One in four A&E patients at KGH in December waited for more than four hours

One in four A&E patients at KGH in December waited for more than four hours More than 25 per cent of patients who attended KGH’s A&E department in December had to wait for longer than four hours.

New NHS figures show 7,488 people visited A&E there in the last month of 2017. A total of 73.4 per cent of these were admitted, transferred or discharged within the target time of four hours – meaning 1,989 had to wait longer than expected. Northamptonshire Telegraph

A&E performance reaches a new low

A&E performance reaches a new low We are in the middle of winter, and pressures on the NHS are rising. The media and groups of NHS staff are describing an A&E service in crisis, while the government says the NHS is more prepared for winter than ever before. What does the latest national data say about how A&E departments are coping compared with previous winters? The King's Fund

Feeling the heat the decline of stop smoking services in England findings from a survey of local authority tobacco control leads

Feeling the heat the decline of stop smoking services in England findings from a survey of local authority tobacco control leads A report by Cancer Research UK and Action on Smoking and Health showing that cuts to the public health budget nationally have led to dramatic changes in services for smokers. Only 61% of local authorities continue to offer all local smokers access to evidence-based support in line with NICE guidance.

Local areas report year-on-year budget cuts to stop smoking services. There is now at least one local authority in England where there is a zero budget for addressing smoking.

The survey of local authorities across England also found that 1 in 9 areas report that GPs are no longer prescribing nicotine replacement therapy, such as patches or gum, to smokers. One in 10 GPs do not provide access to varenicline, an effective prescription-only medication that helps smokers to quit.

What doctors, nurses and patients think about the NHS

What doctors, nurses and patients think about the NHS The NHS has been under the spotlight even more than usual over the Christmas period, with hospitals described as unsafe and overcrowded.

Doctors say patients are dying in corridors, and are asking for money for beds and staff.

Newsbeat asked for your experiences at hospitals and was inundated with responses.

They were raw - but gave positive as well as negative accounts. BBC News

'Liver branding' surgeon Simon Bramhall fined £10,000

'Liver branding' surgeon Simon Bramhall fined £10,000 A liver surgeon who branded his initials on the livers of two patients has been fined £10,000.

Simon Bramhall, 53, used an argon beam machine to write his initials on the organs of the anaesthetised patients in 2013 while working at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

Bramhall, of Tarrington, Herefordshire, admitted two counts of assault by beating at Birmingham Crown Court.

He was also sentenced to a 12-month community order. BBC News

See also:

• Surgeons don’t have to sign their names… in us | Barbara Ellen The Guardian

Carillion: Government contractor enters compulsory liquidation 'with immediate effect'

Carillion: Government contractor enters compulsory liquidation 'with immediate effect' Company employs some 20,000 people in the UK and holds contracts for HS2, prisons, the NHS and the armed forces.

One of the Government's most important contractors has collapsed into liquidation as a result of its lenders refusing to provide any more financial support, raising fears about the future of hundreds of major projects at an already challenging time for the British economy.

Following several days of tense negotiations, the board of construction giant Carillion on Monday said that it had “no choice but to take steps to enter into compulsory liquidation with immediate effect’’. The Independent

Sexual health services must be protected to prevent a crisis | The big issue

Sexual health services must be protected to prevent a crisis | The big issue A petition is the first step in the battle to stop the loss of ringfencing of funds

We were pleased that Nick Cohen highlighted the impact of the systematic reduction in public health funding on vital prevention and clinical services (“You don’t have to be poor to be an addict. But it helps”, Comment). Like the drug and alcohol services he referred to, there is a growing deficit between need and the availability of sexual health services. In London, a number of sexual health clinics have closed recently and patients are reportedly being turned away.

We are on the verge of a crisis in sexual health services, but the stigma and blame attached to public health issues such as drug and alcohol use can also be a critical barrier to convincing hearts and minds (and voters) to fight against this predicament in sexual health. Despite this, the fight is on. Already, 5,000 people have signed a petition to protect sexual health services. Continue reading... The Guardian

Dentists warn of child tooth decay crisis as extractions hit new high

Dentists warn of child tooth decay crisis as extractions hit new high NHS surgeons removed multiple teeth from under-18s in England a record 42,911 times in 2016-17, figures show

NHS surgeons are performing record numbers of operations to pull out rotten teeth in children. Continue reading... The Guardian 

See also:

• Hospital operations for child teeth removal increase in England BBC News

Medical students urged to volunteer as NHS winter crisis worsens

Medical students urged to volunteer as NHS winter crisis worsens Exclusive: Emails seen by the Guardian reveal inexperienced undergraduates are being asked to help in A&E units and wards

Medical students are being urged to help relieve the NHS winter crisis because hospitals are so short-staffed they are struggling to cope with the surge in patients, the Guardian can reveal.

Despite their lack of experience, undergraduates are being asked to volunteer in A&E units and on wards reeling under the weight of extra demand caused by the cold weather, an outbreak of flu and people suffering serious breathing problems.

A combination of factors are at play. Hospitals have fewer beds than last year, so they are less able to deal with the recent, ongoing surge in illness. Last week, for example, the bed occupancy rate at 17 of England’s 153 acute hospital trusts was 98% or more, with the fullest – Walsall healthcare trust – 99.9% occupied. Continue reading... The  Guardian

NHS crisis fuelled by closure of 1000 care homes housing more than 30000 pensioners - Telegraph.co.uk

NHS crisis fuelled by closure of 1000 care homes housing more than 30000 pensioners The growing NHS crisis has been fuelled by the closure of almost 1,000 care homes housing more than 30,000 pensioners, research suggests. It comes as NHS figures show the worst Accident & Emergency crisis on record. The Daily Telegraph

NHS boss diagnosed with Alzheimer's tells of the disease

NHS boss diagnosed with Alzheimer's tells of the disease Three years ago, Wendy Mitchell was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. Though devastated, the NHS manager, from Yorkshire, was determined to remain upbeat. The Daily Mail

NHS winter pressures: going home from hospital

NHS winter pressures: going home from hospital The spotlight on NHS performance during winter – and this series of blogs so far –lingers on problems getting to and (where necessary) into hospital quickly in an emergency. Problems at the hospital front door may seem more immediate, but the less visible delays at the back door are no less important.

Delays leaving hospital primarily affect older people (those aged 65 plus). In March 2017 the NHS Benchmarking Network suggested that 83% of delayed discharges involved people aged 65 plus and 39% involved people aged 85 plus (based on data from 47 NHS organisations from England, Wales and Northern Ireland). The Health Foundation

Black alerts: for emergencies only?

Black alerts: for emergencies only? The Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care have said that the NHS is delivering more and has planned better for this winter than ever before, but news of long waits and over-crowded A&E departments is still making the headlines. The King's Fund

Fatigue and sleep deprivation – the impact of different working patterns on doctors

Fatigue and sleep deprivation – the impact of different working patterns on doctors This briefing highlights why doctors are at risk of fatigue and the acute and long-term impacts this can have. It also presents a framework for how Government, organisations and doctors themselves can manage this risk. British Medical Association

Thinking on its own: AI in the NHS

Thinking on its own: AI in the NHS This report illustrates the areas where artificial intelligence (AI) could help the NHS become more efficient and deliver better outcomes for patients. It also highlights the main barriers to the implementation of this technology and suggests some potential solutions. Reform

Sharp rise in flu cases

Sharp rise in flu cases Hospitals in England are now seeing very high rates of patients with flu, according to Public Health England figures.

A sharp rise in cases seen by GPs in the past week - up 78% on the week before - suggests it could be the worst flu season for seven years.

But PHE said the current levels of flu were "not unprecedented".

Deaths from flu remained static with 27 in the past seven days.

Around 5,000 people were admitted to hospital with flu in the first week of January, based on PHE figures for 22 out of 137 trusts.

Prof Paul Cosford, medical director from Public Health England, said: "The levels of flu being seen are high and of course that is contributing to the pressures in the NHS, but they are not unprecedented levels." BBC News

See also:

• UK flu levels continue to increase according to PHE statistics Public Health England 
• Syndromic surveillance: weekly summaries for 2018 Public Health England 
• Flu rises again in England putting increasing pressure on general practice services Royal College of General Practitioners
• Why do the majority of NHS staff not get the flu vaccine? BBC News
• Flu deaths soar by 77% in a week, figures show The Daily Mail
• Flu levels soaring with one in five hospital cases suffering 'Aussie flu' The Daily Telegraph
• Flu epidemic will hit within a month if trends continue, new figures show The Daily Telegraph
• Flu cases double as UK faces medium-level epidemic GPonline
• Rate of flu patients placed in intensive care shoots up 65% in a week as 18-year-old dies from disease The Independent

Carillion share price collapse sparks fears Government could be left with cost of NHS contracts

Carillion share price collapse sparks fears Government could be left with cost of NHS contracts A dramatic fall in the share price of one of Britain’s biggest outsourcing companies has sparked fears that the taxpayer could be left to pick up the cost of contracts that provide crucial maintenance work in NHS hospitals.

The Prime Minister’s spokesman said today that the Government was monitoring Carillion closely amid fears that it could collapse as the health service struggles to cope with the worst winter crisis on record. The Independent

Six patients die amid 400 errors as NHS staff accidentally switch off oxygen supply

Six patients die amid 400 errors as NHS staff accidentally switch off oxygen supply An NHS investigation has been launched following the deaths of six patients when hospital staff accidentally switched off their oxygen cylinders.

A safety alert has been issued after watchdogs uncovered more than 400 incidents in which cylinder controls were wrongly operated - including 24 cases where patients came to “moderate or severe harm”.

The blunders saw six patients die, while five suffered cardiac arrest or stopped breathing and five were left unconscious.

Incidents involved newborns, patients on resuscitation trolleys and those on cardiac units, a safety alert discloses. The Daily Telegraph

A&E waiting times hit their worst on record, figures show

A&E waiting times hit their worst on record, figures show The NHS is struggling with its worst winter ever as A&E waiting times hit their highest on record, damning figures released today reveal.

New data from NHS England shows the health service is operating at a poorer level than at the same point in 2016, which was branded a 'humanitarian crisis' and saw the British Red Cross drafted in to help.

The alarming statistics show:

• One in five patients at major casualty units waited longer than four hours - the safe limit set by the Government - to be seen in December
• The statistics showed that for all A&E units, 85.1 per cent of patients were seen within the four-hour period - equaling last January's record low. 
• More than 300,000 patients were forced to wait for at least four hours in all A&E units - the highest amount since figures began in 2010.
• Ambulance delays have also risen to record proportions, with more than 5,000 patients left stuck in the back of the vehicles waiting to be transferred to A&E.
• While bed occupancy levels have hit their worst point yet this winter, with 24 trusts declaring they had no free beds at some point last week, the figures show.

The 'disappointing' figures have been escalating rapidly in the past few weeks, with the crisis now at the forefront of a political row over funding. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Response to the latest NHS waiting time figures The King's Fund
• A&E chiefs warn PM that patients are dying in corridors The Daily Mail
• Hospital crowding soars amid rising cases of norovirus and 'Aussie' flu The Daily Telegraph
• Number of A&E patients treated within four hours at lowest ever level The Guardian
• How the NHS winter beds crisis is hitting patient care The Guardian
• The Guardian view on the NHS crisis: it’s not just the flu | Editorial The Guardian

Northampton General Hospital to buy care home places as winter pressures hit

Northampton General Hospital to buy care home places as winter pressures hit A hospital is to start paying for care home places for people waiting to leave the site in a bid to ease what it calls "severe" pressure on beds.

Northampton General Hospital said it needed to double the number of patients with complex needs who left the hospital each day.

Many patients are fit enough to leave hospital but are awaiting social care assessments from the county council.

The hospital said it would spend about £1m on the care home places. BBC Northampton