Person-centred care: from ideas to action This report brings together the evidence on shared decision making and self-management support to provide greater coherence and clarity in debates about person-centred care. The Health Foundation
Friday, 3 October 2014
Realising the power of digital health
Realising the power of digital health Which technologies could change health care over the coming decades? At our International Digital Health and Care Congress we looked into the future and discovered that part of that future is here now: individuals are already able to capture vast amounts of data about their lives with their smartphones, and new wearable digital devices are being released that will increase the range and accuracy of metrics we can capture, even less intrusively.
We can now track many metrics with relative ease, ranging from weight and calorie output during exercise to subjective measures of wellbeing like mood and quality of sleep. We can also monitor factors that people with long-term conditions need to keep under control, like blood glucose.
Grand promises have been made about the benefits of recording this deluge of personal data, but what needs to happen for these promises to be realised?
We can now track many metrics with relative ease, ranging from weight and calorie output during exercise to subjective measures of wellbeing like mood and quality of sleep. We can also monitor factors that people with long-term conditions need to keep under control, like blood glucose.
Grand promises have been made about the benefits of recording this deluge of personal data, but what needs to happen for these promises to be realised?
Exploring the cost of care at the end of life
Exploring the cost of care at the end of life The document compares the costs of hospital care with costs in other health and social care settings using the Marie Curie home-based palliative care nursing service. The results suggest that cost savings might be available if community-based support were made more widely available to help people to die in their own homes. Nuffield Trust
Acute care toolkit 10: ambulatory emergency care
Acute care toolkit 10: ambulatory emergency care Ambulatory emergency care (AEC) allows patients going to hospital as an emergency to be quickly assessed, diagnosed and treated on the same day, so that they can return home, reducing the number of patients admitted to a hospital bed. Although not suitable for all patients, for example those needing emergency surgery, the streamlined process has already improved clinical care, reduced costs, and is popular with patients. This toolkit outlines the principles of AEC and describes the resources required for delivering AEC, highlighting the benefits, and signposts other resources to support its development. Royal College of Physicians
Mental health work pilots launched
Mental health work pilots launched The government launches pilot schemes to help unemployed people with mental health problems find work. BBC News
VIDEO: New guidance on anti-alcohol pill
VIDEO: New guidance on anti-alcohol pill A pill designed to reduce alcohol consumption among problem drinkers looks set to be made available to NHS patients in England and Wales. BBC News
Does losing your sense of smell predict death risk?
Does losing your sense of smell predict death risk? "Sense of smell 'may predict lifespan'," BBC News reports. New research suggests people unable to smell distinctive scents such as peppermint or fish may have an increased risk of death within five years of losing their sense of smell.
The study found older adults aged 57 or above who could not correctly identify five particular scents – peppermint, fish, orange, rose and leather – were more than three times at risk of dying.
The authors speculate loss of smell does not directly cause death, but it could be an early warning sign that something has gone wrong, such as exposure to toxic environmental elements or cell damage.
While this study is interesting, it does not prove that loss of sense of smell (anosmia) is a predictor of early death. Researchers used only five scents to identify people with anosmia and only tested people's sense of smell once, which makes the results less reliable.
The study found older adults aged 57 or above who could not correctly identify five particular scents – peppermint, fish, orange, rose and leather – were more than three times at risk of dying.
The authors speculate loss of smell does not directly cause death, but it could be an early warning sign that something has gone wrong, such as exposure to toxic environmental elements or cell damage.
While this study is interesting, it does not prove that loss of sense of smell (anosmia) is a predictor of early death. Researchers used only five scents to identify people with anosmia and only tested people's sense of smell once, which makes the results less reliable.
GMC to make test for overseas doctors more robust
GMC to make test for overseas doctors more robust EU legislation on European doctors leaves major gap in regulatory defences. OnMedica
Should health charities declare pharma funding?
Should health charities declare pharma funding? Campaigners argue for greater transparency in sponsorship of patient groups. OnMedica
NHS policy: Labour and Conservative plans dont add up
NHS policy: Labour and Conservative plans dont add up The two parties look set to make the health service a key battle ground in the general election campaign. But their proposals are built on a financial mirage.
The NHS will be at the centre of the general election campaign. During the party conferences Labour and the Tories each used the same brutal, disingenuous techniques to win the argument low blows aimed at inducing fear about their opponents record followed by promises of more staff and better services built on a financial mirage.
There was nothing in Labour leader Ed Milibands speech even the version including the bits he forgot that came close to being a coherent plan for running effective public services while meeting his partys promise to eliminate the deficit. There barely a hint of the difficult choices to come. Continue reading... The Guardian
See also:
The NHS will be at the centre of the general election campaign. During the party conferences Labour and the Tories each used the same brutal, disingenuous techniques to win the argument low blows aimed at inducing fear about their opponents record followed by promises of more staff and better services built on a financial mirage.
There was nothing in Labour leader Ed Milibands speech even the version including the bits he forgot that came close to being a coherent plan for running effective public services while meeting his partys promise to eliminate the deficit. There barely a hint of the difficult choices to come. Continue reading... The Guardian
See also:
- Ukips assault on the NHS would ensure its extinction The Guardian
- Misguided goals as the NHS becomes a political football (letters) The Guardian
- Video: Jeremy Hunt on Labour's big GP mistakes GP Online
- Miliband vows to 'turn around' NHS Northamptonshire Telegraph
Care home restraint seven times level previously thought
Care home restraint seven times level previously thought Surge in applications for legal clearance to deprive elderly and disabled people of basic liberties after landmark ruling shows practice was seven times more common than previously thought. The Daily Telegraph
See also:
See also:
- Council unlawfully deprived woman of liberty due to ignorance of Mental Capacity Act Community Care
- At least 21,600 DoL applications recorded in first three months of 2014/15. Health and Social Care Information Centre
Doctors tell Health Secretary they are 'exhausted, drowning and furious'
Doctors tell Health Secretary they are 'exhausted, drowning and furious' A succession of angry doctors tackle Jeremy Hunt at the annual conference of the Royal College of GPs in Liverpool. The Daily Telegraph
See also:
See also:
Why do some forms of cancer receive more research funding than others?
Why do some forms of cancer receive more research funding than others? Breast cancer research receives more money than any other form of the disease in the UK, official data shows. The Independent
Thursday, 2 October 2014
New chairman for East Midlands Ambulance Service
New chairman for East Midlands Ambulance Service The East Midlands Ambulance Service has appointed a new chair, Pauline Tagg, a former nurse and midwife, who will take over the role until the end of September 2016. Northamptonshire Telegraph
Child Sexual Exploitation Improving Recognition and Response in Health Settings
Child Sexual Exploitation Improving Recognition and Response in Health Settings New guidance to doctors and other health professionals designed to help them spot the possible warning signs of child sexual exploitation and refer those concerns to helping services quickly and effectively.
The new report, which has been drafted by a range of medical, health, academic and third sector groups, sets out a series of recommendations aimed at improving clinicians’ awareness of the issue. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges
The new report, which has been drafted by a range of medical, health, academic and third sector groups, sets out a series of recommendations aimed at improving clinicians’ awareness of the issue. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges
Focus on: allied health professionals (AHPs) - can we measure quality of care?
Focus on: allied health professionals (AHPs) - can we measure quality of care? This report reveals that AHPs are a growing part of the NHS workforce, accounting for over £2bn of the salary bill, yet there is little data on the contribution they make to the quality of patient care. It examines the role of AHPs in the NHS, private and voluntary sector and finds that there has been a significant increase in the numbers of AHPs, with numbers of registered practitioners rising by 53% since 2002, and NHS-based practitioners rising by a third. Quality Watch
Black and dangerous? Listening to patients' experiences of mental health in London
Black and dangerous? Listening to patients' experiences of mental health in London Why are black people with mental health problems still more likely than whites to be heavily medicated, restrained and detained against their will? Open Democracy
Over 500 GP practices 'risk closure'
Over 500 GP practices 'risk closure' Hundreds of GP practices are at risk of closure because of the ageing workforce, doctors' leaders say. BBC News
See also:
See also:
- Over 500 surgeries at risk of closure as GP workforce crisis deepens Royal College of General Practitioners
- GP workforce crisis could force 600 practices to close, warns RCGP GP Online
- Hundreds of GP practises threatened with closure as doctors quit 'in their droves' The Independent
- 500 GP practices could close next year, doctors warn The Daily Telegraph
- Patients must come first The Daily Telegraph
- Up to 600 GP surgeries could close over course of next year as doctors retire The Guardian
- Seven-day access to GPs sounds good, but the devil will be in the detail | @guardianletters The Guardian
Ambulance staff vote for strike
Ambulance staff vote for strike Ambulance staff and other health workers in the GMB union have voted in favour of strike action in a row over pay. BBC News
UK funds Ebola clinics in S Leone
UK funds Ebola clinics in S Leone Pilot triage clinics are being funded to help tackle the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone, UK officials say. BBC News
See also:
See also:
- News story: Defeating Ebola in Sierra Leone conference Department of Health
- First Ebola case diagnosed in the US BBC News
- Ebola: 'Five S Leone cases per hour' BBC News
- Ebola in the US: Officials scrambling to track down all in contact with infected patient The Independent
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