Northampton General Hospital says 94 per cent of pathology staff have signed new contracts with the trust

Northampton General Hospital says 94 per cent of pathology staff have signed new contracts with the trust Chief Executive of Northampton General Hospital, Dr Sonia Swart has stated 94 per cent of pathology staff have signed new contracts.

Industrial action at the hospital has continued for nearly two weeks and staff who not been prepared to sign new contracts have been asked to go home and leave the premises. Northampton Herald and Post

See also:

• Pathology Services - Update 7 July 2014 Northampton General Hospital
• Labour leader and postal union offer support to Northampton pathologists on strike Northampton Chronicle and Echo

News story: Fundamental standards: improving quality and transparency in care

News story: Fundamental standards: improving quality and transparency in care The government has announced legislation which introduces fundamental standards for health and social care providers. Subject to parliamentary approval, they will become law in April 2015.

The new measures are being introduced as part of the government’s response to the Francis Inquiry’s recommendations and are intended to help improve the quality of care and transparency of providers by insuring that those responsible for poor care can be held to account.

NHS 'falling short on complaints'

NHS 'falling short on complaints' The NHS still has a long way to go to improve the way it handles complaints, although there are signs of improvement, a survey suggests. BBC News

Intelligence network for mental health

Intelligence network for mental health NHS England and Public Health England have launched a new mental health intelligence network to improve access to mental health data and help providers to work more collaboratively. E-Health Insider

GPs warned to 'get tough' on antibiotic prescribing

GPs warned to 'get tough' on antibiotic prescribing GPs must 'get tough' and refuse antibiotics to patients who don't urgently need them to avert a crisis in antimicrobial resistance, the leaders of several royal colleges have warned. GP Online

See also:

• Ensuring access to working antimicrobials House of Commons Science and Technology Select Committee
• Health workers urged to get tough on antibiotics Royal College of General Practitioners
• Health professions work together on meeting the challenge of antimicrobial resistance Royal College of Nursing
• GPs hand out antibiotics as placebo to patients, claim MPs OnMedica
• Health bodies join forces in clampdown on antibiotic misuse OnMedica

NHS could lose £25bn of funding a year by 2020 warning

NHS could lose £25bn of funding a year by 2020 warning TUC says services will be hurt as well as staff pay OnMedica

NHS to have protected slice of the joint health/social care fund

NHS to have protected slice of the joint health/social care fund Better Care Fund will compensate hospitals if A&E admissions stall OnMedica

How rip off hospital car parks are making millions

How rip off hospital car parks are making millions There is one source of revenue the NHS tend to keep quiet about - and one from which many of them are actually making money: parking. The Daily Mail

Cancer scandal hospital failed to act on warnings

Cancer scandal hospital failed to act on warnings Senior managers at West Hertfordshire Hospitals were warned that patients could be dying because of the hospitals blunders but did nothing for a year. The Daily Telegraph

Unions and Northampton General Hospital outline arguments for and against pathology department changes

Unions and Northampton General Hospital outline arguments for and against pathology department changes The battle lines have been drawn in the on-going dispute between Northampton General Hospital and staff in the pathology department. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Making our communities ready for ageing: a call to action

Making our communities ready for ageing: a call to action This report takes a futures perspective on understanding the evidence about how communities need to adapt to an ageing society. It argues that policy makers must work to ensure that communities do more than cater for our basic needs. The report highlights the importance of supporting walking and cycling in old age as well as the need to ensure housing is adaptable to an ageing society. International Longevity Centre

Experts in NHS funding debate call

Experts in NHS funding debate call Leading figures from the health world call for a national debate on how the NHS in England is funded, saying it cannot continue as it is. BBC News

See also:

• Raise taxes or NHS will have to start charging patients, warn doctors The Independent
• Four in 10 support paying more tax if extra goes to NHS The Guardian
• Find ways to fund the NHS properly or accept a drop in standards | the big issue The Guardian

PM's antibiotics plan 'not enough'

PM's antibiotics plan 'not enough' The prime minister needs to act more quickly to tackle antibiotic resistance and the plans he recently set out are not enough, a parliamentary report says. BBC News

Children’s TV contains unhealthy 'food cues'

Children’s TV contains unhealthy 'food cues' “Children are being bombarded with scenes of unhealthy eating on TV,” The Independent reports. Researchers looking at public broadcasting in the UK and Ireland have found that children’s TV contains a high number of visual and verbal references to unhealthy foods.

In the UK, direct TV advertising of unhealthy food to children has been banned since 2008.

However, the researchers were still interested in whether children’s TV broadcast by state-funded organisations still promotes unhealthy food choices to young children.

Researchers assessed five weekdays of children programmes from the BBC and its Irish equivalent, RTE. They were interested in what they describe as “cues” – visual, verbal and plot-driven references to specific foods and drinks.

Unhealthy foods accounted for just under a half of specified food cues, and sugar-sweetened beverages for a quarter. The context of the food and drink cue was mostly positive or neutral, with celebratory/social motivations the most common.

Mothers at risk as NHS 'fails on mental health postnatal care'

Mothers at risk as NHS 'fails on mental health postnatal care' NCT condemns the 'disgraceful' shortfall in specialist help for postnatal mental health

The NHS has been criticised for failing women who suffer from postnatal depression by denying many of them potentially life-saving services to help them cope. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• 'Gaps' in mental care for new mums BBC News

Diabetes becoming ‘national health emergency’

Diabetes becoming ‘national health emergency’ Diabetes is becoming a “national health emergency” with thousands of new cases diagnosed every week, says a leading charity which warns it could lead to a rise in amputations and kidney failure. The Independent

NHS crisis: Tory health expert warns we have 'the wrong workforce' for the future due to 'huge bias' towards training specialists - and...

NHS crisis: Tory health expert warns we have 'the wrong workforce' for the future due to 'huge bias' towards training specialists The NHS has "the wrong workforce" to cope with the future health needs of the country, with medical schools training too many hospital specialists and not enough GPs to cope with overwhelming patient demand, the new chair of the influential Health Select Committee, Dr Sarah Wollaston, has said. Dr Wollaston also warned that the health service faces a crisis in the GP sector and that more should be done to encourage those who have left the profession, particularly women, to return to help relieve the pressure. The Independent

Why are we still waiting? Annual report on hospital waiting times

Why are we still waiting? Annual report on hospital waiting times  The Patients Association has released its fourth annual report on hospital waiting times for surgical procedures in England, revealing inconsistent reporting by hospital trusts, unacceptable waiting times and poor patient experiences.

The report highlights poor performance in the NHS and negative patient experiences and, once again, shows significant variations in waiting times across England, suggesting a ’postcode lottery’ when it comes to accessing healthcare. Long waiting times and cancelled operations continue to be an issue.

See also:

• NHS patients waiting longer for routine operations under coalition The Guardian

Lock-out for striking pathology staff at Northampton General Hospital ‘could last for weeks’

Lock-out for striking pathology staff at Northampton General Hospital ‘could last for weeks’ Temporary staff are set to continue filling in for blood scientists at Northampton General Hospital after talks failed to resolve the deadlock between the hospital and the pathology department.

The ACAS conciliatory body hosted ‘exploratory’ talks yesterday between the Unite union and a hospital HR manager.

Navigating the gap between volume and value

Navigating the gap between volume and value This guide provides step-by-step information on the financial planning process and how it can help an organisation evaluate the impact of repositioning initiatives as it moves towards value-based care and payment. Hospitals in Pursuit of Excellence