Digital technologies: unlocking collective knowledge and expertise in health and care

Digital technologies: unlocking collective knowledge and expertise in health and care Digital technologies can change how health and care organisations are structured and how they work. They can have an impact on who leaders or staff can reach and hear from: staff can be engaged over longer periods of time and across wider groups of colleagues, and leaders can quantify perceptions of services and reduce their dependency on anecdotal information. The King's Fund

Reliance on international nurse recruitment during a workforce crisis

Reliance on international nurse recruitment during a workforce crisis A cover story in The Times expressed concern at the increasing reliance in the UK on overseas nurses to staff the NHS. The story featured a short piece of exclusive analysis by Dr Billy Palmer drawing on NMC data looking at trends in nurses and midwives joining the UK register from overseas since 2019. Nuffield Trust

See also:

• NHS's reliance on foreign nurses has reached 'unsustainable level', experts warn The Daily Mail

Parks and green spaces should feel safe to bolster mental health - University of York

Parks and green spaces should feel safe to bolster mental health Researchers have co-produced a series of short films with people who have experienced mental illness to show the benefits of outdoor spaces.

The researchers were able to show that being outdoors has significant health benefits, but only if the participants feel safe and the spaces were well maintained. 

The team at the University of York aimed to highlight the benefits, but also the barriers that restrict people, especially those with severe mental illness such as schizophrenia, from accessing natural outdoor green and blue spaces.

£39 million for AMR research as UK launches Global Health Framework

£39 million for AMR research as UK launches Global Health Framework Cutting-edge research initiatives to develop new treatments to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) – known as the “silent killer” – will receive a cash injection of up to £39 million from the UK government’s Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF). Department of Health and Social Care

Supply update: Hormone Replacement Therapy medication Utrogestan®

Supply update: Hormone Replacement Therapy medication Utrogestan® A Serious Shortage Protocol (SSP) has been issued across the United Kingdom for Utrogestan® 100mg capsules today. This will allow pharmacists to dispense a maximum of two months’ supply per prescription to help ensure continued access for women who use this popular medicine to help manage symptoms of the menopause. Department of Health and Social Care

See also:

• Utrogestan: Menopause pill supply restricted over shortages BBC News

New Chief Midwifery Officer for England announced

New Chief Midwifery Officer for England announced We are pleased to announce that Kate Brintworth has been appointed to the role of Chief Midwifery Officer for England. This follows a rigorous recruitment process, which included contributions from colleagues at NHS England and other key stakeholders including the Royal College of Midwives and a family voices panel. NHS England

Labour proposes new NHS targets on reducing deaths

Labour proposes new NHS targets on reducing deaths Sir Keir Starmer is to propose introducing new NHS targets on cutting deaths in England from heart disease, strokes and suicide.

A Labour government would aim to reduce deaths from heart disease and strokes by a quarter over 10 years and see suicide figures decline within five.

The Labour leader is giving a speech on the party's NHS policy later.

The Tories accused Labour of seeking to frustrate its own reforms by repeatedly voting against them. BBC News

See also:

• Labour's NHS plan will offer patients more choice, Wes Streeting says BBC News
• Keir Starmer to pledge an end to the NHS bed-blocking crisis by boosting care sector The Daily Mail
• Labour's NHS fix is pure nanny statism The Daily Telegraph
• More than 23,000 people died in A&E in England last year, Labour estimates The Guardian
• Starmer to warn NHS ‘not sustainable’ without ‘fixing the fundamentals’ The Guardian
• Keir Starmer pledges Labour government will cut suicide rates and NHS waiting times The Independent
• Keir Starmer warns ‘unsustainable’ NHS needs reform not just more money The Independent
• Labour pledge to cut 'dangerous waiting times' in row over the state of the NHS ITV News
• What's in Labour's plans to improve the NHS if they were elected? ITV News
• Keir Starmer's struggled for visionary policy - a distinct approach to the NHS could change that Sky News

Patients will be able to use NHS app to opt for private hospital care to help waiting lists - report

Patients will be able to use NHS app to opt for private hospital care to help waiting lists - report Patients will soon be able to use the NHS app to opt for private hospital treatment in an effort to cut waiting times, according to a report.

The NHS waiting list for routine treatment stands at more than seven million and is predicted to keep rising until next spring. Sky News

See also:

• NHS app will let patients book private care in bid to cut waiting times The Daily Telegraph
• NHS app will refer patients to private hospitals in effort to curb wait times Evening Standard
• NHS app to start referring patients to private hospitals The Independent

New NHS training launched as dementia rates increase among Asian and Black people

New NHS training launched as dementia rates increase among Asian and Black people Healthcare leaders are rolling out new NHS training to help speed up dementia diagnoses among Black and Asian people following criticism about a lack of support for patients from minoritised communities, The Independent can reveal.

An awareness campaign is being launched in England to help those from ethnic minority communities receive a prompt diagnosis and get the support they need at the earliest opportunity.

Mental health patients forced to travel hundreds of miles for treatment despite government pledge

Mental health patients forced to travel hundreds of miles for treatment despite government pledge Some mental health patients in England are still having to travel more than 300 miles for hospital treatment two years after the government pledged to end the “completely unacceptable” practice.

The number of patients in crisis forced to move potentially hundreds of miles for NHS help is rising again after falling during the pandemic, separating them from family and support networks and potentially delaying their recuperation. The Guardian

Nurses in England offered ‘golden hellos’ as trusts try to ease staff crisis

Nurses in England offered ‘golden hellos’ as trusts try to ease staff crisis Nurses in parts of England are being offered “golden hellos” of up to £4,500 to work in the NHS – and not quit – amid fierce competition for staff.

As the government and the Royal College of Nursing remain in deadlock over pay, some NHS trusts desperate to fill posts have launched their own schemes to attract and retain recruits. The incentives – which include bonuses staggered over two years and relocation packages of up to £8,000 – vary by area and come as the health service grapples with critical shortages and high staff turnover. The Guardian

Patients paying £550 an hour to see private GPs amid NHS frustrations

Patients paying £550 an hour to see private GPs amid NHS frustrations Patients are paying up to £550 an hour to see private GPs amid frustration at the delays many face getting an appointment with an NHS family doctor.

Growing numbers of paid-for GP services are opening up across Britain, in the latest sign of how the NHS’s inability to offer prompt care is creating a surge in people resorting to private healthcare. The Guardian

NHS doctors want ChatGPT AI to write patient heart reports so they can see more people

NHS doctors want ChatGPT AI to write patient heart reports so they can see more people NHS heart experts want to use artificial intelligence program ChatGPT to write vital patient reports – because they say it would free up time and allow them to see more people.

The free-to-use software is already being used by students and office-workers to carry out some tasks. The Daily Mail

Breakthrough daily diabetes tablet to treat all British heart failure sufferers secures NHS approval

Breakthrough daily diabetes tablet to treat all British heart failure sufferers secures NHS approval All British heart failure sufferers will now be eligible for a breakthrough daily tablet that dramatically reduces symptoms and boosts survival chances.

The drug, called dapagliflozin, was previously only available to NHS patients with one of the three types of heart failure – representing roughly half of the million people in the UK living with the incurable condition. The Daily Mail

NHS is forced to pay out £4million in compensation and legal fees to victims of sex attacks in hospitals, shocking new figures reveal

NHS is forced to pay out £4million in compensation and legal fees to victims of sex attacks in hospitals, shocking new figures reveal The NHS has paid out millions of pounds in compensation and legal fees over sex attacks since 2018, new figures show.

The health service has paid £2,174,658 in damages as well as £1.5million in claimants' legal costs.

It has also spent £338,194 on its own legal fees, bringing the total bill to more than £4million, The Times reports. The Daily Mail