Doctors' contract talks - Q&As

Doctors' contract talks - Q&As Q&As to answer questions you may have on the ending of the contract negotiations. NHS Employers

US 'probes hackable' medical devices

US 'probes hackable' medical devices US government investigators are looking into about two dozen cases of medical kit suspected to be vulnerable to life-threatening hacks. BBC News

Health ministers refuse to commit to £8bn funding sought in NHS report

Health ministers refuse to commit to £8bn funding sought in NHS report Conservatives Jeremy Hunt and Labours Andy Burnham both claim report supports their policies for future of health service

Health ministers from all three main Westminster parties have refused to commit to an extra £8bn funding sought by the chief executive of NHS England in a report looking at the looming cost pressures facing the NHS in the next five years.

They embraced the reports principles, often arguing it endorsed their existing political positions, but they all shied away from a commitment to the extra cash above inflation over the next parliament. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• The man with the plan E-Health Insider
• NHS plan "turning point" for IT? E-Health Insider
• GP leaders welcome NHS five-year plan but warn funding must rise soon GP Online
• NHS Five Year Forward View: biggest challenge is on funding The Guardian
• NHS has come 'a huge distance' in 15 years, says chief - video The Guardian
• The NHS has 'a really bright future', says Jeremy Hunt - video The Guardian
• The NHS is on life support. Can this plan revive it? | Polly Toynbee The Guardian
• NHS boss Simon Stevens defends privatisation The Guardian
• Betting the farm: inside the NHS Forward View The Health Foundation

Two in five fear NHS will soon cease to be free

Two in five fear NHS will soon cease to be free Survey finds pessimism among UK population, particularly women and poorer people, over future of national health service

More than two out of five people fear the NHS will cease to be a free service over the next 20 years, a new survey reveals. When asked how likely it was that the NHS by 2034 would still be free at point of use, 44% said it was unlikely and 37% thought it was likely to be the case.

Women and the less well-off were the most pessimistic. Among women, 48% believe the free NHS will have disappeared, while 36% do not. More men (40%) share that concern, though almost as many (38%) think free care will survive. Continue reading... The Guardian

The 'Saatchi Bill' is dangerous and will bring nothing but harm

The 'Saatchi Bill' is dangerous and will bring nothing but harm Quacks, Big Pharma and insurance firms will benefit from the Saatchi Bill - not doctors and certainly not patients, says Peter Oborne. The Daily Telegraph

Ebola outbreak: Quarantine camps in West Africa at breaking-point

Ebola outbreak: Quarantine camps in West Africa at breaking-point Dozens of people quarantined for Ebola monitoring in western Liberia are threatening to break out of isolation because they have no food, the West African nation’s state radio has reported. The Independent

See also:

• Ebola crisis: 'We need help, serious help' BBC News
• First Ebola case in Mali confirmed BBC News
• Six surprising Ebola numbers BBC News
• Ebola outbreak: Virus to kill 67,000 in Monrovia by December, claims academic study The Independent

Thousands more flu jabs will be needed in Northants this winter

Thousands more flu jabs will be needed in Northants this winter An extra 22,000 flu vaccinations will need to be issued to under 65s at risk this winter, according to public health experts at Northamptonshire County Council. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Pioneering health project receives national award

Pioneering health project receives national award A pioneering Northamptonshire project to improve care to patients has won a national award. Northamptonshire Telegraph

The NHS Five Year Forward View

The NHS Five Year Forward View This new report sets out a new vision for the future of the NHS showing how the NHS needs to change over the next five years if it is to close the widening gaps in the health of the population, quality of care and the funding of services.

The report looks at why change is needed, what that change might look like and how it can achieved. It describes various models of care, defining the actions required at local and national level to support delivery.  It covers areas such as disease prevention; new, flexible models of service delivery tailored to local populations and needs; integration between services; and consistent leadership across the health and care system.

The Five Year Forward View starts the move towards a different NHS, recognising the challenges and outlining potential solutions to the big questions facing health and care services in England. It defines the framework for further detailed planning about how the NHS needs to evolve over the next five years. NHS England

See also:

• Five Year Forward executive summary NHS England
• NHS Leaders set out vision for healthcare in England NHS England

Responses

• NHS Five Year Forward View  Care Quality Commission
• Five year Forward view is a statement of great confidence in the NHS Foundation Trust Network
• Reaction to NHS England’s Forward View The Health Foundation
• No escaping the financial challenge facing the NHS: our response to NHS England’s Five Year Forward View The King's Fund
• NHS Confederation, NHS Employers and NHS Partners responds to NHS England's Five Year Forward View NHS Confederation
Health service cannot continue with ‘business as usual’ Nuffield Trust
• Response to NHS England's road map for the future of the health service Royal College of General Practitioners
• RCN responds to NHS Five Year Forward View Royal College of Nursing

Media Coverage

• The NHS plan: Five things we've learned BBC News
• NHS five-year plan 'packs a punch' BBC News
• NHS 'needs extra cash and overhaul' BBC News
• NHS: Money alone won't buy us better treatment The Daily Telegraph
• NHS can close £30 billion gap - Stevens E-Health Insider
• National systems to become 'glue' of NHS E-Health Insider
• NHS chief pledges major primary care funding rise in 'new deal' for GPs GP Online
• The Guardian view on the Forward View: at last the debate the NHS deserves | Editorial The Guardian
• Simon Stevens: new NHS chief executive with a private past The Guardian
• The Stevens report: 35 pages that serve up challenge to politicians of all colours The Guardian
• NHS Five Year Forward View: radical and costly surgery to provide a new lease of life The Guardian
• The NHS calls for an extra £8bn by 2020 in order to safeguard its services The Guardian
• Firms to receive NHS cash to reward staff for losing weight in radical model for health care The Independent
• NHS England to spend a ‘much higher proportion’ of budget on general practice over next five years Pulse

You can also follow the reponse to the report on Twitter using the hashtag #FutureNHS

'Nine million have TB' - WHO report

'Nine million have TB' - WHO report The World Health Organization revises its estimate as to how many people have tuberculosis up by 500,000, in its latest report into the killer disease. BBC News

See also:

• Global tuberculosis report 2014 World Health Organization 

VIDEO: Can technology plug NHS funding gap?

VIDEO: Can technology plug NHS funding gap? The NHS is under pressure to close a huge projected funding gap - Dominic Hughes reports on how the NHS has addressed this in West Yorkshire. BBC News

Mental Health: Visions of the Future

Mental Health: Visions of the Future In light of recent criticism of the over-reliance on drugs in mental health treatment, the President of the World Psychiatric Association outlines his vision for the future of the discipline. IAI News

Tackle Ebola in Africa to ensure threat to UK is stemmed, says medical expert

Tackle Ebola in Africa to ensure threat to UK is stemmed, says medical expertDame Sally Davies, chief medical officer for England, says risks to British low, but NHS and global community need to act now

Britain is well prepared for an Ebola outbreak but the best way to ensure the threat to the UK does not escalate is to fight the disease in west Africa, the chief medical officer for England, said on Wednesday.

Dame Sally Davies told MPs on the Commons health select committee that airport screening had been introduced mainly to alert people coming from Ebola-affected countries as to what to do should they develop symptoms. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• Exclusive: RCGP urges all UK practices to make Ebola preparations GP Online
• WHO emergency team holds Ebola talks BBC News
• VIDEO: UK Ebola planning 'excellent' BBC News
• Blood transfusion: What is the Ebola treatment – and how does it work? The Independent

Thousands with degenerative conditions classified as 'fit to work in future' - despite no possibility of improvement

Thousands with degenerative conditions classified as 'fit to work in future' - despite no possibility of improvement More than a third of people with degenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis are having their benefits slashed because the Department for Work and Pensions deems they will recover enough to look for work. The Independent

NHS must end IVF 'postcode lottery', watchdog says

NHS must end IVF 'postcode lottery', watchdog says The NHS must end “unacceptable” restrictions on fertility treatment for thousands of women in England, the national health watchdog has said. The Independent

See also:

• NICE calls for an end to postcode lottery of IVF treatment NICE
• NHS acting as 'barrier to families' BBC News
• NHS denying women fertility treatment to save money, watchdog warns The Guardian

Family of woman who died waiting for a doctor at NGH say “a car crash death would have been less cruel”

Family of woman who died waiting for a doctor at NGH say “a car crash death would have been less cruel” The family of a pensioner who died after four-hour wait for a doctor at Northampton General Hospital’s A&E have labelled the care she received ‘barbaric’. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

What the party conferences told us (and didn’t) about the future of the NHS

What the party conferences told us (and didn't) about the future of the NHS The latest Guardian/ICM poll shows that the NHS is the single most important issue to voters, way ahead of the economy, deficit reduction, immigration and jobs. Despite this, things are far from tranquil in the NHS, says Jennifer Dixon. The Health Foundation

A safer place to be: Findings from our survey of health-based places of safety for people detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act

A safer place to be: Findings from our survey of health-based places of  safety for people detained under section 136 of the  Mental Health Act Results from s survey of health based places of safety which shows that while there are areas of good practice, recommended national standards are not being met leading to mental health patients spending more time in police custody. Care Quality Commission

See also:

• Mentally ill put in police cells BBC News
• Problems accessing NHS units sees ‘too many’ mentally unwell end up in police cells Community Care
• Warning over mental health support Press Association

Specialists in out-of-hospital settings Findings from six case studies

Specialists in out-of-hospital settings Findings from six case studies A complete overhaul of medical education is needed to enable the shift of care out of hospitals and into primary care and community services. The King's Fund

See also:

• Consultants need to spend more time outside hospital, report finds The King's Fund
• Reform medical education to shift NHS work into primary care, says report GP Online

Secretary of State's guidance under section 42A of the National Health Service Act 2006

Secretary of State's guidance under section 42A of the National Health Service Act 2006 This document provides guidance on how the Department of Health can provide loans, public dividend capital or guarantees of payment to foundation trusts and NHS trusts. It covers the type of finance that may be provided; how to request financial assistance; criteria for deciding whether and how to provide financial assistance; and the terms and conditions that may be applicable to finance that may be provided. Department of Health