Gridlocked health and care system leading to deterioration in people’s access to and experience of care

Gridlocked health and care system leading to deterioration in people’s access to and experience of care The Care Quality Commission’s (CQC’s) annual assessment of the state of health and social care in England looks at the quality of care over the past year.

This year – based on CQC’s inspection activity, information received from the public and those who deliver care alongside other evidence – the assessment is that the health and care system is gridlocked and unable to operate effectively.

Most people are still receiving good care when they can access it – too often, however, people are not able to access the care they need. Capacity in adult social care has reduced and unmet need has increased. Only 2 in 5 people are able to leave hospital when they are ready to do so, contributing to record-breaking waits in emergency departments following a decision to admit, and dangerous ambulance handover delays.

See also:

• CQC State of Care report highlights immediate need to get a grip on staff retention BMA
• Chronic staffing gaps putting unbearable strain on health and care services The Health Foundation
• NHS Confederation responds to CQC State of Care report NHS Confederation
• Fix serious workforce shortages to ease NHS and social care overload NHS Providers
• RCN responds to the publication of the Care Quality Commission’s State of Care report Royal College of Nursing
• RCP responds to Care Quality Commission’s State of Care report Royal College of Physicians
• Patients at risk as NHS and care 'gridlocked' BBC News
• 'Gridlocked' health and social care system is putting patients at risk of harm, regulator warns The Daily Mail
• More than HALF of NHS maternity units fail to meet safety standards The Daily Mail
• Gridlocked NHS putting patients at risk and driving up GP workload, warns CQC GPonline
• Care substandard at 39% of maternity units in England, NHS watchdog finds The Guardian
• Maternity services standards at record low level as care watchdog warns of ‘systemic’ NHS failings The Independent
• Workforce the size of Newcastle needed to ease 'gridlocked' health and care system Sky News

Integrated workforce thinking across systems: practical solutions to support integrated care systems (ICSs)

Integrated workforce thinking across systems: practical solutions to support integrated care systems (ICSs) Improved outcomes in population health and healthcare is one of the fundamental purposes of integrated care systems (ICSs). To achieve this, partners from across both health and social care must come together to plan and develop a workforce that integrates and connects across all parts of the system to deliver personal, person-centred care to their local populations now and in the future. This is a new way of working for some in health and social care, so this guide builds on emerging lessons to support people to do this successfully across sectors and within multi-agency services. NHS Employers

Child obesity levels likely to be higher in areas with more poverty and lower breastfeeding rates

Child obesity levels likely to be higher in areas with more poverty and lower breastfeeding rates Children are more likely to be obese or overweight in areas of England where there is more childhood poverty, lower breastfeeding rates and where fewer adults undertake physical exercise. According to a new report looking at Reception and Year 6 children, poorer access to places for children to engage in physical activities is also associated with more children being overweight and obese. Nuffield Trust

See also:

• Childhood obesity: is where you live important? Nuffield Trust

Poverty and the health and care system: the role of data and partnership in bringing change

Poverty and the health and care system: the role of data and partnership in bringing change Health and care systems can mitigate, reduce and prevent poverty’s effects on health, but to do this they need to be much better at sharing and acting on data. This long read with the Centre for Progressive Policy sets out the data available, explores existing good practice, and what needs to happen next. The King's Fund

Homeless and Inclusion health nursing: case studies

Homeless and Inclusion health nursing: case studies This collection of case studies demonstrates the role that specialist homeless and inclusion health nurses play in protecting and improving the health and wellbeing of the most disadvantaged members of society. Queen’s Nursing Institute

Pathfinder 2022: faster, further and fairer

Pathfinder 2022: faster, further and fairer This report shows that although there have been significant improvements over the years for women with ovarian cancer, not enough progress has been made in diagnosis, awareness, treatment and support. It reveals that if diagnosis was faster, further support was available and access to treatment was fairer, there could be potential for more women to survive, live well with ovarian cancer and be supported from diagnosis and throughout treatment. Target Ovarian Cancer

Flu comes early in England, with hospital cases rising

Flu comes early in England, with hospital cases rising Cases of flu have climbed quickly in the past week in England, suggesting the season has begun earlier than normal, say officials.

People may have little immunity to flu after a break from the disease during Covid pandemic restrictions.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) says hospital and ICU admissions for the respiratory disease are rising the fastest in children under five.

Hospital rates are going up among the elderly too. BBC News

See also:

• Flu starts to bite... but Covid's easing! The Daily Mail
• Warning for parents after rise in hospitalisations for flu in children under 5 The Independent
• COVID rates start to fall but cases of serious flu rising fast in young children Sky News
• How many people die from the flu? Our World in Data

Families accept damages over Nottingham NHS endoscopy deaths

Families accept damages over Nottingham NHS endoscopy deaths The families of three patients who all died after undergoing the same specialised endoscopy procedure have accepted damages from an NHS trust.

The patients all died after a procedure called an endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Following their deaths, a coroner issued a report calling for changes. BBC News

Gene research finds DNA variants linked to dyslexia in first study of its kind

Gene research finds DNA variants linked to dyslexia in first study of its kind Scientists have for the first time pinpointed a large number of genes that are reliably associated with dyslexia.

Dyslexia is known to run in families – partly because of genetic factors – but until now, little was known about the specific genes that relate to the risk of it developing.

The team behind this latest research claim it is the largest genetic study of dyslexia to date. The Independent

See also:

• Discovery of 42 genome-wide significant loci associated with dyslexia (open access) Nature Genetics
• GWAS of Dyslexia: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS GenLang Consortium
• Gene study identifies DNA variants linked to dyslexia University of Edinburgh

Further cuts will kill off NHS dental services, chancellor told

Further cuts will kill off NHS dental services, chancellor told Jeremy Hunt has been told that any cuts to the health budget will in effect “kill” dental services across the UK and deny millions of patients access to a dentist on the NHS.

The chancellor has told members of the cabinet that “everything is on the table” as he seeks to find tens of billions of pounds in savings after ditching the economic plan of Liz Truss, who said on Thursday she was standing down as prime minister. Health is one key area expected to be hit. The Guardian

See also:

• What will public spending cuts mean for the NHS and social care? The BMJ

Lockdown's collateral cancer burden: 40 THOUSAND tumours were 'missed' in first year of pandemic

Lockdown's collateral cancer burden: 40 THOUSAND tumours were 'missed' in first year of pandemic Almost 40,000 cancers went undiagnosed during the first year of Covid, according to official statistics which lay bare the 'true and catastrophic impact' of the pandemic.

Just 290,000 people in England were told they had cancer in 2020, down by roughly a tenth on one year earlier — the biggest drop logged since records began half a century ago. It was also the fewest annual diagnoses in a decade. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Statistics show an average of 789 new malignant cancers diagnosed a day in 2020 NHS Digital
• Cancer Registration Statistics, England 2020 NHS Digital

A THIRD of doctors and quarter of nurses are now foreign nationals

A THIRD of doctors and quarter of nurses are now foreign nationals A third of doctors and a quarter of nurses are now foreign nationals, new analysis revealed today.

It is the first time both of these milestones have been reached.

Some 209 different nationalities are now represented in the NHS, with countries ranging from India and Pakistan — who together account for nearly one in nine doctors — to the likes of Andorra, Micronesia and Puerto Rico. The Daily Mail