Hospital trauma units across England on terror attack standby

Hospital trauma units across England on terror attack standby NHS England advises surgical teams to review staffing after Manchester bomb and be ready for ballistic and blast injuries

NHS hospital trauma units have been put on standby to deal with a potential fresh terrorist attack, possibly happening as soon as this weekend. The NHS has told every hospital in England, including the 27 that are specialist trauma centres, to “prepare for a further incident”. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• NHS issues warning for possible terror attack this weekend The Daily Mail
• A&E and trauma units told to prepare for possible terrorist attack The Daily Telegraph
• UK hospitals 'told to prepare for bank holiday terror attack' The Independent

Midwives reveal what they wished women knew

Midwives reveal what they wished women knew Bournemouth-based midwives, Samantha Pantlin and Alex Williams, run The Naked Midwives, putting together programmes to ensure women are as prepared for birth as possible. The Daily Mail

6000 per cent rise in number of patients stuck on trolleys for 12 hours

6000 per cent rise in number of patients stuck on trolleys for 12 hours The number of patients waiting 12 hours on trolleys has risen by more than 6,000 per cent as hospital overcrowding reaches a record high, NHS figures show.

The Royal College of Surgeons said the situation had become “exceptionally worrying,” urging the next Government to draw up immediate plans to deal with the crisis.

Occupancy levels are now the highest on record - with 91.4 per cent of beds filled, compared to recommended rates of 85 percent, the statistics show.

More than 20 trusts regularly reached occupancy of at least 99 per cent during the period, the figures show. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Average hospital bed occupancy rate for 2017 sits at 92% The Daily Mail
• NHS A&E units are 'stretched to their very limits' The Daily Mail

Charlie Gard: Doctors can stop providing life support for sick baby as parents lose Court of Appeal fight

Charlie Gard: Doctors can stop providing life support for sick baby as parents lose Court of Appeal fight A couple who want to take their sick baby son to the USA for treatment have lost a legal battle in the Court of Appeal.

Chris Gard and Connie Yates want nine-month-old Charlie Gard, who suffers from a rare genetic condition and has brain damage, to undergo a therapy trial.

Specialists at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where Charlie is being cared for, say therapy proposed by a doctor in America is experimental and will not help. They say life-support treatment should stop. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Charlie Gard's parents lose life support court appeal BBC News
• Charlie Gard's parents fight for Supreme Court hearing BBC News
• Charlie Gard doctors can stop providing life support, court rules The Guardian

What do the manifestos mean for the NHS?

What do the manifestos mean for the NHS? There is more that unites the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat manifestos on the NHS than divides them. All three parties reiterate their commitment to the enduring principles of the NHS. All promise to increase NHS funding during the next parliament. And all outline plans to improve care and to deliver key waiting time and other standards. The King's Fund

Listening to patients, carers, staff and communities... do we care enough?

Listening to patients, carers, staff and communities... do we care enough? The message from every speaker and through every presentation at the Fund’s seventh annual leadership summit was clear – intensely portrayed by passionate descriptions and powerful images: we need to hear the stories, we need to work with compassion together, we need to care. The King's Fund

Flexible and user-led – why NHS trusts are switching to open source software

Flexible and user-led – why NHS trusts are switching to open source software Electronic patient record systems are expensive – could open source be the way forward for the NHS?

Many NHS trusts have started implementing electronic patient record (EPR) systems to improve efficiency and reduce paper waste. At a time of budget cuts, however, the multimillion pound price tag attached to an EPR implementation can be off-putting.

As an alternative, some are looking at open source software, in which the underlying code is made available for free, and users are able to tailor it to their own needs for no extra cost. This is different from proprietary software, where the supplier controls the source code and may charge licence fees. Continue reading... The Guardian

'I still feel raw': nurse tells of treating Manchester bombing victims

'I still feel raw': nurse tells of treating Manchester bombing victims Joe O’Brien talks of a patient who smiled despite horrific injuries and a doctor, whose daughter was at the arena, returning to treat the wounded

Joe O’Brien is a senior sister in the surgical department of Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport, where six of the 59 injured in the Manchester bombing were treated.

On Monday, I worked from 8am until 6pm as a surgery sister at Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport. I was in bed that night listening to BBC Radio Four when I heard the words ‘Manchester’ and ‘incident’. I immediately thought about Declan, my son, a student who lives in central Manchester. I shot downstairs, spoke to my husband Sean. We rang Declan and established that he was OK, then I rang work and went in.

When I got there at 1.30am there were ambulances outside which had brought in six of the 59 casualties from the arena. They were stabilised in the A&E unit and brought to the surgical department where I work. They all had what we call lower limb injuries with foreign bodies – shrapnel injuries. Metal bolts and nuts, some an inch wide, had gone into them. They had caused real damage and left big holes in people. Shrapnel is like a large bullethole. It just destroys anything it goes through – arteries, bones, nerves, the lot. I’ve been in operating theatres since 1988 and it’s the most upsetting thing I’ve ever seen. Continue reading... The Guardian

What do the election manifestos say about social care?

What do the election manifestos say about social care? From a dementia tax to a National Care Service, the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat election promises about social care examined

While the snap election appears to be about getting a mandate for Brexit, the controversy over social care proposals in the Conservative manifesto has ignited the issue. The three major political parties all have something to say about social care, which has been unfinished business through successive governments for at least the past 20 years.

Both the Liberal Democrat and Labour manifestos describe social care as being in a state of crisis, and the funding shortfall is well known (estimated at £2bn this year alone). The Lib Dems would introduce an immediate 1p rise in all rates of income tax and ringfence the additional revenue (which they calculate at £6bn) for NHS and social care services. In the longer term this would be replaced with a hypothecated health and care tax. The manifesto also pledges to “finish the job of implementing a cap on the cost of social care, which the Conservatives have effectively abandoned”. Continue reading... The Guardian

Drink and drug service cuts will hit overstretched A&Es

Drink and drug service cuts will hit overstretched A&Es Cuts to addiction services will impact A&Es and cost the NHS more in the long run, claims a Royal College of Psychiatrists professor. Budgets for services in some areas have been slashed by 50%. The Daily Mail

Warnings handed to hospitals on care double in a year

Warnings handed to hospitals on care double in a year The Care Quality Commission was forced to issue 135 'enforcement actions' against hospitals in England in 2016/17. Yet in 2015/16 the watchdog handed just 58 enforcement actions. The Daily Mail

Dementia patients should have GPS trackers, expert says

Dementia patients should have GPS trackers, expert says Dementia patients should have a tracking device implanted into their body in case they wander off and get lost, an expert believes.

Professor June Andrews, OBE, is adamant the chip under their skin could save many families the anxiety and distress if their relative goes missing.

While the trained nurse, who used to head up dementia studies at Stirling University, Scotland, thinks it could even potentially save lives.

Professor Andrews, who now works independently to improve the lives of people with dementia, is in favour of subcutaneous trackers. The Daily Mail

KGH to introduce temporary £20 all-day car park charge

KGH to introduce temporary £20 all-day car park charge Kettering General Hospital will temporarily increase its all-day parking charge to £20 while work on the second deck of Car Park B takes place. Northamptonshire Telegraph

What the public thinks about NHS and social care services

What the public thinks about NHS and social care services The Health Foundation commissioned Ipsos MORI to do a survey of the general public in Great Britain on their views about funding of the NHS, as well as the provision of NHS and social care services.

The survey was carried out in May 2017. We have analysed some of the findings from the survey. We have also provided comparisons with the results of an Ipsos MORI survey that we commissioned in 2015 and with NatCen’s British Social Attitudes survey of 2014.

Patching up NHS cybersecurity: five lessons to be learned

Patching up NHS cybersecurity: five lessons to be learned Earlier this month, the NHS was hit by the largest cyber incident in its short digital history. The incident led to significant disruption of services for several days, with networks and email shut down as a precaution to contain the spread to vulnerable PCs. Ambulances were diverted from some trusts struggling to cope without IT systems in their emergency departments.

In the days following the attack, many have been quick to point the finger: at managers, at the national bodies, and at government. Laying blame is easy, but the harder task is to learn from the errors so that we can reduce the likelihood and limit the damage of similar incidents in the future. So what lessons are there for the NHS and government? The King's Fund

Latest NHS sickness absence statistics published

Latest NHS sickness absence statistics published Take a look at the latest NHS Sickness absence published statistics for 2017. NHS Employers

Social care: a step forwards or a step backwards?

Social care: a step forwards or a step backwards? This briefing examines the manifesto proposals for social care and outlines the current state of social care provision and funding. Institute for Fiscal Studies

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: Ethiopian wins top WHO job

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: Ethiopian wins top WHO job Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus from Ethiopia will be the next director general of the World Health Organization (WHO).

He will be the first African to head up the UN agency, after winning the most votes from 186 member states.

He replaces Margaret Chan, who will step down from her 10-year post at the end of June. BBC News

Assaults between care home residents reported daily

Assaults between care home residents reported daily Police recorded 1,200 assaults between residents living at care homes between 2014 and 2016, the BBC has found.

More than one assault a day was reported in England and Wales, an investigation by File on 4 revealed.

Some care workers said they were not always given full information about who might pose a risk.

The Care Quality Commission, the health regulator in England, said it was the responsibility of care providers to protect residents from harm or abuse. BBC News

NHS faces staggering increase in cost of elderly care, academics warn

NHS faces staggering increase in cost of elderly care, academics warn 2.8 million people over 65 will need nursing and social care by 2025 – largely because of a significant rise in dementia-related disability, research finds

The NHS and social care system in the UK is facing a staggering increase in the cost of looking after elderly people within the next few years, according to major new research which shows a 25% increase in those who will need care between 2015 and 2025.

Within eight years, there will be 2.8 million people over 65 needing nursing and social care, unable to cope alone, says the research – largely because of the toll of dementia in a growing elderly population. The research, published by the respected Lancet Public Health medical journal, says cases of disability related to dementia will rise by 40% among people aged 65 to 84, with other forms of disability increasing by about 31%. Continue reading... The Guardian