn financial black hole iNews

‘I see no other option’: NHS nurses on potential strikes

‘I see no other option’: NHS nurses on potential strikes The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is balloting 300,000 of its members about strike action over pay and staff shortages. The ballot, which is the first in the union’s 106-year history, is in protest at the government’s decision in July to award most NHS staff a 5% pay rise. The RCN is campaigning for a rise of 5% above inflation, which is currently 10.1%.

Five nurses share their views on potential strike action. The Guardian

How the pound's collapse could scuttle the UK's international nursing recruitment drive

How the pound's collapse could scuttle the UK's international nursing recruitment drive A weaker pound could scuttle Government plans to hire thousands of international nurses to man the NHS during its worst ever staffing crisis, experts warn.

For years, health secretaries have turned to the foreign sector as an easy quick-fix solution to shore up staff numbers.

But last month's disastrous mini-budget from Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, which sent the pound into a rout and sparked economic chaos, has shown the fragility of the UK's overreliance on foreign nursing labour. The Daily Mail

Shocking scenes uncovered inside Britain's mental health service crisis

Shocking scenes uncovered inside Britain's mental health service crisis A shocking undercover investigation has laid bare appalling failures in patient care on Britain’s mental health wards.

Reporters from Channel 4’s Dispatches programme spent three months secretly filming at one of the UK’s biggest mental health trusts – Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust. Their alarming findings are to be aired Monday night (10th October) – and The Mail on Sunday has been granted an exclusive preview.

Dentistry disasters cost the NHS £3m each year

Dentistry disasters cost the NHS £3m each year NHS hospitals are paying out nearly £3 million a year in legal costs following catastrophic errors during dental surgery, latest figures have revealed.

Every year, thousands of patients with complications that require treatment beyond the skills of normal dental practices are referred to hospital for surgery.

The payouts are being used to settle claims with patients for a wide range of mistakes, including having the wrong teeth pulled, suffering unnecessary pain or nerve damage, or not being asked for their consent before having invasive treatments. The Daily Mail