Overspend reduced at county council but concerns persist over remaining £11m savings

Overspend reduced at county council but concerns persist over remaining £11m savings Northamptonshire County Council’s overspend has reduced by £19million in the past five months, but questions remain over the deliverability of some of its remaining £11million savings.

The latest finance monitoring report, which will be discussed by cabinet next Tuesday (January 15), shows that the forecast year-end position is currently an overspend of £11m. It’s down from the £30m overspend forecast in July, when the council issued a second section 114 notice banning new expenditure. And it’s a further improvement on the £15.6million position reported last month. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

International comparison of women’s health

International comparison of women’s health A briefing from the Commonwealth Fund compares the health status and availability of health care for women in the United States with the situation for women in 10 other high-income countries, including the UK.

GP premises: the patient perspective

GP premises: the patient perspective Poor confidentiality at reception desks, issues with access for disabled people and dated waiting rooms are some of the biggest problems highlighted by patients in a new report published by the Patients Association of people’s views of their local GP surgery’s buildings.

The report has found that patients are concerned about various internal and external aspects of their local GP practice premises. The report outlines patients’ views based on an online survey and four focus groups aiming to establish the importance of the physical environment in shaping people’s experiences of primary care.

Confidentiality emerged as a key issue raised by patients, particularly the risk of being overheard at the reception desk or when telephoning practices. Of the 720 respondents to the survey and focus groups, 58% (404 of 692 respondents to this question) said that there was not enough space at the practice to allow reasonable privacy. The Patients Association

See also:

• Patients forced to whisper to GPs because walls are too thin The Daily Telegraph

Can a strong economic case be made for investing in the NHS?

Can a strong economic case be made for investing in the NHS? In September 2018, Professor Peter Smith delivered the 25th OHE Annual Lecture: Can a Strong Economic Case Be Made for Investing in the NHS? The lecture is now available as a publication, which can be downloaded for free.

Debate about funding has highlighted the difficulty of persuading sceptics that the NHS is a good use of public finance. There is a widely held view – particularly in finance ministries and some sections of the media – that health systems such as the NHS are ‘black holes’, constantly demanding increased funding without concomitant returns to society. Office of Health Economics

Home Office doubles charge for migrants to use the NHS

Home Office doubles charge for migrants to use the NHS Nurses and people who have been in the UK since childhood are among those who must pay the £400-a-year charge

he Home Office has doubled a charge for migrants to use the NHS, in a move that has been criticised for its impact on NHS workers and young people who have been in the UK since childhood.

The standard Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) will today double from £200 to £400 a year, a sum the Home Office says will bring much-needed funds to the National Health Service. Sky News

See also:

• Campaigners ‘desolate’ after Home Office doubles charge for migrants to use the NHS National Health Executive

Generation Z and Baby Boomers fear for future of the NHS, says survey

Generation Z and Baby Boomers fear for future of the NHS, says survey Concern that Brexit will harm the NHS, a surge in people turning to social media for medical advice, and ignorance regarding the pharmaceutical industry are among the findings of a new report into people's attitudes to health.

The majority (59 per cent) of young patients think Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union will have a negative impact on the NHS, compared to just 28 per cent of older patients, according to the report by health comms agency Pegasus.

It outlines the results of a poll of 500 members of Generation Z, defined as those aged 16-23, and 500 Baby Boomers, those aged 54-72, which was carried out in October 2018.

Both demographic groups are concerned about the long-term outlook for the NHS, with 69 per cent of Generation Zs and 72 per cent of Baby Boomers saying they are worried about its future. PR Week

See also:

• Generation Z: The Future of Health and Wellbeing Behavioural differences between generations (free but requires registration) Pegasus 

People at greater risk of death due to embarrassment over cancer symptoms

People at greater risk of death due to embarrassment over cancer symptoms Millions of British people are delaying getting their cancer symptoms checked due to embarrassment, putting them at increased risk of death.

New research suggests a fifth of UK adults – around 6.6 million people – have put off seeking medical advice.

Experts warn that delays in diagnosis can have a major impact on the success of treatment, and urged people to overcome their shame to ensure the best results. The Independent

Long-term NHS plan: Does the UK health service provide value for money?

Long-term NHS plan: Does the UK health service provide value for money? The government produced a “long-term plan” for the National Health Service on Monday.

This is designed to outline how the £20bn a year funding boost by 2023-24, announced last year, will be spent.

Labour, unions and various health group say the plan is underfunded and will not fill widening staffing gaps.

The Institute of Economic Affairs, on the other hand, complains that the plan does not allow for greater “competition” or “patient choice” and argues that ministers have refused to heed the lessons from superior and more efficient European health insurance systems.

So just how does the NHS compare to other countries’ health systems when it comes to value for money? Should we be learning from abroad? The Independent

See also:

• Without more staff, the NHS plan will fail. GPs will have to pick up the pieces | Zara Aziz The Guardian

Injection to halt the progress of Alzheimer’s 'available within decade'

Injection to halt the progress of Alzheimer’s 'available within decade' An injection capable of halting the progress of Alzheimer’s could be available to patients within a decade, Britain’s leading dementia organisation predicts.

The Alzheimer’s Society says a series of recent breakthroughs in treatments that disrupt harmful genes has brought scientists to a “tipping point” in their fight against the disease.

For decades, researchers have sought without success a treatment for Alzheimer’s based on targeting damaging proteins that build up in the brain. The Daily Telegraph

New pilot scheme sees mental health advisors stationed at council's offices

New pilot scheme sees mental health advisors stationed at council's offices Kettering people struggling with their mental health can now receive specialist help at the town’s council offices after a pilot scheme was launched.

Northamptonshire Healthcare Foundation Trust, which has responsibility for helping people with their mental wellbeing, has launched the project with three mental health workers operating out of the council offices in Bowling Green Road.

The KBC hub has been set up in response to findings that some people were hesitant to access mental health services through traditional channels. The health body says it wants the pilot to ‘normalise conversations’ about mental health. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Sexual assault forensics centres failing some victims

Sexual assault forensics centres failing some victims Young victims of sexual assault are not being forensically examined within a critical time period at some privately-run referral centres, a BBC investigation has found.

Doctors also told the BBC they had seen cases of incorrect recordings of injuries and evidence contamination.

Victims' Commissioner Baroness Newlove said the "failings" were "shocking".

NHS England - which jointly commissions services - said it had not been made aware of the concerns. BBC News

Praise for 'ambitious' NHS plan but experts warn patients may wait longer as funding decisions bite

Praise for 'ambitious' NHS plan but experts warn patients may wait longer as funding decisions bite After a weekend-long dissection of the NHS long-term plan’s headline ambitions, it was hoped that Monday would fully flesh out what’s in store for the health service as it invests a £20.5bn budget increase over the next decade.

The final document, which runs to 136 densely-typed pages, has commitments for every corner of the NHS and has received near-universal praise for its ambition and detail.

In particular it sets out that a £4.5bn slice of the budget increase will be spent on GP and community care to diagnose diseases early and treat people closer to home. The Independent

See also:

• Health Secretary: NHS 'has got to be better' at working with councils Channel 4 News
• Theresa May claims UK's 'strong public finances' and Brexit will pay for a better NHS The Daily Mail
• Four-hour A&E waiting time target could be scrapped The Daily Mail
• NHS plan: The key points from the new 134-page strategy The Daily Telegraph
• NHS plan: Smartphone consultations to replace hospital appointments in NHS 'digital first' plan The Daily Telegraph
• NHS chief backs call for tougher, faster A&E waiting-time standards The Guardian
• Long-term plan for NHS England 'undeliverable' amid staffing crisis The Guardian
• NHS chiefs tell Theresa May it is time to curb privatisation The Guardian
• NHS 10-year plan relies on raiding other countries for thousands of nurses and doctors The Independent
• The government’s 10-year NHS plan is welcome – but a shift in public opinion is needed if we are to save it The Independent

Joe Harrison: ‘The NHS must stop relying on pen and pape

Joe Harrison: ‘The NHS must stop relying on pen and paper’ The head of Milton Keynes hospital foundation trust says technology can save time, lives and money

Parts of the NHS are still in the dark ages, technologically speaking,” says Professor Joe Harrison, chief executive of Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS foundation trust. “There are still sites across the NHS that don’t even have wifi. In certain parts of the NHS we still believe that paper and pen are the way to capture data,” he adds with barely concealed contempt. Harrison worries that the service’s unhappy history with technology, most infamously exemplified by the failure of the £12bn Connecting for Health initiative, a bold attempt by the then Labour government to modernise NHS IT but plagued by cost overruns and scrapped in 2011, has left it poorly placed to benefit from the digital revolution.

Harrison fervently believes that embracing tech, IT and digital innovation helps patients and staff and improves the quality of care. He appears both baffled and horrified that doctors at outpatient clinics still write notes from the consultation into the patient’s often bulging paper medical record and that hospitals send patients letters to confirm their next appointment. “The vast majority of people who use tech on a daily basis would be happy to communicate and engage with the NHS in a different way.” The Guardian

Schoolchildren to be offered sleep lessons after rise in disorders

Schoolchildren to be offered sleep lessons after rise in disorders Move follows concerns about ‘hidden health disaster’ of sleeplessness among young

Schoolchildren across Britain may be offered sleep lessons to help tackle the problem of insomnia among young people.

The lessons became available to teachers at the end of last year and were devised by the PSHE Association and the department for sleep medicine at Evelina London children’s hospital. The Guardian

Bone surgeons the most sexist in the NHS, new poll suggests

Bone surgeons the most sexist in the NHS, new poll suggests Bone surgeons are the most sexist in the NHS, according to a confidential poll which suggests discrimination against female staff is rife.

Results of an online survey found more than half of female surgeons in the UK have experienced or witnessed workplace abuse, with those working in orthopaedics most likely to have suffered.

The specialism, concerned with treating conditions of the musculoskeletal system, has long had a reputation within medicine as physically demanding due to the nature of the operations involved. The Daily Telegraph 

See also:

• A woman’s place is in theatre: women’s perceptions and experiences of working in surgery from the Association of Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland women in surgery working group (open access) BMJ Open
• Female surgeons frustrated by male-dominated field – study The Guardian

The new £500m hospital lying empty just three miles from where Theresa May launched her NHS plan

The new £500m hospital lying empty just three miles from where Theresa May launched her NHS plan Three miles from yesterday’s NHS launch, a £500 million hospital lies empty and unused.

The 13-storey building houses top-of-the range scanners and other medical equipment – and was meant to have been finished two years ago.

However work ground to a halt last January following a botched private finance initiative deal with the now collapsed company Carillion. The Daily Mail

Expert warns the UK could face its own U.S. style opiod crisis

Expert warns the UK could face its own U.S. style opiod crisis Around eight million people in the UK live with chronic pain, where symptoms persist for longer than three months.

The problem for is that the diagnosis of chronic pain often leads to a separate set of problems entirely due to the painkilling medication they are prescribed.

This leaves thousands dependent on the drugs through no fault of their own. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Discovery of endogenous opioid systems: what it has meant for the clinician's understanding of pain and its treatment (abstract) Pain

NHS Long Term Plan to tackle major killer conditions and save up to half a million lives

NHS Long Term Plan to tackle major killer conditions and save up to half a million lives The NHS Long Term Plan, published today, will save almost half a million more lives with practical action on major killer conditions and investment in world class, cutting edge treatments including genomic tests for every child with cancer.

The blueprint to make the NHS fit for the future will use the latest technology, such as digital GP consultations for all those who want them, coupled with early detection and a renewed focus on prevention to stop an estimated 85,000 premature deaths each year.

Measures outlined by NHS leaders today will help prevent 150,000 heart attacks, strokes and dementia cases while more than three million people will benefit from new and improved stroke, respiratory and cardiac services over the next decade. NHS England

See also:

• NHS Long Term Plan (web site)
• PM: Launch of the NHS Long Term Plan marks an historic step to secure its future Prime Minister's Office
• NHS Long Term Plan will help problem drinkers and smokers NHS England
• NHS long term plan launch: pragmatic and ambitious, but making it a reality will be tough Health Foundation
• NHS long term plan announcement: a welcome commitment but trade-offs are inevitable Health Foundation
• The King's Fund response to the NHS long-term plan The King's Fund
• Staff shortages and prospect of no deal Brexit threaten to undermine ambitious NHS plan Nuffield Trust
• NHS 10-year plan: Non-hospital care to get biggest funding rise BBC News
• NHS 10-year plan: May hails historic announcement BBC News
• NHS 10-year plan: Labour attacks Theresa May over proposals BBC News
• NHS long-term plan: Focus on prevention 'could save 500,000 lives' BBC News
• Theresa May's 10-year blueprint for the NHS The Daily Mail
• PHILIP HAMMOND: With £20billion of extra funding, NHS leaders must also cut waste The Daily Mail
• NHS blueprint: All children with cancer will have treatment tailored to DNA The Daily Mail
• NHS to outline plan to save half a million lives over next decade The Guardian
• Mental health care to get waiting-time targets under 10-year NHS plan The Guardian
• Simon Stevens told to transform the NHS – and keep it out of the headlines The Guardian
• May gives no guarantee on NHS waiting times despite extra £20bn The Guardian
• The NHS 10-year plan: what we already know The Guardian
• NHS plan must not become unachievable 'wishlist', PM warned as government promotes health service plan The Independent
• NHS launches plans to ensure half a million more people survive killer diseases over next ten years The Independent
• NHS aims to save 500,000 more lives in next decade Sky News
• Theresa May's 10-year NHS plan is longer on promises than answers Sky News
• Theresa May says new 10-year NHS plan will stop 'slipping' targets Sky News

Families waiting too long for special needs support in England

Families waiting too long for special needs support in England Thousands of children in England with special educational needs are waiting too long for an education, health and care plan (EHC), the BBC has learned.

The EHC plans set out a child's needs and the support to which they are entitled.

Once a plan is requested, the law says councils should normally finalise them within 20 weeks.

But through Freedom of Information requests, the BBC has learned around four in 10 plans have taken longer. BBC News

Patients wait twice as long for ambulances when they become seriously ill at the GP, investigation finds

Patients wait twice as long for ambulances when they become seriously ill at the GP, investigation finds Patients whose GP spots symptoms of serious health problems like heart attacks and sepsis are waiting twice as long for an ambulance as those who call 999 alone, an investigation has found.

After doctors revealed they have had patients “die waiting” and had critically ill newborns put at serious risk, the British Medical Association has said NHS bosses must address long waits.

While GPs can assess a patient’s condition, they only request an ambulance when there is an emergency. They are not equipped to provide emergency treatment, GP leaders said. The Independent

See also:

• Ambulances routinely delaying treatment to emergency calls from GP practices Pulse