Fight against care home expansion continues

Fight against care home expansion continues: Opponents to a plan to significantly expand a rural care home are pledging to continue their fight, after wrongly believing their campaign had been a success. Northampton Chronicle & Echo

Ambulance station plans ‘likely to change’ after delay

Ambulance station plans ‘likely to change’ after delay: The strength of opinion about plans to close ambulance stations in the East Midlands has forced a delay in the final decision. Northampton Chronicle & Echo

Report casts doubt on benefits of joint commissioning

Report casts doubt on benefits of joint commissioning: The study, carried out by professors at the University of Birmingham for the National Institute of Health Research, warns that new financial pressures will make joint commissioning and joint working even harder in the future.

Hunt – we must expose NHS care failings

Hunt – we must expose NHS care failings: The Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has called for the NHS to be inspected and rated Ofsted-style Public Service

Sickness absence: learning from the devolved nations

Sickness absence: learning from the devolved nations: The report, “Work as a health outcome in the devolved nations: How Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales tackle sickness-related worklessness” details schemes that are making progress on reducing sickness absence. NHS Employers

£5.45 billion budget for local public health services

£5.45 billion budget for local public health services:

Funding ring-fenced for two years Related items from OnMedica Formula aims to aid local authorities on public health services funding Public health fears escalate Doctors’ leaders call for more regulation on public health Hunt praises GPs for ‘extraordinary dedication’ Budget may lead to 'slash and burn' cuts for NHS

Developing supportive design for people with dementia

Developing supportive design for people with dementia: This publication marks the completion of 26 Enhancing the Healing Environment (EHE) schemes in 23 NHS acute, community and mental health hospitals in England to improve the environment of care for people with dementia. This publication seeks to provide practical, value-for-money examples to encourage and inspire staff and their organisations to provide an environment of care that better supports people with dementia.

• Report
• Enhancing the Healing Environment project
• The King's Fund - publications

Britain's stress levels rising

Britain's stress levels rising: A study by the Mental Health Foundation has highlighted the principal reasons behind rising stress levels in Britain as money and job worries.
Almost six out of 10 people who responded to the survey by the charity said their life had become more stressful in the past five years. Chief executive Andrew McCulloch said the findings suggested that many people were not managing their stress levels and treating it as a... Healthcrae Today

New strain blamed for record norovirus outbreak

New strain blamed for record norovirus outbreak: The emergence of a new Australian strain of norovirus – the 'winter vomiting bug' – has featured in most newspapers today. The Daily Telegraph reports that the new strain is to blame for the record number of cases of the virus seen this winter, which it terms a 'severe norovirus season'.

NHS transplantation 'safe from German-style scandal'

NHS transplantation 'safe from German-style scandal': Organ transplantation on the NHS is safe from the kind of scandal currently rocking Germany, one of the Britain's top transplant surgeons has said. The Daily Telegraph

Haemorrhagic fever carried by UK rats: scientists

Haemorrhagic fever carried by UK rats: scientists: The potentially deadly hantavirus has been found in rats in the UK for the first time, scientists have confirmed after a man was diagnosed with the disease. The Daily Telegraph

Flu activity update: 10 January 2013

Flu activity update: 10 January 2013: Latest figures from the Health Protection Agency (HPA) up to 6 January 2013 show that flu activity remain at similar levels to those reported in the previous week based on a number of indicators, including GP consultation rates in England and the proportion of calls to NHS direct.

£120 million investment for research to improve NHS services

£120 million investment for research to improve NHS services: The Department of Health has announced funding of £120 million for an open competition to research ways of improving NHS services. Each research project will involve collaborative partnerships between a university and surrounding NHS organisations and will be overseen by the National Institute of Health Research.

Breast care services reviewed

Breast care services reviewed: The way concerns over a hospital's breast care services were managed after alleged botched operations by a surgeon, Ian Paterson, is reviewed. BBC News

Telehealth no longer a remote possibility for general practice

Telehealth no longer a remote possibility for general practice: Following its success across the UK, NHS Stoke on Trent CCG is running a clinical rollout of advice and interactive Messages (AIM) for health - the Florence SMS texting telehealth service, writes Professor Ruth Chambers. GP Online

3,500 NHS managers at risk of redundancy

3,500 NHS managers at risk of redundancy: HSJ has reported that some 3,500 NHS managers have been told that they are at risk of redundancy. And the journal has said that while there are 5-7,000 vacancies in the system, not all of those at risk of redundancy will get jobs with new organisations. Around 600 redundancies have already been made during 2012-13, with a worst case scenario of 4,000 lay-offs taking place this year. Of the 3,500 staff identified ... Healthcare Today

What healthcare managers can expect in 2013

What healthcare managers can expect in 2013: As the NHS prepares for restructuring, health service leaders will experience difficulty, uncertainty and instability.

CQC: Government's hospital inspectors criticised in damning report

CQC: Government's hospital inspectors criticised in damning report: CQC: The Government's heath watchdog has a "long way to travel" before it is fit for purpose, an MP has warned. The Daily Telegraph

Sydney 2012: a new strain of norovirus blamed for most winter vomiting cases

Sydney 2012: a new strain of norovirus blamed for most winter vomiting cases:
A new strain of norovirus has been responsible for the majority of recent cases of the winter vomiting bug, health experts said. The Independent

A guide to the NHS Commissioning Board’s Everyone Counts

A guide to the NHS Commissioning Board’s Everyone Counts: What was on your Christmas reading list? Bradley Wiggins’s autobiography? Fifty Shades of Grey? Or Everyone Counts?
Just before the Christmas break the NHS Commissioning Board issued its ‘planning guidance’ to the 211 clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) that are to take control of local budgets from April. Everyone Counts sets out the ‘what’ and the ‘how’ of commissioning in the reformed NHS. It replaces the Operating Framework that, for the past few years, has set out what is expected of the NHS, including targets and other ‘vital signs’, as well as tariff prices to be paid to providers.