More than 300 NHS workers attempted suicide in Covid pandemic as charity warns of mental health crisis

More than 300 NHS workers attempted suicide in Covid pandemic as charity warns of mental health crisis More than 300 NHS workers attempted suicide as they responded to the coronavirus pandemic last year, according to figures showing the scale of the mental health crisis facing the frontline.

iNews can reveal that a six-month study by the Laura Hyde Foundation (LHF), which supports emergency workers, found that 226 nurses, 79 paramedics and ambulance staff members and 17 medical students attempted to end their lives in 2020. It warned that a mental health pandemic is on the horizon.

Calls to change the law due to fears patients are being deceived by unqualified ‘nurses’

Calls to change the law due to fears patients are being deceived by unqualified ‘nurses’ The government is being urged to make the term “nurse” a protected legal title amid fears the public is being deceived and put at risk by people masquerading as qualified nurses.

A petition calling for the change has already attracted almost 14,000 signatures and was prompted by the recent case of anti-vaccine activist Kate Shemirani, who was struck off by the Nursing and Midwifery Council last month. The Independent 

Infected blood scandal: Ex-pupil tells inquiry he did not know he was in a trial

Infected blood scandal: Ex-pupil tells inquiry he did not know he was in a trial A man who was one of scores of pupils infected with contaminated blood products at a specialist boarding school has told a public inquiry neither he nor his parents were told that he was taking part in medical trials.

Out of 89 haemophiliac children who attended Treloar College in Hampshire in the 1970s and 1980s, less than a quarter of former pupils are still alive, the public inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal heard on Monday. The Guardian

Scientists unlock secret of how people die from a broken heart after tests reveal stressful life events increase levels of two key molecules in heart cells

Scientists unlock secret of how people die from a broken heart after tests reveal stressful life events increase levels of two key molecules in heart cells Scientists have identified why people sometimes die from a broken heart after grief or relationship breakdowns.

They found stressful life events increase levels of two molecules in heart cells which play a crucial role in the development of takotsubo cardiomyopathy – or ‘broken heart syndrome’. The Daily Mail

See also: 

• Circulating microRNAs predispose to takotsubo syndrome following high-dose adrenaline exposure (open access) Cardiovascular Research
• Broken heart syndrome markers could help identify those at risk Imperial College London

More drop-in jabs available at Northamptonshire vaccination centre

More drop-in jabs available at Northamptonshire vaccination centre Northamptonshire’s Covid vaccination centre is running three days of more drop-in sessions.

Anyone eligible for their first dose of vaccine — that's all over-18s — can get a jab without an appointment at the Moulton Park centre in Summerhouse Road. Northamptonshire Telegraph

See also:

• Hopes for lifting lockdown on 5 July rise as Covid jab bookings top 1 million in 2 days Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• Weekend washout prompts Northamptonshire health chiefs' reminder about keeping Covid safe indoors Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Northamptonshire hospitals 'incredibly busy' with more than just Covid so don't go if you have hayfever, boss warns

Northamptonshire hospitals 'incredibly busy' with more than just Covid so don't go if you have hayfever, boss warns People are being reminded not to go to either Northamptonshire hospital unless it is absolutely necessary as they are extremely busy.

While there are only four coronavirus patients at Kettering and Northampton hospitals, including one in intensive care, other wards are in high demand. Northamptonshire Telegraph 

Mum angry after baby was born at Northampton General Hospital with a hole in her head - and no one noticed

Mum angry after baby was born at Northampton General Hospital with a hole in her head - and no one noticed A baby was born at Northampton General Hospital with a hole in its head because of a midwife's error during labour.

But no one realised until a few days later when it had become infected so the little girl had to spend even longer in hospital. Northampton Chronicle and Echo 

The most expensive breakfast in history: Revisiting the Wanless review 20 years on

The most expensive breakfast in history: Revisiting the Wanless review 20 years on 20 years on from the Wanless report, we look back at its origins, methodology and impact, highlighting the learnings that can be applied to the pandemic recovery. The Health Foundation 

#NotOK: filling the gaps in mental health support for young people with cancer

#NotOK: filling the gaps in mental health support for young people with cancer This report finds that young people with cancer are unable to access specialist mental health support in parts of the UK, putting them at risk of life-long trauma. It reveals that more than a third of young cancer patients who felt they needed it, have had no, or reduced access to a psychologist in the six months prior to being surveyed, due to inadequate access in parts of the UK. It also highlights the frustrations of psychologists due to the high demand and ‘limited resource'. Teenage Cancer Trust 

Supporting people with arthritis waiting for surgery

Supporting people with arthritis waiting for surgery This report calls on local health systems to implement a package of support to improve the experiences of people with arthritis who are waiting for surgery. Those surveyed emphasised the importance of getting the right support to manage pain, distress, physical health, wellbeing and finances, as well as the need for good communication from health professionals. Versus Arthritis 

Breaks or breakdown: Carers Week 2021 report

Breaks or breakdown: Carers Week 2021 report This survey report found that carers lost, on average, 25 hours of support a month they previously had from services or family and friends before the pandemic. It also reveals that 72 per cent of carers have not had any breaks from their caring role at all. It calls on the UK Government to provide £1.2 billion funding for unpaid carers’ breaks, so that those providing upwards of 50 hours of care are able to take time off for their own health and wellbeing. Carers Week 

New data strategy launched to improve patient care and save lives

New data strategy launched to improve patient care and save lives Millions of patients are set to benefit from a revolutionary use of technology and life-saving lessons learned during the global coronavirus pandemic, as a new draft data strategy will be published next week ahead of public and stakeholder consultation. Department of Health and Social Care 

Over one million jabs booked as NHS vaccine programme opens to all adults

Over one million jabs booked as NHS vaccine programme opens to all adults More than one million jab appointments were booked since the NHS vaccination programme opened for every adult in England. People rushed to book 1,008,472 appointments in just two days – an average of more than 21,000 every hour, or six every second – on Friday and Saturday. NHS England

See also: 

• Guidance: The R value and growth rate Department of Health and Social Care
• NHS App reaches over 6 million users Department of Health and Social Care
• Leading social media platforms unite to support COVID-19 vaccine drive Department of Health and Social Care
• Deliveroo to boost government efforts to tackle variants of concern Department of Health and Social Care

Covid vaccine: We need answers on autumn booster plan, say NHS leaders

Covid vaccine: We need answers on autumn booster plan, say NHS leaders Plans for a Covid booster jab programme will be published "in due course", a senior government source has said.

"Extensive" research is being conducted into the effect of different vaccine combinations, the source said.

It comes after doctors and NHS trusts said planning for the autumn rollout must start now - as it will involve bigger challenges. BBC News

See also:

• UK Covid infections rise as Delta variant dominates BBC News
• Public Health England: 'UK learning to live with Covid' BBC News
• Covid: Hospital visits ban soul-destroying, says patient BBC News
• Ros Atkins On… How the Delta variant took hold in the UK BBC News
• Care homes should come out of lockdown more slowly than rest of country on July 19, SAGE says The Daily Mail
• Coronavirus: ONS survey sees Covid cases in England rise 8% to 105,000 The Daily Mail
• Working from home set to stay as Government insists it will not force people back to offices The Daily Telegraph
• NHS app gains 2.7m users as people rush to show Covid vaccine status The Guardian
• Government ordered to release secret pandemic planning files The Guardian
• UK pushes for fully vaccinated to be exempt from Covid self-isolation The Guardian
• COVID-19 variants could force UK to revaccinate over next 2-3 years warns CMO GPonline
• Covid: Minister doesn’t rule out winter lockdown after PHE expert says ‘we may have to’ reimpose measure The Independent
• Sick and disabled people denied medical treatment and facilities in hotel quarantine ‘in breach of law’ The Independent

Contaminated blood inquiry: The school where dozens of pupils died

Contaminated blood inquiry: The school where dozens of pupils died A public inquiry will this week hear from students and parents after more than 120 pupils at a school for disabled children were caught up in what has been called the worst treatment disaster in NHS history.

From 1974 to 1987, those children were offered treatment for haemophilia at Treloar's College.

At least 72 died after being given a drug contaminated with HIV and viral hepatitis. BBC News 

‘A sustained threat to patient safety’: Hospitals across the country swamped by record numbers in A&E

‘A sustained threat to patient safety’: Hospitals across the country swamped by record numbers in A&E Hospital emergency departments across the UK are at breaking point with record numbers of patients swamping A&Es, raising fears that lives will be lost, The Independent can reveal.

Some hospitals have been forced to declare major incidents in the last few days because of the swelling numbers of patients. 

Dido Harding wants to make 'NHS less reliant on foreigners'

Dido Harding wants to make 'NHS less reliant on foreigners' Baroness Dido Harding is vowing to end England’s reliance on foreign doctors as part of her application to become the next head of the NHS, it is claimed.

The Tory peer, who hopes to succeed Sir Simon Stevens, is believed to want to challenge the “prevailing orthodoxy” in government that it is ‘better to import medical professionals from overseas’, according to the Sunday Times. iNews

See also:

• NHS would not survive without the contribution of overseas healthcare workers BMA
• ‘Diversity in the NHS enables us to help people’, says Afghan doctor Channel 4 News
• Dido Harding 'vows to end NHS reliance on foreign doctors and nurses' if she becomes head of the health service - despite Matt Hancock previously urging a 'new Windrush generation' to fill jobs The Daily Mail
• Dido Harding’s bid to lead the NHS is symptomatic of a grim populism iNews
• Potential new NHS chief’s pledge to make the ‘NHS less reliant on foreigners’ met with backlash Nursing Notes

Kent hospital trust fined £733,000 over failures that led to baby’s death

Kent hospital trust fined £733,000 over failures that led to baby’s death A hospital trust has been fined £733,000 over serious failures that led to the death of a week-old baby, in a groundbreaking prosecution brought by the NHS care regulator.

East Kent hospitals university NHS foundation trust was handed the fine at Folkestone magistrates court on Friday over lapses in how its maternity staff treated Harry Richford and his mother, Sarah. The Guardian 

Exclusive: Further delay confirmed to process for new nurse pay deal

Exclusive: Further delay confirmed to process for new nurse pay deal The timeline for a new pay deal being agreed for nurses in the NHS has fallen even further behind schedule, Nursing Times has learnt.

The NHS Pay Review Body had been asked by the health and social care secretary to provide a report to government at an already delayed date of early May.

But it has now emerged that the body is still compiling the report and is not set to make its recommendations to the government until sometime this month. 

New national nursing uniforms could be rolled out by next summer

New national nursing uniforms could be rolled out by next summer New national uniforms for nurses and other healthcare workers in England could be rolled out by next summer, according to the NHS Supply Chain.

Currently, staff uniforms vary significantly between NHS organisation leading to confusion from patients and some healthcare workers. A survey of the public undertaken before the consultation revealed that 88% of patients think that the same uniforms should be worn nationally with 55% claiming they were unable to easily identify senior members of staff from their uniforms. Nursing Notes