Health bosses seek strike deal as talks take place

Health bosses seek strike deal as talks take place A deal must be found to end the NHS strikes ahead of the "winter onslaught", health managers say.

NHS Providers interim chief executive Saffron Cordery said the "last thing" the NHS needed was prolonged industrial action as winter hits.

She said there was no doubt patients would lose out, with longer waits for hospital treatment.

Unions in England are meeting ministers on Tuesday after Royal College of Nursing (RCN) members voted to strike. BBC News

See also:

• Speech: Nurses going on strike is in nobody’s best interest Department of Health and Social Care
• Nurses' strike will fuel inflation and 'help no one', Health Secretary warns The Daily Mail
• Co-ordinated strikes by NHS staff could bring hospitals to standstill The Daily Telegraph
• Thousands of NHS workers not paid enough to live on, new figures show The Independent
• Health secretary to meet six unions in bid to avert wave of strikes across NHS The Guardian

Type 1 diabetes trial to identify at-risk children

Type 1 diabetes trial to identify at-risk children Researchers are recruiting 20,000 children for a trial to try to identify those at high risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

If left undiagnosed or untreated, the condition can lead to life-threatening complications.

The trial, led by the University of Birmingham, could mean access to new treatments for children at high risk. BBC News

Sunak omits target of 6,000 more GPs from brief for health secretary

Sunak omits target of 6,000 more GPs from brief for health secretary Rishi Sunak has fuelled concerns that the government will miss its target of recruiting 6,000 more GPs in England, which was promised in the 2019 Conservative manifesto.

The prime minister omitted the pledge from his appointment letter to the health secretary, Steve Barclay, laying out expectations for what should be delivered by March 2024. The Guardian

See also:

• The Government should have the good grace to admit it is not meeting its GP recruitment targets BMA

Alzheimer’s jab failed to meet goal on reducing memory decline, company says

Alzheimer’s jab failed to meet goal on reducing memory decline, company says A new jab for people with early-stage Alzheimer’s has failed to show it can slow down a decline in memory and thinking, according to pharmaceutical giant Roche.

The drug, gantenerumab, is an antibody medicine that held much promise as it entered phase three clinical trials. The Independent

Night light from street lamps and phones can raise risk of diabetes

Night light from street lamps and phones can raise risk of diabetes Streetlights and smartphones can raise the risk of diabetes by more than a quarter, new research has found.

Artificial light at night alters the human body clock, thereby impairing the body’s ability to control blood sugar levels.

Among the lights which could have a harmful effect are street, car and shopfront lamps as well as the light from smartphones and tablets. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Outdoor light at night in relation to glucose homoeostasis and diabetes in Chinese adults: a national and cross-sectional study of 98,658 participants from 162 study sites (abstract) Diabetologia
• Too much artificial light at night could raise the risk of type 2 diabetes by more than a quarter The Daily Mail

Experts develop online tool that predicts a woman's miscarriage risk

Experts develop online tool that predicts a woman's miscarriage risk Experts have developed an online tool to predict a woman's chances of a having a miscarriage.

The online calculator asks women a series of health questions and uses an algorithm to work out their likelihood of a successful pregnancy.

They are then offered given personalised advice on tests, treatment and lifestyle changes.

Researchers from the University of Warwick worked alongside Tommy's National Centre for Miscarriage Research. The Daily Mail

A THIRD of independent chemists are at risk of closing within two years

A THIRD of independent chemists are at risk of closing within two years Tim Gibbs's marathon working hours are typical of people who run our independent community pharmacies. He opens his shop in Yarmouth on the Isle of Wight at 8.30am and works until 6pm. The Daily Mail

KGH nurse and midwife receive Daisy Awards for outstanding care

KGH nurse and midwife receive Daisy Awards for outstanding care A nurse and a midwife from Kettering General Hospital have received DAISY Awards for the outstanding, compassionate and sensitive care they have delivered.

Deputy Sister, Amber Dicks, and community midwife, Alice Stillgoe (nee Macfarlane) were nominated for their awards by patients or their families. Northamptonshire Telegraph

COP27 is a reminder of the NHS’s vital role in addressing climate change

COP27 is a reminder of the NHS’s vital role in addressing climate change With 7 million people waiting for NHS treatment, extreme pressures on emergency services and severe workforce shortages, COP27 may seem far removed from the NHS’s immediate challenges. But health care’s role in addressing climate change is essential – and action can’t wait. The Health Foundation

The key reasons why Rishi Sunak should press ahead with the cap on social care costs

The key reasons why Rishi Sunak should press ahead with the cap on social care costs One immediate question facing the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is whether to press ahead with plans put in train by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson to introduce a cap on the social care costs people are liable for during their lifetime. The King's Fund

Cardiovascular disease in England: supporting leaders to take actions

Cardiovascular disease in England: supporting leaders to take actions Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is largely preventable. The risk factors for CVD apply also to other major conditions such as cancer, dementia and diabetes. Preventing and managing CVD and its risk factors therefore has the potential to improve population health, reduce health inequalities and ease pressures on overstretched health and care systems by reducing demand for services. This report aims to inform and support national and local leaders to take action to accelerate progress on tackling CVD. The King's Fund

Lessons learned to inform maternity care from the UK and Ireland Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths and Morbidity 2018-20

Lessons learned to inform maternity care from the UK and Ireland Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths and Morbidity 2018-20 This report finds that pregnancy remains very safe in the UK. In 2017-2019 191 women, of the 2,173,810 giving birth, died during or up to six weeks after pregnancy; 495 during or up to one year after their pregnancy. This is a small, but not statistically significant, decrease in the overall maternal death rate. It outlines a need for recognition that women can be placed at additional risk by clinician behaviours which focus on concerns over a woman’s pregnancy rather than concerns over a woman herself. It also highlight the gaps that remain in mortality rates between women from deprived and affluent areas, women of different ages and women from different ethnic groups. MBRRACE-UK

National standards for healthcare food and drink

National standards for healthcare food and drink Every healthcare organisation has a responsibility to provide the highest level of care possible for their patients, staff and visitors. This includes the quality, nutritional value and the sustainable aspects of the food and drink that is served, as well as the overall experience and environment in which it is eaten. NHS England

Have I dodged Covid and what does it mean?

Have I dodged Covid and what does it mean? I hope this vial of blood contains answers because I have a nagging question - have I managed to dodge Covid?

It seems remarkable that anyone could. The virus has swept the world since it emerged in China nearly three years ago. Fresh variants have become better and better at infecting us. Even vaccines make Covid milder rather than being an impenetrable shield. BBC News

See also:

• The R value and growth rate UK Health Security Agency
• AstraZeneca finally abandons plan to get Covid shot approved in the US The Daily Mail
• Study finds COVID-19 vaccine confidence declined since pandemic Hospital Healthcare Europe
• What is Pi? Covid’s next potential variant that could replace Omicron The Independent

Disability and the cost of living: 'It's our son's life'

Disability and the cost of living: 'It's our son's life' Six-year-old Cohen survives off the machines in his home and his mum's energy bills could rise to more than £3,000 a year.

Cohen has DiGeorge syndrome and 15q11.2 genetic deletions which means he can't walk, talk or digest food properly.

Lauren, Cohen's mum said: "The cost of living crisis, for most people, it’s 'Oh we just won’t go on holiday this year' but for us it’s our son’s life." BBC News

Thousands more NHS workers being balloted for strike action, Unite union says

Thousands more NHS workers being balloted for strike action, Unite union says NHS workers in roles such as blood and transplant services are among nearly 10,000 people being balloted over action that could see them walk off the job as soon as January.

Unite union, which represents 100,000 NHS workers, said voting papers are going out across 36 NHS trusts and organisations in England and Wales. Sky News

See also:

• Does the average nurse earn £34,000 a year? BBC News
• What nurses REALLY think about devastating NHS-wide strikes The Daily Mail
• Sunak has 'last chance' to save the NHS, warns union Evening Standard
• Nurses like me aren't just striking over pay – we're striking to save lives | Jodie Elliott The Guardian
• Unite to ballot nearly 10,000 NHS workers in latest vote on strikes The Guardian
• Jeremy Hunt says NHS on brink of collapse but efficiencies must be found The Guardian
• Union leader accuses Government of 'deliberately running down' NHS The Independent
• Government services set to grind to a halt with public sector strikes The Independent

Up to one in three English hospital beds occupied by patients fit for discharge

Up to one in three English hospital beds occupied by patients fit for discharge As many as one in three hospital beds in parts of England are occupied by patients who are well enough to be discharged, with a chronic lack of social care meaning many do not have suitable places to go.

Guardian analysis of official data shows that on average 13,600 beds across NHS England are occupied every day with patients who doctors say are medically fit to go home or to a care home, equivalent to one in seven beds in acute hospitals in October. The Guardian

See also:

• ‘A doctor told me I could be here for months’: patients stuck in England’s hospitals The Guardian
• Top doctor ‘desperate’ to keep parents out of ‘lobster trap’ hospitals The Independent

Controversial £360m NHS England data platform ‘lined up’ for Trump backer’s firm

Controversial £360m NHS England data platform ‘lined up’ for Trump backer’s firm Patients will have no say over records going to Palantir, the software giant run by billionaire Republican backer

An NHS project to incorporate tens of millions of personal digital medical records into one of the biggest health data platforms in the world is to be launched without seeking new patient consent.

Health officials confirmed this weekend the proposed £360m new data platform for England will incorporate the NHS shared care records that track patients across the health and care system. The Guardian

Advising older patients against breast cancer surgery is ‘age bias’, UK study finds

Advising older patients against breast cancer surgery is ‘age bias’, UK study finds Doctors may be steering older women away from certain breast cancer treatments due to “well-meaning but misplaced beliefs” about their preferences and fitness to undergo surgery, a study suggests. The Guardian

See also:

• Is there evidence of age bias in breast cancer health care professionals’ treatment of older patients? (open access) European Journal of Surgical Oncology

Sperm donor babies are just as health as those conceived conventionally, study finds

Sperm donor babies are just as health as those conceived conventionally, study finds Babies born with the help of a sperm donor are just as healthy as those conceived conventionally with a male partner, according to the largest study of its kind.

The research even showed that sperm-donor babies are actually at lower risk of being born premature or underweight. The Daily Mail