Kettering hospital £400m rebuild commitment reconfirmed by government

 Kettering hospital £400m rebuild commitment reconfirmed by government Work to rebuild Kettering General Hospital (KGH) has been reconfirmed today by the government in a meeting in the House of Commons.

MP for Kettering Philip Hollobone met with the Secretary of State for Health Steve Barclay MP and the Hospitals Minister Lord Markham. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Carers Week 2023 will highlight Northamptonshire's amazing carers

Carers Week 2023 will highlight Northamptonshire's amazing carers A painting event, exercise sessions, well-being walks, a ukulele group and a ‘Last Night of the Proms’ show are some of the activities being highlighted to celebrate the role of carers across Northamptonshire. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Northampton General Hospital bosses apologise for medication blunder as another 'never event' recorded

Northampton General Hospital bosses apologise for medication blunder as another 'never event' recorded Northampton hospital chiefs have apologised to a patient after wrongly administering their medication during an important operation.

In February 2023, a patient at Northampton General Hospital (NGH) was having an operation to treat a broken hip when hospital staff messed up their dose of anaesthetic. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

The case for more geriatricians: strengthening the workforce to care for an ageing population

The case for more geriatricians: strengthening the workforce to care for an ageing population This report is intended to start the conversation about the workforce needed to provide high-quality care for the ageing population with increasingly complex needs. It explains why training, recruiting and retaining geriatricians should be a priority, estimates how many geriatricians are needed to provide safe and effective care for older people. It also outlines some of the structural barriers that currently prevent recruitment and concludes with six calls for governments across the UK. British Geriatrics Society

Five major hospitals to be rebuilt as part of over £20 billion new hospital infrastructure investment

Five major hospitals to be rebuilt as part of over £20 billion new hospital infrastructure investment Patients and staff will benefit from safe, state-of-the-art new facilities and improved care as the government announced its commitment to rebuild five major hospitals by 2030, as part of the New Hospital Programme. For the first time, the government has confirmed a record investment of over £20 billion is expected to be spent on new hospital infrastructure. Department of Health and Social Care

See also:

• Health and Social Care Secretary Oral Statement on NHP Department of Health and Social Care
• NHS Confederation responds to government's New Hospital Programme announcement NHS Confederation
• Clarity on long-awaited New Hospital Programme very welcome but 'capital crunch' persists NHS Providers
• Facing up to a lost decade: statement on new hospitals announcement Nuffield Trust
• Five hospitals at risk of collapse to be rebuilt BBC News
• Labour says Government will break manifesto pledge to build 40 new hospitals The Daily Telegraph
• Government committed to building 40 new hospitals by 2030 – Barclay Evening Standard
• Broken pledge over 40 new hospitals will leave NHS ‘crumbling’, ministers told The Guardian
• Tory pledge to build 40 ‘new’ England hospitals likely to be delayed until after 2030 The Guardian
• Labour claims Tories won’t meet pledge to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 The Independent
• 'Not going to happen': Ministers told 'come clean' on hospitals pledge ITV News
• Steve Barclay insists 40 new hospitals target will still be met - even though only two have been built so far Sky News

Independent report: Commercial clinical trials in the UK: the Lord O’Shaughnessy review

Independent report: Commercial clinical trials in the UK: the Lord O’Shaughnessy review In February 2023, the government commissioned an independent review to offer recommendations on how to resolve key challenges in conducting commercial clinical trials in the UK and transform the UK commercial clinical trial environment. The review sets out 27 recommendations, including both priority actions to progress in 2023 and longer-term ambitions for UK commercial clinical trials. Department of Health and Social Care

Latest mpox cases a reminder that the infection has not gone away

Latest mpox cases a reminder that the infection has not gone away UKHSA is today urging people to remain vigilant to mpox ahead of the summer months, as the latest data shows an increase in cases in London over the past 4 weeks.

In an interim epidemiological update published today (25 May), a further 10 cases of mpox have been diagnosed in the UK since the last epidemiological update on 4 May. This brings the total number of new cases in the UK since the beginning of the year to 20. UK Health Security Agency

See also:

• Monkeypox: London sees rise in cases in last month BBC News

New superbug-killing antibiotic discovered using AI

New superbug-killing antibiotic discovered using AI Scientists have used artificial intelligence (AI) to discover a new antibiotic that can kill a deadly species of superbug.

The AI helped narrow down thousands of potential chemicals to a handful that could be tested in the laboratory.

The result was a potent, experimental antibiotic called abaucin, which will need further tests before being used.

The researchers in Canada and the US say AI has the power to massively accelerate the discovery of new drugs. BBC News

See also:

• Deep learning-guided discovery of an antibiotic targeting Acinetobacter baumannii (open access) Nature Chemical Biology
• Scientists use AI to find promising new antibiotic to fight evasive hospital superbug McMaster University
• Scientists use AI to discover new antibiotic to treat deadly superbug The Guardian
• Scientists use AI to discover new antibiotic against deadly hospital superbug The Independent
• Artificial intelligence helping scientists in fight against superbug and breast cancer Sky News

East Kent maternity deaths: CQC considered shutting unit

East Kent maternity deaths: CQC considered shutting unit Health inspectors considered shutting down a maternity unit earlier this year over safety concerns.

The Care Quality Commission instead called for "immediate improvements" following a visit to the William Harvey hospital in Ashford, Kent.

Helen Gittos, whose newborn daughter died in the care of the East Kent Hospitals Trust, said there were "fundamental" problems at the trust.

The trust's chief executive has apologised for its service. BBC News

PPE: Supplier of millions of 'not fit for use' gowns received £47m dividends

PPE: Supplier of millions of 'not fit for use' gowns received £47m dividends A businessman whose company supplied the NHS with millions of apparently unusable surgical gowns earned £47m in dividends last year.

During the Covid pandemic, Cambridge-based Chemical Intelligence won £162m of government contracts to provide personal protective equipment (PPE).

Data obtained by the BBC shows at least a fifth of the equipment supplied was classified as "not fit for use". BBC News

Child died at mental health hospital ‘while staff were meant to be watching her’

Child died at mental health hospital ‘while staff were meant to be watching her’ A 14-year-old girl who should have been under constant supervision at a mental health hospital died after a member of staff on his first shift left her unattended, an inquest has heard.

Ruth Szymankiewicz died at Taplow Manor Hospital in Maidenhead on 12 February 2022 after a care worker responsible for her one-to-one supervision “sporadically” left his post, the hearing was told. The Independent

Ketamine lifts half of patients out of the blues after meds fail, trial finds

Ketamine lifts half of patients out of the blues after meds fail, trial finds Ketamine could ease depression in people with the most severe form of the condition, a study suggests.

Researchers at Mass General Brigham Hospital in Boston recruited 403 patients with major depression who were not helped by standard treatments like drugs.

Among those who were offered ketamine via an intravenous drip, 55 percent said their symptoms had eased over the next six months. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Ketamine versus ECT for Nonpsychotic Treatment-Resistant Major Depression (abstract) New England Journal of Medicine