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Watchdog warns over medication risk to vulnerable

Vulnerable patients cared for in secure mental health units across England could miss out on vital medications due to a shortage of learning disability nurses, the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) has  warned.

The report into medication omissions in learning disability secure units across the country highlights problems with retaining learning disability nurses, with the number recruited each year matching those leaving.

Figures quoted in the report suggest the number of learning disability nurses in the NHS nearly halved from 5,500 in 2016 to 3,000 in 2020.

The HSIB launched a national investigation after being alerted to the case of Luke, who spent time in NHS secure learning disability units but was not administered prescribed medication for diabetes and high cholesterol on several occasions. 

At Luke’s facility, which included low and medium secure wards, HSIB investigators considered that the quality and style of care provided to patients had been directly impacted by a lack of nurses with required skill sets.

Findings from HSIB’s wider national investigation link a shortfall of learning disability nurses to instances of patients missing their medication, with the report’s authors describing a “system in which medicines omissions were too common and prevention, identification and escalation processes were not robust”. 

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Source: HSJ, 23 June 2022

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Trust was sent ‘unfit’ ventilators at height of pandemic

A trust was supplied with ventilators that were not ‘fit for NHS purposes’ by two suppliers at the height of the first Covid wave, HSJ  has revealed.

Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust has now received a refund for both contracts, which were signed in March 2020 just as the pandemic began to hit the NHS.

The service rushed to secure the equipment in response to fears that existing ventilator capacity would be inadequate to deal with the rising number of seriously ill Covid patients. At the time, the use of ventilators was the only effective therapy for the sickest Covid patients. 

Minutes published by the trust at its most recent board meeting revealed the issue. GSTT then told HSJ in a statement: “Two contracts for ventilators were in dispute. In one case, the trust has already received a refund. In the other, which involved equipment we do not assess as fit for NHS purposes, the trust was reimbursed by central funding.”

The trust would not confirm the number of ventilators involved, the cost or the issue that meant they were not “fit for NHS purposes”.

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Source: HSJ, 23 June 2022

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The battle over vaccine-damage compensation

A group of 95 people who developed health problems or lost relatives as a result of rare side-effects of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine say they have been let down by the "out-of-date" government payment scheme.

One woman whose fiancé died after the jab was awarded £120,000 this week.

BBC News has since learned two more people have been told they will receive payments. But many more are still waiting for their cases to be assessed, despite some having final death certificates meaning senior doctors and lawyers have concluded the vaccine caused their loved one's death.

As of May, more than 1,300 claims had been made to the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS) but only 20 referred for medical assessment.

Meanwhile, some fear their genuine but rare cases are being drowned out by a flurry of people making unproven claims about vaccine damage online.

Claire Hibbs was unable to work for a year after developing vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia (VITT) and struggles with chronic fatigue, migraines and brain fog and fears her job could be at risk - but believes she will not be considered 60% disabled.

Like others in the group, she has been upset by suggestions she might be opposed to vaccines - "it's a pro-vaccination campaign," Ms Moore says.

But Ms Hibbs acknowledges false claims about damage from Covid vaccines have been widely circulated online - and research suggests such claims can increase vaccine hesitancy and put people's lives at risk.

Members of the group, Vaccine, Injured, Bereaved UK (VIB UK) have all received official confirmation of a link to the vaccine. But underneath many of its factual posts, other accounts share reams of false and misleading claims about the vaccine

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Source: BBC News, 23 June 2022

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NHS hospital failed to disclose babies’ deadly bacteria infections

A leading NHS hospital failed to publicly disclose that four very ill premature babies in its care were infected with a deadly bacterium, one of whom died soon after, the Guardian has revealed.

St Thomas’ hospital did not admit publicly that it had suffered an outbreak of Bacillus cereus in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of its Evelina children’s hospital in late 2013 and early 2014.

It occurred six months before a well publicised similar incident in June 2014 in which 19 premature babies at nine hospitals in England became infected with it after receiving contaminated baby feed directly into their bloodstream. Three of them died, including two at St Thomas’.

Leaked documents show that both the first outbreak and newborn baby’s death were investigated but never publicly acknowledged by the NHS trust that runs the hospital.

GSTT insists that it did not acknowledge the baby’s death publicly in any reports because it believed the child had died of other medical conditions, not the bacteria. However, it declined to say if it had told the baby’s parents that it had become infected with Bacillus cereus.

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Source: The Guardian, 23 June 2022

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National incident declared over polio virus findings in London sewage

Public health officials have declared a national incident after routine surveillance of wastewater in north and east London found evidence of community transmission of poliovirus for the first time.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said waste from the Beckton sewage treatment works in Newham tested positive for vaccine-derived poliovirus in February and that further positive samples had been detected since.

No cases of the disease or related paralysis have been reported, and the risk to the general public is considered low, but public health officials urged people to make sure that they and their families were up to date with polio vaccinations to reduce the risk of harm.

“Vaccine-derived poliovirus has the potential to spread, particularly in communities where vaccine uptake is lower,” said Dr Vanessa Saliba, consultant epidemiologist at the UKHSA. “On rare occasions it can cause paralysis in people who are not fully vaccinated, so if you or your child are not up to date with your polio vaccinations it’s important you contact your GP to catch up or if unsure check your red book.”

“Most of the UK population will be protected from vaccination in childhood, but in some communities with low vaccine coverage, individuals may remain at risk,” she added.

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Source: The Guardian, 22 June 2022

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Why so many Long Covid patients are reporting suicidal thoughts

Last year, Diana Berrent—the founder of Survivor Corps, a US Long COVID support group—asked the group’s members if they’d ever had thoughts of suicide since developing Long Covid. About 18% of people who responded said they had, a number much higher than the 4% of the general US adult population that has experienced recent suicidal thoughts.

A few weeks ago, Berrent posed the same question to current members of her group. This time, of the nearly 200 people who responded, 45% said they’d contemplated suicide.

While her poll was small and informal, the results point to a serious problem. “People are suffering in a way that I don’t think the general public understands,” Berrent says. “Not only are people mourning the life that they thought they were going to have, they are in excruciating pain with no answers.”

Long Covid, a chronic condition that affects millions of Americans who’ve had COVID-19, often looks nothing like acute COVID-19. Sufferers report more than 200 symptoms affecting nearly every part of the body, including the neurologic, cardiovascular, respiratory, and gastrointestinal systems. The condition ranges in severity, but many so-called “long-haulers” are unable to work, go to school, or leave their homes with any sort of consistency.

Long COVID can also be incredibly painful, and research has linked chronic physical pain to an increased risk of suicide. Nick Güthe has been trying to spread that message since his wife, Heidi Ferrer, died by suicide in 2021 after living with Long Covid symptoms for about a year. Among her most disruptive symptoms, Güthe says, were foot pain that prevented her from walking comfortably, tremors, and vibrating sensations in her chest that kept her from sleeping.

“My wife didn’t kill herself because she was depressed,” Güthe says. “She killed herself because she was in excruciating physical pain.”

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Source: Time. 13 June 2022

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Student paramedics spending hours in ambulances outside A&E instead of attending calls

Student paramedics are missing out on learning how to save lives because they are wasting hours in ambulances outside A&E instead of attending calls, it has been revealed.

The College of Paramedics and ambulance directors say the hold-ups mean trainees are missing vital on-the-job experience, leading to fears over the safety of patients.

Will Boughton, of the College of Paramedics Trustee for Professional Standards, said handover delays had become a problem for trainees’ development and exposure to real-life experience, meaning training had become “unpredictable”.

If steps weren’t taken to increase training opportunities and address wider quality concerns in education, “it is very possible that patient safety may be at risk due to missed experience during practice education”, he warned.

“A student could complete a regular shift and see lots of patients, getting lots of things in their portfolio signed off, or they could be the unlucky ambulance that joins the back of a queue and is then at hospital X for however many hours waiting to release that patient, so and it varies from county to county and service to service,” he said.

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Source: The Independent, 22 June 2022

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Migrant women are charged up to £14 000 for maternity care in England, report finds

Women including refugees, asylum seekers, and undocumented migrants are being charged as much as £14,000 to give birth on the NHS in England, a report by Doctors of the World (DOTW) has found.

The report, which examined inequalities in maternity care among migrant pregnant women and babies, gathered the experiences of 257 pregnant women accessing DOTW’s services from 2017 to 2021. It found that over a third (38%) who accessed its services had been charged for healthcare, often inappropriately. The women were charged £296 to £14 000, and half of them were billed over £7000.

The report said that inequalities in access to antenatal care experienced by migrant women were likely to lead to poorer outcomes for their pregnancy and the health of their children.

The evidence highlights the need for urgent action to address the inequalities experienced by migrant pregnant women and their babies. There is a pressing need for immigration status to be considered as part of the ethnic and racial health inequalities agenda and for independent action to be taken to review the impact of NHS charging policy.

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Source: BMJ, 20 June 2022

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Wrist-worn trackers can detect Covid before symptoms, study finds

Health trackers worn on the wrist could be used to spot Covid-19 days before any symptoms appear, according to researchers.

Growing numbers of people worldwide use the devices to monitor changes in skin temperature, heart and breathing rates. Now a new study shows that this data could be combined with artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose Covid-19 even before the first tell-tale signs of the disease appear.

“Wearable sensor technology can enable Covid-19 detection during the presymptomatic period,” the researchers concluded. The findings were published in the journal BMJ Open.

The discovery could lead to health trackers being adapted with AI to detect Covid-19 early, simply by spotting basic physiological changes. This could help provide an early warning system to users that they may be infected, which may in turn help to prevent the spread of the disease more widely.

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Source: The Guardian, 21 June 2022

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Bullying and harassment ‘normalised’ at trust put back in special measures

An ambulance trust has been placed in special measures after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated its leadership ‘inadequate’ and said staff felt unable to raise concerns without fear of reprisal

The CQC inspected South East Coast Ambulance Service Foundation Trust after being contacted by staff with concerns about bullying and harassment, inappropriate sexualised behaviour and a leadership team which failed to address concerns.

Many of the concerns echo those raised in 2017 in an independent review into a “culture of fear” at the trust, shortly after it was first placed in regulatory special measures. It was taken out in 2019 but has now been placed back in the equivalent “recovery support programme” on the CQC’s recommendation.

CQC director of integrated care Amanda Williams praised staff who had contacted the regulator. She said: “While staff were doing their very best to provide safe care to patients, leaders often appeared out of touch with what was happening on the front line and weren’t always aware of the challenges staff faced. Staff described feeling unable to raise concerns without fear of reprisal – and when concerns were raised, these were not acted on.

“This meant that some negative aspects of the organisational culture, including bullying and harassment and inappropriate sexualised behaviour, were not addressed and became normalised behaviours."

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Source: HSJ, 22 June 2022

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Boots criticised over pill boxes for the elderly

Some pharmacies run by the High Street chain Boots have been criticised for telling some patients on multiple drugs that they can no longer have blister pack boxes, known as dosette boxes or multi-compartment compliance aids (MCCAs).

Weekly pill organisers can help users keep track of their daily medication and stay safe. Pharmacists put the tablets into individual boxes in the trays, each one indicating when they should be taken.

The NHS says boxes are not always available for free on the NHS and they're not suitable for every type of medicine.

Tracey Hobbs' mother, Pat Garner, lives at home with care visits. For several years, she has had her MCCAs provided by her local Boots pharmacy. She takes more than 15 pills each day.

Tracey says she was phoned by Boots and told that from one month later her mother would receive all the drugs in the original packaging, rather than organised into morning and night doses for each day of the week.

Tracey told the BBC: "I pointed out that the blister packs were the only way we could know she had taken her medication at the right time. Handing seven individual boxes with different instructions on each one was totally unworkable and - quite frankly - dangerous".

A Boots spokesperson said: "The latest Royal Pharmaceutical Society guidance indicates that the use of multi-compartment compliance aids is not always the most appropriate option for patients that need support to take their medicines at the right dose and time."

"Pharmacists are speaking with patients who we provide with MCCAs to discuss whether it is the right way to support them, depending on their individual circumstances and clinical needs."

Prof Gill Livingston, an expert in elderly medicine at University College London, said she was concerned to hear that some patients and their families were being told the boxes were being scrapped.

She said: "Blister packs enable people with mild dementia or some memory problems to take their own medication and remain independent. They can check that they have taken it and they know they have taken the right thing, as it is already sorted out.

"Later on in dementia or with other disabilities, it enables paid carers and families to help them take their medication and remain in the community and remain as well as possible."

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Source: BBC News, 21 June 2022

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Systems and processes failed neurologist’s patients, inquiry finds

Systems and processes in place around patient safety failed in terms of the work of a Belfast-based neurologist, an inquiry has found.

Dr Michael Watt was at the centre of Northern Ireland’s largest ever recall of patients, which began in 2018, after concerns were raised about his clinical work.

More than 4,000 of his former patients attended recall appointments.

Almost a fifth of patients who attended recall appointments were found to have received an “insecure diagnosis”.

The final report following the Independent Neurology Inquiry found that problems with Dr Watt’s practice were missed for years and opportunities to intervene were lost.

It makes 76 recommendations to the Department of Health, healthcare organisations, General Medical Council and the independent sector.

“While one process or system failure may not be critical, the synergistic effect of numerous failures ensured that a problem with an individual doctor’s practice was missed for many years and, as this inquiry finds, opportunities to intervene, particularly in 2006/2007, 2012/2013, and earlier in 2016 were lost,” the inquiry found.

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Source: The Independent, 21 June 2022

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Huge variation in referrals to flagship ‘urgent response’ service

Ground breaking new data on community services appears to show enormous variation between areas in the number of referrals for a “two-hour urgent response” being recorded. 

NHS England has published new provisional data on the performance of urgent community response services against a key NHS long-term plan target of reaching at least 70% of patients referred to them within two hours by December 2022.

It is the first time performance data has been published for community health services.

It also includes the number of referrals made which are reported as “in scope” of the target, and the total number of service contacts. There is huge variation in both referrals and contacts, not accounted for by the size of areas or population need. 

The publication of the first national performance data for community services was described as “an important moment for community providers” by Siobhan Melia, chair of the Community Network, which is part of NHS Providers and the NHS Confederation. She added it would “raise the profile of community services, and shine a light on the important work taking place in the sector”.

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Source: HSJ, 21 June 2022

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'More help needed' to make patient info accessible

People with disabilities must be helped more by health providers to access information, a report has found.

Over 300 people in North Yorkshire were asked about communication from GPs, hospitals, and healthcare providers in a survey by watchdog Healthwatch.

The report said there is "some good practice" but many patients are not being contacted in their preferred format. This leads to missed appointments which "costs time and money".

Since 2016, the Accessible Information Standard means health and care organisations must legally provide a "consistent approach to identifying, recording, flagging, sharing, and meeting the information and communication support needs of patients, service users, carers and parents with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss," Healthwatch said.

But the report said some people receive printed letters which they are unable to read meaning they have to ask for private and confidential information to be relayed.

Scarborough respondent Ian said it was "amazing" that in the 21st Century many are still facing such issues.

"The [GP booking] system doesn't anticipate that not everyone can use the phone," he said.

"The problem is a lot of organisations haven't moved with the times".

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Source: BBC News, 21 June 2022

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Hundreds of stillbirths wrongly certified as 'unexplained'

More than 80% of UK medical certificates recording stillbirths contain errors, research reveals.

More than half the inaccurate certificates contained a significant error that could cause medical staff to misinterpret what had happened.

The study, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, also shows that three out of four stillbirths certified as having an "unknown cause of death" could, in fact, be explained.

A team from the Universities of Edinburgh and Manchester examined more than 1,120 medical certificates of stillbirths, which were issued at 76 UK obstetric units in 2018. 

Of the 421 which were resolved, 195 were re-designated as foetal growth restriction (FGR), and 184 as placental insufficiency.

Dr Michael Rimmer, clinical research fellow at Edinburgh University’s MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, said: “This study shows some medical certificates of stillbirths contain significant errors.

"Reducing these errors and accurately recording contributing factors to a stillbirth is important in shaping research and health policies aimed at reducing the number of stillbirths.

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Source: The Herald, 21 June 2022

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Government to pick ‘integration frontrunners’ to test ‘radical new approaches’

Government will pick five or six ‘integration frontrunner’ areas ‘to lead the way in developing and testing radical new approaches’ to speeding up discharge from acute hospitals.

Along with NHS England, ministers today wrote to local NHS and council directors asking for bids to take part by 30 June.

They said there was “a need to take a more fundamental look at [how the] system currently manages the discharge of patients, their post-acute care, and their access to high-quality social care”.

The “discharge integration frontrunner sites” will focus on exploring “new service models, such as the delivery of a more integrated model for intermediate care across existing health and social care”, and “designing and testing new enabling arrangements, which might include new funding models, more integrated workforce models, or the deployment of new technologies”, their letter said.

They said speeding up hospital discharge was “just one” potential benefit from integration and indicated that “future phases” of frontrunners may focus elsewhere.

But delayed discharge has been a major pressure on the system over the past year, particularly last winter, and the letter says: “Delayed discharges are one very visible signal that the health and care system remains fragmented and too often fails to deliver joined-up services that meet people’s needs.”

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Source: HSJ, 21 June 2022

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Dementia patients not allowed to use toilet

Heather Lawrence was shocked at the state she found her 90-year-old mother, Violet, in when she visited her in hospital.

"The bed was soaked in urine. The continence pad between her legs was also soaked in urine, the door wide open, no underwear on. It was a mixed ward as well," Heather says.

"I mean there were other people in there that could have been walking up and down seeing her, with the door wide open as well. My mum, she was a very proud woman, she wouldn't have been wanted to be seen like that at all."

Violet, who had dementia, was taken to Tameside General Hospital, in Greater Manchester, in May 2021, after a fall. Her health deteriorated in hospital and she developed an inflamed groin with a nasty rash stretching to her stomach - due to prolonged exposure to urine. She died a few weeks later.

Heather tells BBC News: "I don't really know how to put it into words about the dignity of care. I just feel like she wasn't allowed to be given that dignity. And that's with a lot of dementia patients. I think they just fade away and appear to be insignificant, when they're not."

New research, shown exclusively to BBC Radio 4's File on 4 programme, has found other dementia patients have had to endure similar indignity.

Dr Katie Featherstone, from the Geller Institute of Ageing and Memory, at the University of West London, observed the continence care of dementia patients in three hospitals in England and Wales over the course a year for a study funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research.

She found patients who were not helped to go to the toilet and instead left to wet and soil themselves.

"We identified what we call pad cultures - the everyday use of continence pads in the care of all people with dementia, regardless of their continence but also regardless of their independence, as a standard practice," Dr Featherstone says.

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Source: BBC News, 21 June 2022

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Henrietta Hughes is preferred candidate for the role of Patient Safety Commissioner

Henrietta Hughes has been named as the government’s preferred candidate for the role of Patient Safety Commissioner.

Sajid Javid, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has today, 20 June 2022, invited the Health and Social Care Committee to hold a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing with Henrietta.

Henrietta is a practising GP with a background in women’s health who was the National Guardian for the NHS until 2021. In addition to her clinical work, she is an appraiser for NHS England and Chair of Childhood First.

She was selected following an open public appointment process to appoint the first Patient Safety Commissioner.

Following the select committee hearing, the committee will set out its views on the candidate’s suitability for the role. The Secretary of State will then consider the committee’s report before making a final decision on the appointment.

Source: Gov.UK, 20 June 2022

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USA: Boston Scientific faces vaginal mesh lawsuit alleging Obtryx II exposed patients to unreasonable risk of problems

Women continue to file vaginal mesh lawsuits against Boston Scientific and other manufacturers, years after most products were removed from the market due to an alarming number of complications and health risks associated with the designs.

In a complaint (PDF) filed last month in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Tanya Davis indicates that problems with Boston Scientific Obtryx II mesh placed in her body only four years ago has left her with severe injuries, including pelvic pain and dyspareunia, abdominal pain, urinary problems, prolapse and incontinence. The lawsuit names Boston Scientific Corporation as the defendant.

Transvaginal mesh products like the Obtryx II have been marketed and sold by Boston Scientific Corporation and a number of different companies over the past decade, for treatment of pelvic organ prolapse or female stress urinary incontinence. Most of the products were introduced under a controversial FDA “fast track” approval process, which allowed manufacturers to introduce new products based on the design of prior mesh, without conducting thorough research to evaluate the safety or effectiveness of the specific designs.

Following widespread reports of vaginal mesh complications, including infections, erosion of the mesh into the vagina and organ perforation, the FDA required manufacturers to conduct post-marketing research and most companies decided to withdraw their products.

According to the lawsuit, Davis received an Obtryx II System in May 2018, to treat her urinary incontinence. However, after experiencing painful and debilitating complications, Davis had vaginal mesh explanted in May 2020; just two years after it was implanted.

“Neither Plaintiff nor her physicians and/or healthcare providers were warned that the Obtryx II was unreasonable dangerous or of the risks of the product, outlined herein, even when used exactly as intended and instructed by Defendant,” the lawsuit indicates. “To the contrary, Defendant promoted and sold the type of product implanted in the Plaintiff and thousands of women like Plaintiff, to healthcare providers as a safe alternative to other procedures that did incorporate Defendant’s products.”

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Source: About Lawsuits, 10 May 2022

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Violence against ambulance staff in England at record high

Violence against ambulance staff in England has reached a record high, as the NHS crisis in emergency care continues to deepen.

An estimated 12,626 incidents were reported in the 12 months to April 2022, according to nationwide data shared with The Independent – a 7% rise on the previous year.

However, since 2016, the number of paramedics who have been verbally or physically assaulted, or threatened with assault, has nearly doubled, rising from 7,689.

Adam Hopper, the national ambulance violence prevention and reduction lead for the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE), which provided the data, said the findings “confirm the worrying trend of increasing violence against ambulance staff”.

One paramedic told The Independent a bone was broken in his neck after he was strangled by a drunken patient he was attempting to treat.

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, a membership body for trusts in England, said that alcohol is the most prominent factor in such assaults, followed by drugs and people being in mental health crisis. “Race and sexuality have also increased as exacerbating factors in these assaults, as have delays to treatment and arrival times,” he added.

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Source: The Independent, 19 June 2022

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Patient safety incidents are the third leading cause of death in Canada

The COVID-19 crisis has both divided and galvanised Canadians on healthcare. While the last three years have presented new challenges to healthcare systems across the country, the pandemic has also exacerbated existing challenges, most notably the high levels of errors and mistreatment documented in Canadian health care.

According to a 2019 report from the Canadian Patient Safety Institute, Canada was already facing a public health crisis prior to the pandemic: a crisis of patient safety. As the report details, patient safety incidents are the third leading cause of death in Canada, following cancer and heart disease.

Few studies calculate national data on this topic, but a 2013 report found that patient safety events resulted in just under 28,000 deaths. Many Canadians who have experienced these errors have shared their experiences with media in an effort to raise awareness and demand change.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has created a moment of dual crises. First, the pre-existing crisis of patient safety, and second, healthcare overall is now at a breaking point after three years of COVID-19, according to healthcare workers.

Edmonton physician Dr. Darren Markland, for example, recently closed his kidney specialist practice after making a few "profound mistakes." In an interview with Global News, he explains he could no longer work at the current pace.

He is not alone in this decision. Across the country, there have been waves of resignations in health care, leaving some areas struggling with a system that is "degrading, increasingly unsafe, and often without dignity."

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Source: MedicalXpress, 17 June 2022

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Newborn infection trial ‘will fail’ unless Government intervenes, experts warn

A clinical trial to test pregnant women for Group B Strep (GBS) – the most common cause of life-threatening infection in newborn babies – will fail unless the Government intervenes, experts have warned.

Some 80 hospitals are needed for the trial to go ahead but only 32 have committed to it, with a deadline for registering of September.

The trial is being funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) and will look at whether testing women for Group B Strep reduces the risk of babies dying or suffering harm.

Now Dr Jane Plumb, chief executive of Group B Strep Support, who lost her son Theo to the infection, is calling on the Government and NHS England to intervene to make sure the trial goes ahead.

She said: “The reality is that unless a further 48 hospitals sign up for this trial, then it will fail.

“The Government is waiting for the results from this trial to determine whether to test pregnant women for Group B Strep.

“Yet there seems to be little acknowledgement that this trial is heading towards failure.

“We need more hospitals on board and we need to make sure that the investment in this trial is not wasted.

“This is about saving the lives of babies, and it really is now or never.”

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Source: The Independent, 20 June 2022

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Thousands of women given ‘dangerous’ electric shocks as mental health treatment in England

Thousands of women in England with mental health problems are being given electric shock treatment despite concerns the therapy can cause irreparable brain damage.

NHS data seen by The Independent reveals the scale of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) prescribed disproportionately to women, who make up two-thirds of patients receiving the treatment.

Health professionals have warned the therapy can cause brain damage so severe recipients are unable to recognise family and friends or do basic maths.

While some patients say the therapy profoundly helped them, leading mental charities have branded it “damaging” and “outdated” and called for its use to be halted pending an urgent review or banned entirely.

Statistics obtained through Freedom of Information requests by Dr John Read, a professor at the University of East London and leading expert on ECT, showed 67% of 1,964 patients who received the treatment in 2019 were female.

ECT was given to women twice as often as men across 20 NHS trusts in the UK, his research found. The trusts also said some 36% of their patients in 2019 underwent ECT without providing consent.

A spokesperson added patients should be fully informed of the risks associated with ECT and the decision to deploy the treatment “should be made jointly with the person with depression as far as possible”.

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Source: The Independent, 19 June 2022

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Epilepsy drug that harms babies may damage their children too

An epilepsy drug that caused disabilities in thousands of babies after being prescribed to pregnant women could be more dangerous than previously thought.

Sodium valproate could be triggering genetic changes that mean disabilities are being passed on to second and even third generations, according to the UK’s medicines regulator.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has also raised concerns that the drug can affect male sperm and fertility, and may be linked to miscarriages and stillbirths.

Ministers are already under pressure after it emerged in April that valproate was still being prescribed to women without the legally required warnings. Six babies a month are being born after having been exposed to the drug, the MHRA has said. It can cause deformities, autism and learning disabilities.

Cat Smith, the Labour chairwoman of the all-party parliamentary group on sodium valproate, said: “This transgenerational risk is very concerning. There have been rumours that this was a possibility, but I had never heard it was accepted until last week by the MHRA."

“The harm from sodium valproate was caused by successive failures of regulators and governments, and this news means it could be an order of magnitude worse than we first thought. It underlines the need for the Treasury to step up to their responsibilities around financial redress to those families.”

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Source: Sunday Times, 19 June 2022

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