Northampton day hospice reopens after Covid closure

Northampton day hospice reopens after Covid closure A day hospice forced to close its doors due to Covid-19 has resumed face-to-face care.

The Cynthia Spencer Hospice in Northampton moved its day services online in March 2020.

Earlier this month it fully re-introduced its physical wellbeing services for people living in the community. BBC Northampton

Postoperative nutritional management among patients with oesophago-gastric cancer in England: NOGCA short report

Postoperative nutritional management among patients with oesophago-gastric cancer in England: NOGCA short report This report provides insight into current postoperative nutritional practices in ten (27.8 per cent) oesophago-gastric cancer specialist centres across England, based on 617 patients who underwent curative surgery after being diagnosed between April 2019 and March 2020. The report found that, for patients who had oesophagectomy, the most commonly reported nutritional management strategy was enteral nutrition delivered via a jejunostomy during the admission and continued on discharge (51.0 per cent). It also found that the majority of oesophagectomy patients (83.9 per cent) had a jejunostomy or received parenteral nutrition during their surgical admission. National Oesophago-Gastric Cancer Audit

Guidance for emergency departments: initial assessment

Guidance for emergency departments: initial assessment This guidance makes recommendations for models of initial assessment of patients arriving at emergency departments and provides standard definitions of the processes that classify as initial assessment: streaming, triage, and rapid assessment and treatment. It recognises that initial assessment and flow from the front door of a hospital are a crucial first step on a patient’s journey. NHS England

Monkeypox cases confirmed in England – latest updates

Monkeypox cases confirmed in England – latest updates Latest updates on cases of monkeypox identified by the UK Health Security Agency.

Infected blood victims to get £100,000 compensation

Infected blood victims to get £100,000 compensation More than 4,000 UK victims of the infected blood scandal are to receive interim compensation of £100,000 each, the government has announced.

It will be given to those whose health is failing after developing blood-borne viruses like hepatitis and HIV, as well as partners of people who have died.

It is the first time compensation will be paid after decades of campaigning. BBC News

See also:

• Infected Blood victims to receive £100,000 interim compensation payment Cabinet Office
• Contaminated blood: If I was paid in tears I'd be a billionaire BBC News
• Survivors of contaminated blood scandal awarded interim payments The Guardian
• ‘My family was destroyed’: relatives of blood scandal victims get nothing The Guardian
• Bristol woman orphaned aged nine due to infected blood scandal denied compensation ITV News
• Infected blood victims to be offered £100,000 in government compensation Sky News

Hospitals told to slash waits as GP cancer referral rates spike

Hospitals told to slash waits as GP cancer referral rates spike Hospitals have been ordered to reduce the number of patients waiting too long for cancer investigation amid GP referral rates that are currently one fifth higher than before the pandemic.

In a letter to trusts and ICBs, sent at the end of last month, NHS England said cancer referrals ‘now constitute one in every four’ GP referrals to an acute trust. Pulse

Majority of 40 new hospitals promised by Boris Johnson in 2019 unlikely to be finished by next general election

Majority of 40 new hospitals promised by Boris Johnson in 2019 unlikely to be finished by next general election Eighty percent of the 40 new hospitals promised by the Conservatives in 2019 either do not have a completion date or are unlikely to be finished by the next general election, according to a Sky News investigation.

BCG vaccine can protect against Covid, new report finds

BCG vaccine can protect against Covid, new report finds The world may have another tool with which to fight the effects of the Covid-19 virus.

A new study published in Cell Reports Medicine has found that the Bacillus-Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine, developed to help fight tuberculosis in the early 1900s, may offer a measure of protection against Covid and a range of other infectious diseases and bacteria by strengthening the immune system. The Independent

See also:

• Multiple BCG vaccinations for prevention of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases in Type 1 diabetes (open access) Cell Reports Medicine
• Covid vaccine: When can I get my booster jab? The Independent
• Covid-19 drug trial at Addenbrooke's in Cambridge giving hope to those who never stopped shielding ITV News
• BCG Vaccine Protects Type 1 Diabetics Against COVID-19 Technology Networks

NHS fails on mental health care targets as waiting list rises to 1.2 million

NHS fails on mental health care targets as waiting list rises to 1.2 million The number of people waiting for community mental health care has risen to 1.2 million, with the NHS missing several targets, new data reveals.

The NHS England data found the figure for those waiting for a mental health follow-up appointment or learning disability service at the end of 2021-22 was up from 1.08 million at the end of quarter three. The Independent

Dementia patients can wait up to TWO YEARS for diagnosis, audit shows

Dementia patients can wait up to TWO YEARS for diagnosis, audit shows Dementia patients face a postcode lottery of care with some waiting up to two years for a diagnosis, a damning audit reveals.

Patients are waiting an average of 17.7 weeks to find out if they have the condition after being referred to a memory assessment service, up from 13 weeks pre-pandemic.

However, the average masks a huge range in times, with some people seen immediately while others face waits of up to 104 weeks, the report reveals. The Daily Mail

See also:

• Memory Services Spotlight Audit 2021 - National Report Royal College of Psychiatrists
• National Audit of Dementia publishes Spotlight Report on Memory Assessment Services Royal College of Psychiatrists

Vaccine could ward off lyme disease to help the thousands of Britons

Vaccine could ward off lyme disease to help the thousands of Britons A vaccine designed to protect against Lyme disease is being trialled and, if successful, could be available for use in 2025.

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection, spread by ticks, which affects thousands of Britons every year.

There are about 1,000 laboratory-confirmed cases a year in England and Wales, although the UK Health Security Agency estimates the true number of people affected is up to four times higher. The Daily Mail 

Mental health charity launches new community services across Northamptonshire

Mental health charity launches new community services across Northamptonshire A mental health charity has launched two new community services in Northampton and Wellingborough.

The Northampton project, has now opened its new community hub next to the Mind offices in Regent Square. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Student nurses invited to apply for mental health and learning disability placement at Northampton hospital

Student nurses invited to apply for mental health and learning disability placement at Northampton hospital Student nurses specialising in mental health and learning disabilities have been invited to gain a deeper understanding of the sector by carrying out work experience at a Northampton hospital.

St Andrew’s Healthcare, situated in Billing Road, has teamed up with the University of Northampton (UON) to provide nursing students with the opportunity to join the Healthcare Landscape Nursing Placement Programme. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Pre-registration community nursing placements survey report

Pre-registration community nursing placements survey report The report is based on evidence gathered through an online survey, part of a wider programme of work to highlight the community placement options available for pre-registration nursing students and the career opportunities that may follow. Historically there has been an emphasis on learning in hospital settings, where pre-registration student nurses gain experience in generalist and specialist areas. However, with more and increasingly complex healthcare now being delivered in the community, it is essential that student nurses gain a wider range of experiences. Queen’s Nursing Institute

Vision for pharmacy practice in England

Vision for pharmacy practice in England The RPS's project with The King's Fund, transforming pharmacy practice, is developing a vision for the role of pharmacists and pharmacy teams working across systems providing patient care and NHS services. People are being asked to respond to a consultation survey on six key themes and The King's Fund have completed a literature review which has helped inform these initial themes. The consultation closes at 5pm on Friday 30th September 2022. Royal Pharmaceutical Society

NHS expands lifesaving home testing kits for bowel cancer

NHS expands lifesaving home testing kits for bowel cancer Home-testing kits that can help detect early-stage bowel cancer will be rolled out to 58-year-olds in England for the first time, as part of a major expansion of the lifesaving screening programme. NHS England

Update on vaccination to protect against monkeypox in England

Update on vaccination to protect against monkeypox in England Latest figures confirm that over 25,000 people have been vaccinated with the smallpox vaccine, as part of the strategy to contain the monkeypox outbreak in the UK. These thousands of vaccines, administered by the NHS to those at highest risk of exposure, should have a significant impact on the transmission of the virus. UK Health Security Agency

See also:

• COVID-19 autumn booster and flu vaccine programme expansion NHS England
• Monkeypox: experts give virus variants new names World Health Organization
• Monkeypox: Lack of vaccines sparks pause in UK rollout BBC News
• Expert warns that monkeypox IS the next pandemic - but 'not anything like the Covid' outbreak The Daily Mail
• Smallpox vaccines may not protect against monkeypox for life The Guardian

Covid: UK approves Moderna's Omicron booster

Covid: UK approves Moderna's Omicron booster The UK has become the first country to approve a dual vaccine which tackles both the original Covid virus and the newer Omicron variant.

Ministers say the vaccine will now form part of the autumn booster campaign.

Moderna thinks 13 million doses of its new vaccine will be available this year, but 26 million people are eligible for some form of booster.

Health officials say people should take whichever booster they are offered as all jabs provide protection. BBC News

See also:

• JCVI publishes advice on COVID-19 vaccines for autumn booster programme UK Health Security Agency
• Independent report: COVID-19 vaccines for autumn 2022: JCVI advice, 15 August 2022 Department of Health and Social Care
• First bivalent Covid-19 booster gets UK approval BBC News
• The hunt for a universal Covid-19 vaccine BBC Future
• Covid 19: Outrage as NHS is blocked from treating vulnerable patients with Evusheld The Daily Mail
• UK authorises 'next generation' omicron booster vaccine in world first The Daily Telegraph
• JCVI sets out which vaccines to use for autumn COVID-19 boosters GPonline
• The threat of Covid isn’t over – so why does Britain have a conspiracy of silence about it? The Guardian
• ‘Living with Covid’ should be countered by containing the virus once and for all The Guardian
• ‘Serious concerns’ over Covid booster rollout as GPs say they can’t afford to offer jabs The Independent

Changing kidney blood type may boost transplants

Changing kidney blood type may boost transplants Researchers have successfully altered the blood type of donor kidneys in a discovery that could increase the supply of the organs for transplant.

The breakthrough has particular implications for minority groups, who often find it harder to find a match.

A kidney from someone with blood type A cannot be given to someone with type B, and vice versa.

But changing the blood type of a kidney to the universal type O will mean it can be transplanted into any patient. BBC News

Midwife numbers fall in every English region, figures show

Midwife numbers fall in every English region, figures show The number of midwives has fallen in every English region in the past year, figures show.

Numbers dropped by around 600 on top of a longstanding shortage of more than 2,000 midwives, according to analysis of NHS Digital data by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM). Evening Standard