Kettering General Hospital 'fiddled' waiting time records

Kettering General Hospital 'fiddled' waiting time records Thousands of patients were removed from a hospital's waiting lists in a bid to "fiddle" the system, it is claimed.

A BBC investigation found thousands of Kettering General Hospital patients had waited a year or more for operations.

David Phelan, a hospital trust governor, claims patients were removed from lists because national targets were being missed.

The hospital admitted there had been "anomalies" and that a thorough review of data had been carried out. BBC News

Northampton GP surgery ranked 'good' by inspectors after making 'significant improvements'

Northampton GP surgery ranked 'good' by inspectors after making 'significant improvements' Inspectors have upgraded a Northampton GP practice from 'requires improvement' to 'good' for providing safe care.

A report published by the Care Quality Commission said the Mounts Medical Centre, in Campbell Street, had 'significantly improved' since its last inspection in 2015 and has now been given the second-highest rating possible. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

General election 2017: manifesto analysis

General election 2017: manifesto analysis These briefings aim to summarise the health and care aspects of political party manifestos in the build up to the 2017 General Election. National Voices

Supporting strategic commissioning: collaborative working between CCGs and AHSNs

Supporting strategic commissioning: collaborative working between CCGs and AHSNs This report aims to show how collaboration between CCGs and AHSNs can bring positive benefits to local patients and populations. It recommends that the most successful collaborations between CCGs and AHSNs will be ones that focus on a specific issue rather than on providing more general support. It also states that projects that focus on delivery at scale, will be the most impactful making AHSNs natural partners for commissioners working as a part of an STP. NHS Clinical Commissioners 

NHS entering 'year-round crisis', BMA warns

NHS entering 'year-round crisis', BMA warns Chronic underfunding and 'bad political choices' have left health and social care services unable to cope, with winter pressures now turning into a 'state of year-round crisis', the BMA has warned. GPonline

I worried about working in psychiatry but one patient taught me how to listen

I worried about working in psychiatry but one patient taught me how to listen It took ages to earn Sandra’s trust – she showed me how people’s lives can be consumed by the cruel fate of mental health problems

In medicine, psychiatry isn’t seen as glamorous. As a student and while training, you fight with your colleagues for the sexy jobs in cardiology, intensive care or on the frontline. When the crash call goes off, it’s dramatic; chest compressions, ventilation, trying to be the hero you see depicted on television. A job in psychiatry wasn’t my first choice, if there was a crisis, what would I do? Come running with my pen and notebook? Not exactly Oscar-winning stuff.

I had my reservations as I was about to embark on 91 days as a doctor in an adult inpatient psychiatric unit. Continue reading... The Guardian

Hospital trauma units across England on terror attack standby

Hospital trauma units across England on terror attack standby NHS England advises surgical teams to review staffing after Manchester bomb and be ready for ballistic and blast injuries

NHS hospital trauma units have been put on standby to deal with a potential fresh terrorist attack, possibly happening as soon as this weekend. The NHS has told every hospital in England, including the 27 that are specialist trauma centres, to “prepare for a further incident”. Continue reading... The Guardian

See also:

• NHS issues warning for possible terror attack this weekend The Daily Mail
• A&E and trauma units told to prepare for possible terrorist attack The Daily Telegraph
• UK hospitals 'told to prepare for bank holiday terror attack' The Independent

Midwives reveal what they wished women knew

Midwives reveal what they wished women knew Bournemouth-based midwives, Samantha Pantlin and Alex Williams, run The Naked Midwives, putting together programmes to ensure women are as prepared for birth as possible. The Daily Mail

6000 per cent rise in number of patients stuck on trolleys for 12 hours

6000 per cent rise in number of patients stuck on trolleys for 12 hours The number of patients waiting 12 hours on trolleys has risen by more than 6,000 per cent as hospital overcrowding reaches a record high, NHS figures show.

The Royal College of Surgeons said the situation had become “exceptionally worrying,” urging the next Government to draw up immediate plans to deal with the crisis.

Occupancy levels are now the highest on record - with 91.4 per cent of beds filled, compared to recommended rates of 85 percent, the statistics show.

More than 20 trusts regularly reached occupancy of at least 99 per cent during the period, the figures show. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Average hospital bed occupancy rate for 2017 sits at 92% The Daily Mail
• NHS A&E units are 'stretched to their very limits' The Daily Mail

Charlie Gard: Doctors can stop providing life support for sick baby as parents lose Court of Appeal fight

Charlie Gard: Doctors can stop providing life support for sick baby as parents lose Court of Appeal fight A couple who want to take their sick baby son to the USA for treatment have lost a legal battle in the Court of Appeal.

Chris Gard and Connie Yates want nine-month-old Charlie Gard, who suffers from a rare genetic condition and has brain damage, to undergo a therapy trial.

Specialists at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where Charlie is being cared for, say therapy proposed by a doctor in America is experimental and will not help. They say life-support treatment should stop. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Charlie Gard's parents lose life support court appeal BBC News
• Charlie Gard's parents fight for Supreme Court hearing BBC News
• Charlie Gard doctors can stop providing life support, court rules The Guardian

What do the manifestos mean for the NHS?

What do the manifestos mean for the NHS? There is more that unites the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat manifestos on the NHS than divides them. All three parties reiterate their commitment to the enduring principles of the NHS. All promise to increase NHS funding during the next parliament. And all outline plans to improve care and to deliver key waiting time and other standards. The King's Fund

Listening to patients, carers, staff and communities... do we care enough?

Listening to patients, carers, staff and communities... do we care enough? The message from every speaker and through every presentation at the Fund’s seventh annual leadership summit was clear – intensely portrayed by passionate descriptions and powerful images: we need to hear the stories, we need to work with compassion together, we need to care. The King's Fund

Flexible and user-led – why NHS trusts are switching to open source software

Flexible and user-led – why NHS trusts are switching to open source software Electronic patient record systems are expensive – could open source be the way forward for the NHS?

Many NHS trusts have started implementing electronic patient record (EPR) systems to improve efficiency and reduce paper waste. At a time of budget cuts, however, the multimillion pound price tag attached to an EPR implementation can be off-putting.

As an alternative, some are looking at open source software, in which the underlying code is made available for free, and users are able to tailor it to their own needs for no extra cost. This is different from proprietary software, where the supplier controls the source code and may charge licence fees. Continue reading... The Guardian

'I still feel raw': nurse tells of treating Manchester bombing victims

'I still feel raw': nurse tells of treating Manchester bombing victims Joe O’Brien talks of a patient who smiled despite horrific injuries and a doctor, whose daughter was at the arena, returning to treat the wounded

Joe O’Brien is a senior sister in the surgical department of Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport, where six of the 59 injured in the Manchester bombing were treated.

On Monday, I worked from 8am until 6pm as a surgery sister at Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport. I was in bed that night listening to BBC Radio Four when I heard the words ‘Manchester’ and ‘incident’. I immediately thought about Declan, my son, a student who lives in central Manchester. I shot downstairs, spoke to my husband Sean. We rang Declan and established that he was OK, then I rang work and went in.

When I got there at 1.30am there were ambulances outside which had brought in six of the 59 casualties from the arena. They were stabilised in the A&E unit and brought to the surgical department where I work. They all had what we call lower limb injuries with foreign bodies – shrapnel injuries. Metal bolts and nuts, some an inch wide, had gone into them. They had caused real damage and left big holes in people. Shrapnel is like a large bullethole. It just destroys anything it goes through – arteries, bones, nerves, the lot. I’ve been in operating theatres since 1988 and it’s the most upsetting thing I’ve ever seen. Continue reading... The Guardian

What do the election manifestos say about social care?

What do the election manifestos say about social care? From a dementia tax to a National Care Service, the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat election promises about social care examined

While the snap election appears to be about getting a mandate for Brexit, the controversy over social care proposals in the Conservative manifesto has ignited the issue. The three major political parties all have something to say about social care, which has been unfinished business through successive governments for at least the past 20 years.

Both the Liberal Democrat and Labour manifestos describe social care as being in a state of crisis, and the funding shortfall is well known (estimated at £2bn this year alone). The Lib Dems would introduce an immediate 1p rise in all rates of income tax and ringfence the additional revenue (which they calculate at £6bn) for NHS and social care services. In the longer term this would be replaced with a hypothecated health and care tax. The manifesto also pledges to “finish the job of implementing a cap on the cost of social care, which the Conservatives have effectively abandoned”. Continue reading... The Guardian

Drink and drug service cuts will hit overstretched A&Es

Drink and drug service cuts will hit overstretched A&Es Cuts to addiction services will impact A&Es and cost the NHS more in the long run, claims a Royal College of Psychiatrists professor. Budgets for services in some areas have been slashed by 50%. The Daily Mail

Warnings handed to hospitals on care double in a year

Warnings handed to hospitals on care double in a year The Care Quality Commission was forced to issue 135 'enforcement actions' against hospitals in England in 2016/17. Yet in 2015/16 the watchdog handed just 58 enforcement actions. The Daily Mail

Dementia patients should have GPS trackers, expert says

Dementia patients should have GPS trackers, expert says Dementia patients should have a tracking device implanted into their body in case they wander off and get lost, an expert believes.

Professor June Andrews, OBE, is adamant the chip under their skin could save many families the anxiety and distress if their relative goes missing.

While the trained nurse, who used to head up dementia studies at Stirling University, Scotland, thinks it could even potentially save lives.

Professor Andrews, who now works independently to improve the lives of people with dementia, is in favour of subcutaneous trackers. The Daily Mail

KGH to introduce temporary £20 all-day car park charge

KGH to introduce temporary £20 all-day car park charge Kettering General Hospital will temporarily increase its all-day parking charge to £20 while work on the second deck of Car Park B takes place. Northamptonshire Telegraph

What the public thinks about NHS and social care services

What the public thinks about NHS and social care services The Health Foundation commissioned Ipsos MORI to do a survey of the general public in Great Britain on their views about funding of the NHS, as well as the provision of NHS and social care services.

The survey was carried out in May 2017. We have analysed some of the findings from the survey. We have also provided comparisons with the results of an Ipsos MORI survey that we commissioned in 2015 and with NatCen’s British Social Attitudes survey of 2014.