Wednesday, 7 September 2016
Two Rushden care homes praised by inspectors
Two Rushden care homes praised by inspectors Two Rushden care homes which help adults with learning difficulties have been praised by inspectors. Northampton Chronicle and Echo
Begin with culture; the rest will follow
Begin with culture; the rest will follow What drives high performance in the NHS? Is it the promise of reward and recognition? Or is it the fear of impending punishment and blame? The answer is neither.
It’s said that motivation is all about rewarding good behaviour and punishing bad behaviour. Simple. Except that humans are not so simple. And research shows that while this formulaic approach might work with rats and dogs, it doesn’t bring about lasting changes in attitudes, values or mindsets in humans. When incentives and threats are taken away or made less explicit, their influence diminishes and, over time, their effects can disappear completely. So this quick and dirty approach to employee motivation can only go so far in bringing about and sustaining the highest quality of patient care that we all want to see throughout the NHS. The King's Fund
It’s said that motivation is all about rewarding good behaviour and punishing bad behaviour. Simple. Except that humans are not so simple. And research shows that while this formulaic approach might work with rats and dogs, it doesn’t bring about lasting changes in attitudes, values or mindsets in humans. When incentives and threats are taken away or made less explicit, their influence diminishes and, over time, their effects can disappear completely. So this quick and dirty approach to employee motivation can only go so far in bringing about and sustaining the highest quality of patient care that we all want to see throughout the NHS. The King's Fund
Action plan for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases in the WHO European Region
Action plan for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases in the WHO European Region This plan outlines a vision for the prevention and control of long-term conditions and chronic disease in the WHO European Region. It outlines actions which can help to considerably reduce the burden of long-term conditions, improve quality of life and make healthy life expectancy more equitable. In addition to early diagnosis, the plan advocates the use of fiscal policies and marketing restrictions to promote healthy eating and reducing sedentary behaviour through the health system and environmental modifications. World Health Organization
Understanding safe caseloads in the district nursing service
Understanding safe caseloads in the district nursing service This discussion paper summarises the challenges in managing safe caseloads in district nursing and points to specific actions needed to improve and safeguard the future quality of services. The report provides a thematic overview of the issues that should be taken into account when determining a safe caseload including: skill mix, capacity of other health and care services, use of technology and housing. The Queen's Nursing Institute
Southern Health: New job for ex-boss Katrina Percy 'did not exist'
Southern Health: New job for ex-boss Katrina Percy 'did not exist' The chief executive who resigned as the head of a troubled mental health trust had a new job created for her worth £240,000 a year. BBC News
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WHO strengthens Zika safe sex guidance
WHO strengthens Zika safe sex guidance Men and women returning from any area where the Zika is circulating should practice safe sex for at least six months to avoid the risk of spreading the disease, says the World Health Organization. BBC News
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- Prevention of sexual transmission of Zika virus World Health Organization
- Scientists discover zika virus could linger in your eyes for more than a week The Daily Mail
- People returning from Zika-hit regions urged to practise safe sex or abstain for at least six months The Daily Telegraph
Seven-day GP services not cost-effective, UK study suggests
Seven-day GP services not cost-effective, UK study suggests NHS chiefs set out plans to spend £500m on seven-day GP services and extended access schemes by 2020/21 as part of the GP Forward View published earlier this year.
But findings from research on an extended access scheme in Manchester shows that funding of £3.1m across 56 GP practices generated savings in hospital worth just £767,976.
The study, published in PLOS Medicine, compared GP and A&E attendances in 2014 at the 56 practices funded to extend their opening hours into evenings and weekends with 469 practices across the area that did not receive this funding. GP Online
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But findings from research on an extended access scheme in Manchester shows that funding of £3.1m across 56 GP practices generated savings in hospital worth just £767,976.
The study, published in PLOS Medicine, compared GP and A&E attendances in 2014 at the 56 practices funded to extend their opening hours into evenings and weekends with 469 practices across the area that did not receive this funding. GP Online
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More help to reduce diabetes amputations
More help to reduce diabetes amputations With diabetes-related amputations continuing to rise the campaigning charity Diabetes UK has developed a new guide designed to encourage healthcare professionals to use root cause analysis to tackle the underlying problems that could result in the loss of a limb. OnMedica
NHS to have one website for appointments, prescriptions and advice
NHS to have one website for appointments, prescriptions and advice The NHS.uk website is intended to be ready by the end of next year and will allow patients to compare their NHS trust’s performance with that of others
A one-stop NHS website where patients book appointments, order prescriptions and access medical advice is being developed, health officials have announced. Continue reading... The Guardian
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A one-stop NHS website where patients book appointments, order prescriptions and access medical advice is being developed, health officials have announced. Continue reading... The Guardian
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- New plans to expand the use of digital technology across the NHS Department of Health
- Independent report: Using information technology to improve the NHS Department of Health
- NHS: Jeremy Hunt to announce new online 111 services BBC News
- Patients using 111 will diagnose themselves by iPhone The Daily Mail
- Diagnosis by smartphone for NHS patients to reduce pressure on health services The Daily Telegraph
STPs: Radical local modernisation plans or the end of the NHS as we know it?
STPs: Radical local modernisation plans or the end of the NHS as we know it? Controversial Sustainability and Transformation Plans are set to determine the future of England’s health service over the next four years
To some, they are bold, painful, inevitably controversial but nevertheless necessary local blueprints designed to save the NHS in England, area by area, by making it fit for the clinical, financial and organisational challenges it is facing. To others, though, they are sinister schemes that will see parts of, or even entire hospitals shut, fewer beds, the number of GP surgeries drastically reduced, NHS land sold to profiteers and private healthcare firms treating more NHS patients. What an NHS boss calls modernisation is an NHS campaigner’s road to destruction. Continue reading... The Guardian
To some, they are bold, painful, inevitably controversial but nevertheless necessary local blueprints designed to save the NHS in England, area by area, by making it fit for the clinical, financial and organisational challenges it is facing. To others, though, they are sinister schemes that will see parts of, or even entire hospitals shut, fewer beds, the number of GP surgeries drastically reduced, NHS land sold to profiteers and private healthcare firms treating more NHS patients. What an NHS boss calls modernisation is an NHS campaigner’s road to destruction. Continue reading... The Guardian
NHS dentistry is in a state of serious decay | Owen Jones
NHS dentistry is in a state of serious decay | Owen Jones The British Dental Association has revealed that many people postpone treatment because of its price, at great cost both to their teeth and to the NHS
Finally, some outrage about the national scandal that is dentistry. The health of our teeth matters, but dentistry has long been a neglected arm of the NHS. The British Dental Association has just revealed that 600,000 people have made futile appointments with GPs over dental problems in a year, at a cost to the NHS of £26m. It’s a statistic that has provoked mockery – one person tweeted: “I wonder if the 600,000 people a year who go to the GP for dental care ask electricians to fix their roofs as well?” But it is not the patients who should be shamed – it is the government.
One in seven children haven’t visited a dentist by their eighth birthday Continue reading... The Guardian
Finally, some outrage about the national scandal that is dentistry. The health of our teeth matters, but dentistry has long been a neglected arm of the NHS. The British Dental Association has just revealed that 600,000 people have made futile appointments with GPs over dental problems in a year, at a cost to the NHS of £26m. It’s a statistic that has provoked mockery – one person tweeted: “I wonder if the 600,000 people a year who go to the GP for dental care ask electricians to fix their roofs as well?” But it is not the patients who should be shamed – it is the government.
One in seven children haven’t visited a dentist by their eighth birthday Continue reading... The Guardian
Junior doctors urged to hold fresh ballot before striking
Junior doctors urged to hold fresh ballot before striking Junior doctors should not go ahead with crippling week-long strikes without a fresh ballot by their union, the head of the Commons health select committee has said.
Dr Sarah Wollaston, a former GP, urged the British Medical Association (BMA) to call off planned strikes - saying such actions were "grossly disproportionate and completely unjustified".
The legal basis for the strikes is a ballot last November on a new contract for junior doctors. The Daily Telegraph
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Dr Sarah Wollaston, a former GP, urged the British Medical Association (BMA) to call off planned strikes - saying such actions were "grossly disproportionate and completely unjustified".
The legal basis for the strikes is a ballot last November on a new contract for junior doctors. The Daily Telegraph
See also:
- GMC statement and advice to doctors on industrial action General Medical Council
- Jeremy Hunt claims junior doctor strikes will delay 1m hospital visits and 100,000 operations GP Online
- GP trainees who take strike action 'could face competency review' GP Online
- Hunt attacks junior doctors’ leader OnMedica
Tuesday, 6 September 2016
Plans launched for seven day hospital pharmacy services
Plans launched for seven day hospital pharmacy services “Transformation of Seven Day Clinical Pharmacy Services in Acute Hospitals” sets out a vision where hospital pharmacy services could operate more efficiently and safely, and 13 key recommendations of how clinical pharmacy services in hospitals can be strengthened – particularly at weekends – to benefit patients. NHS England
Doctors' strike in September called off
Doctors' strike in September called off The British Medical Association has called off the junior doctors' strike due to take place in England next week amid concerns about patient safety.
The BMA said it was not backing down in the fight over a new contract and further strikes would go ahead unless the government negotiates a new deal.
Medical leaders had warned the short notice meant care would be put at risk. BBC News
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The BMA said it was not backing down in the fight over a new contract and further strikes would go ahead unless the government negotiates a new deal.
Medical leaders had warned the short notice meant care would be put at risk. BBC News
See also:
- Junior doctor contracts (statement) British Medical Association
- NHS Employers response to industrial action being cancelled in September NHS Employers
- Junior doctors' strikes suspended The Daily Telegraph
- Five-day junior doctor strike suspended after NHS England talks GP Online
- Junior doctors suspend planned five-day strike in September The Guardian
- BMA call off junior doctors strike action planned for next week Northampton Chronicle and Echo
- Next week’s industrial action cancelled due to safety concerns OnMedica
Doctors urged to offer 'exercise outdoors' prescriptions
Doctors urged to offer 'exercise outdoors' prescriptions Doctors in England and Wales should offer overweight patients "green space" prescriptions to get them exercising outdoors, says the Local Government Association.
The prescriptions could provide free visits to national parks or gardening sessions at National Trust properties, for example.
A small number of GPs already do this.
The LGA says it needs to become universal policy to tackle the nation's obesity crisis. BBC News
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The prescriptions could provide free visits to national parks or gardening sessions at National Trust properties, for example.
A small number of GPs already do this.
The LGA says it needs to become universal policy to tackle the nation's obesity crisis. BBC News
See also:
- Prescribing exercise outdoors could reduce obesity, say councils Local Government Association
- Social prescribing can benefit patients but extra workload must not fall to GPs, says RCGP Royal College of General Practitioners
Three people die every day due to organ donor shortage
Three people die every day due to organ donor shortage Three people die every day in the UK due to the shortage of people willing to donate an organ. With over 6,500 people currently on the transplant waiting list to mark to the start of Organ Donation Week, NHS Blood and Transplant is encouraging the public to start a conversation with family and friends about signing up to the organ donor register. OnMedica
I'm a better doctor for accepting that I have a mental health problem
I'm a better doctor for accepting that I have a mental health problem I denied I was struggling with my workload as a GP until depression hit and I resigned.
I didn’t realise I had a mental health problem. I’m a GP and it’s a common misconception that we don’t get them. We get stressed, of course. We get burnout – yes. But we don’t get mental health problems.
When I found myself working in a practice hit, like so many others, by the lack of GPs and nurses of course it was difficult. Spending days as the only doctor for 8,500 patients was horrific. On-call days started early with visits that were left over from earlier in the week because we hadn’t had enough doctors to go out. There was a list of patients to call back before the phone lines even opened, booked in by the receptionists because they had nowhere else to put them. Blood results to look at. Medication queries to answer. Letters to read and file. Repeat prescriptions to sign. Complaints letters to respond to. Care Quality Commission boxes to tick. Continue reading... The Guardian
I didn’t realise I had a mental health problem. I’m a GP and it’s a common misconception that we don’t get them. We get stressed, of course. We get burnout – yes. But we don’t get mental health problems.
When I found myself working in a practice hit, like so many others, by the lack of GPs and nurses of course it was difficult. Spending days as the only doctor for 8,500 patients was horrific. On-call days started early with visits that were left over from earlier in the week because we hadn’t had enough doctors to go out. There was a list of patients to call back before the phone lines even opened, booked in by the receptionists because they had nowhere else to put them. Blood results to look at. Medication queries to answer. Letters to read and file. Repeat prescriptions to sign. Complaints letters to respond to. Care Quality Commission boxes to tick. Continue reading... The Guardian
How toothache is costing GPs £26m a year
How toothache is costing GPs £26m a year Doctors have warned that such visits have led to increased waiting times for those who need genuine medical treatment, saying that they are in ‘no position’ to treat dental problems. The Daily Mail
3,000 NHS bosses receive £100,000 redundancy deals since 2010 health reforms
3,000 NHS bosses receive £100,000 redundancy deals since 2010 health reforms More than 3,000 NHS bosses have been paid more than £100,000 in redundancy payments, with a further 500 receiving more than twice that amount, Department of Health figures reveal. The Daily Mail
Thousands of rural chemists saved from closure next month after government U-turn
Thousands of rural chemists saved from closure next month after government U-turn Thousands of local chemists threatened by closure have been given a temporary reprieve after the Government said it would not axe a vital subsidy next month after an outcry from rural and elderly campaign groups.
One in four local pharmacies had been threatened with closure after ministers said they wanted to withdraw a £170million subsidy for community chemists.
This meant that up to 3,000 out of the 12,000 pharmacies in the UK – many of which are in rural areas - faced closure. The Daily Telegraph
One in four local pharmacies had been threatened with closure after ministers said they wanted to withdraw a £170million subsidy for community chemists.
This meant that up to 3,000 out of the 12,000 pharmacies in the UK – many of which are in rural areas - faced closure. The Daily Telegraph
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