Brain-damaged Northampton Hospital patient can be allowed to die

Brain-damaged Northampton Hospital patient can be allowed to die A brain-damaged woman is to be allowed to die despite sometimes still smiling at hospital staff, a judge has ruled.

The patient, in her 50s, was injured in 2008 and has received life-support treatment at Northampton General Hospital for a decade. Her family and treating doctors all thought that the woman, who also has a number of physical difficulties, should be allowed to die. The judge said she was satisfied with the evidence provided by doctors. She approved a plan to implement a palliative care regime.

The case was considered at the Court of Protection in London, which rules on behalf of people who do not have the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. BBC News - Northamptonshire

Concerns about transport of children by a Northamptonshire ambulance service

Concerns about transport of children by a Northamptonshire ambulance service Inspectors have raised several concerns about the NHS non-emergency ambulance service that covers Northamptonshire, including infection control and the transport of children.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) visit was carried out in November at the premises of Thames Ambulance Service Ltd, which transports Northamptonshire patients for free to NHS appointments.

Although an inspection report has still not been published, a paper written for NHS Nene board members has revealed a long list of worries. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Fertility clinics selling £3,500 IVF 'add-ons' including glue that 'helps embryos stick to womb'

Fertility clinics selling £3,500 IVF 'add-ons' including glue that 'helps embryos stick to womb' Fertility clinics selling expensive IVF 'add-on' treatments have been warned they must tell couples there is no evidence that they work.

Almost three-quarters of patients desperate to be parents bought at least one add-on in the past two years, a patient survey found.

They cost up to £3,500 a time and include 'glue' or a painful 'scratch' which is claimed to help an embryo stick to the wall of the womb.

But the fertility regulator has concluded there is 'no conclusive evidence' that any of them boost the chances of falling pregnant. Mail Online

See Also:

• Fertility regulator calls for clinics to be more open about treatment add-ons Human Fertilisation and Embyology Authority (HFEA)

New guidance on instant messaging for the NHS

New guidance on instant messaging for the NHS The NHS has published new guidance to help CCGs and others to decide how and when to use instant messaging in acute clinical settings. NHS Networks

Welcome focus on primary care but NHS plan also raises difficult questions

Welcome focus on primary care but NHS plan also raises difficult questions The NHS Long Term Plan includes a promise of £4.5bn of ring-fenced funding for primary care and community services. Among its bolder ambitions are that integrated care systems (ICS) will cover the country within two years and that all GP practices will be members of primary care networks by this April. NHS Networks

Overstretched 'sandwich carers' trying to help parents and children

Overstretched 'sandwich carers' trying to help parents and children An exhausted, overstretched generation of carers, are in need of emotional support themselves, say researchers.

A report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) says more than a quarter of such "sandwich carers" are suffering from depression or stress. "Sandwich carers" look after their elderly parents and their children.

There are 1.3 million people in the UK with such multi-generational caring responsibilities, say researchers, with many feeling ignored and undervalued. BBC News

What is the right age to lose your virginity?

What is the right age to lose your virginity? Having sex too soon is the biggest regret of young people losing their virginity, a survey of British sexual behaviour suggests. More than a third of women and a quarter of men in their teens and early 20s admitted it had not been "the right time" when they first had sex. People must be 16 or over to legally consent to sex.

The latest National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles poll says many people may not be ready at that age. The Natsal survey, carried out every decade or so, gives a detailed picture of sexual behaviour in the UK.

For this latest work, published in BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health, researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine looked at the responses of nearly 3,000 young people who had completed the survey between 2010 and 2012. BBC News - Health

See Also:

• Did YOU have sex too YOUNG? Study reveals 40% of women and 25% of men claim they did not lose their virginity 'at the right time' Mail Online
• Many in UK lose virginity before they are ready – study The Guardian
• Prevalence and correlates of ‘sexual competence’ at first heterosexual intercourse among young people in Britain BMJ Sexual and Reproductive Health

Breast cancer risk test 'game changer'

Breast cancer risk test 'game changer' Experts have developed a potentially "game-changing" test to predict a woman's risk of breast cancer. It combines information on family history and hundreds of genetic markers with other factors, such as weight, to give the most comprehensive assessment possible, says Cancer Research UK.

The test is not yet routinely available on the NHS - some GPs and specialists are trialling it first. It is part of a push to spot cancers earlier through tailored screening. BBC News - Health

Investigation by Northamptonshire health care provider after three unexpected deaths

Investigation by Northamptonshire health care provider after three unexpected deaths A Northamptonshire mental health care provider has launched serious incident investigations into three unexpected deaths.

Northamptonshire Healthcare Foundation Trust is looking into the care given to three people who had been using its services before they died.

The deaths happened in July, August and September last year and were reported in the trust’s learning from deaths report published in November. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Improving workforce disability equality in the NHS

Improving workforce disability equality in the NHS 2019 will be a key year for workforce disability within the NHS due to the introduction of the Workforce Disability Equality Standard, find out what is happening. NHS Employers

Government promises 'bold new goal' to tackle dirty air

Government promises 'bold new goal' to tackle dirty air Wood burning stoves, open fires and farms all face new restrictions as the government sets out what it calls a "world leading" plan to tackle air pollution.

In their Clean Air Strategy, published today, the government promises to set a "bold new goal" to reduce particulates across much of the country by 2030.

But green groups say the scheme is vague and severely lacking in detail.

They believe the plan proposes nothing new to tackle roadside dirty air. BBC News

Intersex surgeries: Is it right to assign sex to a baby?

Intersex surgeries: Is it right to assign sex to a baby? The UN says as many as 1.7% of the world have intersex traits - that's the same as the number of people with red hair. All over the world, children with intersex traits are being operated on to be sex assigned at birth - sometimes with devastating consequences. BBC News

Private mental health group faces multimillion fine after death of NHS-funded girl in its care

Private mental health group faces multimillion fine after death of NHS-funded girl in its care A private mental health group is facing a multimillion-pound fine for breaching health and safety laws after a 14-year old with a history of suicide attempts died in its care.

Amy El-Keria was treated at the Priory Group’s Ticehurst House psychiatric hospital in East Sussex and was deemed high-risk, but three months after she was admitted she died in the trust’s care, Brighton Magistrates’ Court heard.

The private mental health group indicated a guilty plea at the hearing after being charged under health and safety laws after a criminal investigation was launched by the Health and Safety Executive into the death. National Health Executive

Artificial intelligence used to detect women with deadliest ovarian cancer

Artificial intelligence used to detect women with deadliest ovarian cancer The deadliest forms of ovarian cancer have been detected using AI, offering hope for more precise life-saving treatments.

Scientists have created a tool that seeks out clusters of tumour cells with unusually shaped nuclei – the control centres at the heart of each cell.

More than 7,000 new cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed every year in the UK, and it has one of the worst survival rates of all cancers. The Independent

NHS long-term plan: patients and staff hold the keys to better care

NHS long-term plan: patients and staff hold the keys to better care | Richard Vize Scientific breakthroughs are vital, but new blueprint will fail unless people get more power and responsibility

The newly-unveiled NHS long-term plan reveals an extraordinary breadth of ambition for improving healthcare over the coming decade. While it includes exciting developments in cutting-edge technology, such as gene therapy and artificial intelligence, the greatest improvements in care and outcomes will come not from scientific breakthroughs but from people: by harnessing the power and talents of patients and NHS staff. The Guardian

NHS staff being advised to ignore parents' wishes if children self-declare as different gender, guidance shows

NHS staff being advised to ignore parents' wishes if children self-declare as different gender, guidance shows NHS staff are being advised to ignore parents’ wishes if they conflict with those of a child who identifies as transgender - even if the child is not considered to have the understanding and intelligence to consent.

A Telegraph investigation has found that one NHS trust is even willing to allow adolescents to share sleeping space with members of the opposite sex upon admission to single sex wards.

It comes after the Telegraph revealed hospitals are routinely allowing male patients to share women’s wards if they self-identify as transgender, despite the government's commitment to eliminating mixed-sex wards. The Daily Telegraph

GPs could get more generous pensions to stop so many leaving the NHS

GPs could get more generous pensions to stop so many leaving the NHS Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock admitted the British Government has failed to fulfil his predecessor's promise to recruit an extra 5,000 NHS GPs between 2015 and 2020. The Daily Mail

See also:

• No target date for recruiting 5000 extra GPs, says health secretary Pulse

Missed appointments cost Northampton General Hospital almost £4 million

Missed appointments cost Northampton General Hospital almost £4 million Northampton General Hospital trust has lost almost £4 million in a year due to thousands of patients not turning up to appointments, figures show.

Data from NHS England shows that in the 12 months to September 2018, 34,584 people either did not show up for an outpatient appointment at the trust, or arrived too late to be seen.

With the NHS struggling for funds amid budget cuts and increased demand, the British Medical Association said it was crucial appointments are not wasted while the health service is “under incredible stress”. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Combined NHS Performance Summary: November – December 2018

Combined NHS Performance Summary: November – December 2018 Today, NHS England published its Combined Performance Summary, which provides data on key performance measures for November and December of last year. SitRep data for the first week of 2019 was also released, giving a more up-to-date analysis of how the NHS is coping this winter.

Here we show some of these statistics and how they compare with previous years. Nuffield Trust

See also:

• NHS coping under pressure so far this winter The Health Foundation

Mental health: poor NHS provision is failing young people

Mental health: poor NHS provision is failing young people In 2017-18 only three in ten children and young people with a mental health condition received NHS-funded treatment, and many more faced unacceptably long waits for treatment.

The government has committed to providing ‘parity of esteem’ between mental and physical health services, but it is still unclear what it means by this in practice.

It also has no comprehensive, long-term plan for how it will fulfil its commitment to implement Future in Mind, which set out a cross-sector vision for how to support children and young people’s mental health. House of Commons Public Accounts Committee 

See also:

• Too many children 'not being treated for mental health problems' BBC News
• Young people 'turned away' from NHS mental health support left to hit crisis point, MPs warn The Independent
• Poor provision on mental health is failing young people OnMedica
• NHS 'failing' pupils on mental health, say MPs TES News