New family support programme in Northampton has been awarded with hundreds-of-thousands-of-pounds

New family support programme in Northampton has been awarded with hundreds-of-thousands-of-pounds A recently developed support scheme for new parents and babies is set to launch in Northampton and Daventry after being awarded £500,000 from the Big Lottery Fund, it was announced today.

The ‘Flourishing Babies’ programme will work with parents and their babies during pregnancy two-years-old, working closely with Northampton General Hospital and Danetre Hospital’s health visiting and midwifery teams to identify mums and dads most in need of extra help to get their family life off to a great start. Daventry Express

Patients to get faster access to the most cost effective treatments under proposed changes to NICE process

Patients to get faster access to the most cost effective treatments under proposed changes to NICE process Proposed changes to the way NICE appraises new treatments could see patients benefiting from the most cost effective treatments nearly three months faster than is currently the case. NHS England

Midwives' voices, midwives realities: findings from a global consulation on providing quality midwifery care

Midwives' voices, midwives realities: findings from a global consulation on providing quality midwifery care This report outlines the findings of the first global survey of midwifery personnel and it reveals that too often midwives report their efforts are constrained by unequal power relations within the health system. It highlights the need to provide midwives with professional support (including better working conditions); stronger education and regulatory environments; and stronger advocacy around midwifery. World Health Organization

Pharmacy funding cuts 'could force closures'

Pharmacy funding cuts 'could force closures' Pharmacies in England could face steep funding cuts within weeks that will force some to close, the industry's negotiating body tells BBC News

See also:

• PSNC rejects DH proposed funding package Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee
• NHS England patients calling 111 will see local chemist and not their doctor The Daily Mail
• Pharmacies to dole out emergency prescriptions to ease NHS crisis The Daily Telegraph

Warning issued over faulty defibrillators in public places

Warning issued over faulty defibrillators in public places More than 2,000 defibrillators available for use in public places, like schools and train stations, are faulty and will not deliver an electric shock in an emergency. BBC News

Health education chiefs told to 'reduce NHS demand for migrants'

Health education chiefs told to 'reduce NHS demand for migrants' Health Education England (HEE) has been given a year to draw up plans to 'reduce the demand for international migrants to fill roles in the NHS'. GP Online

See also:

• Delivering high quality, effective, compassionate care: Developing the right people with the right skills and the right values A mandate from the Government to Health Education England: April 2016 to March 2017 Department of Health

Global TB epidemic prompts fresh warnings amid drug-resistance crisis

Global TB epidemic prompts fresh warnings amid drug-resistance crisis The world is making “dismal progress” towards ending the global epidemic of tuberculosis – the infection which kills more people than any other – amid a “crisis” in resistance to drugs used to treat the disease, the World Health Organisation has warned.

An estimated 10.4 million people had TB last year with 1.8 million dying as a result, the WHO said in a new report.

The figures show the disease is significantly more common than previously thought. The WHO had estimated there were 9.6 million cases in 2014, but it put the rise down to better recording in India, where TB is a particular problem. The Independent

Areas of NHS will implode this winter, expert warns

Areas of NHS will implode this winter, expert warns Dr Mark Holland of Society for Acute Medicine says service is on its knees as A&E performance in England shows fall

Parts of the NHS will implode this winter, an expert has warned, as new figures show falling A&E performance over the past few months.

Dr Mark Holland, the president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said the days when summer used to provide a respite for busy emergency departments had gone, and instead the NHS faces an “eternal winter”. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• The King’s Fund responds to the CQC State of Care report The King's Fund
• The King’s Fund responds to latest NHS performance statistics The King's Fund
• A&E summer waiting times worse than most winters, new data shows The Daily Telegraph
• The Guardian view on social care: a crisis of politics as well as finance | Editorial The Guardian
• Social care cuts take English service to tipping point, regulator warns The Guardian

My patient told me he is going to stab someone. There's nothing I can do

My patient told me he is going to stab someone. There's nothing I can do He was treated in hospital for mental health problems but will be discharged. Anything he does is on my head

“I’m going to go home and I’m going to stab someone.”

Alan is in the weekly ward review meeting with a group of doctors, nurses, and students. We’ve told him we think he is well enough to leave the ward; he disagrees. Continue reading... The Guardian

At least 300 GP practices are expected to be rated inadequate following inspections

At least 300 GP practices are expected to be rated inadequate following inspections At least 800,000 patients are registered with unsafe GPs, the Care Quality Commission found. Patients are reportedly not being invited in for routine cancer screening. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Tired GPs greatest threat to patient safety OnMedica

Hospital trusts now charging up to £4 an hour in car parking fees

Hospital trusts now charging up to £4 an hour in car parking fees Campaigners say they hit cancer sufferers and other very sick patients receiving life-saving treatment particularly hard. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Parking charges rise at 'one in three hospitals' BBC News
• Hospital car parks charging four times the rate of some city centres The Daily Telegraph
• Car parking charges at hospitals in England rises average 15% since 2014 The Guardian

Midwives' union tried to cover up pay-off for ringleader 'musketeer'

Midwives' union tried to cover up pay-off for ringleader 'musketeer' The midwives' union tried to gag health officials, in a bid to protect the ringleader in a scandal which saw 11 baby deaths, an investigation has revealed.

Jeanette Parkinson was one of a group of midwives in Morecambe Bay who she dubbed “the musketeers” as she they colluded to cover up critical blunders.

Yesterday leaked documents revealed that she was “significantly overpaid” – receiving 14 months’ salary in a farewell deal in 2012 which prevented investigation of her conduct.

The manager who signed off the terms is now being hauled in front of regulators.

Now it has emerged that the Royal College of Midwives has threatened legal action to prevent the NHS trust publishing a report into the matter. The Daily Telegraph