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Overprescribing of medicines must stop, says government

Many patients are being prescribed unnecessary and even harmful treatments, a new report warns.

The review, in England, suggests one-tenth of items dispensed by primary care are inappropriate or could be changed. Around 15% of people take five or more medicines a day - some are to deal with the side-effects of the others.

The government is appointing a prescribing tsar to help with the issue and stop waste.

Overprescribing can happen when:

  • a better alternative is available but not given
  • the medicine is appropriate for a condition but not the individual patient
  • a condition changes and the medicine is no longer appropriate
  • the patient no longer needs the medicine but continues to be prescribed it.

Chief pharmaceutical officer for England, Dr Keith Ridge, said: "Medicines do people a lot of good and this report is absolutely not about taking treatment or services away from people where they are effective. But medicines can also cause harm and can be wasted."

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Source: BBC News, 22 September 2021

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Overheating and flooding at hospitals in England ‘pose threat to patient safety’

Record levels of overheating and a sharp rise in flooding at England’s hospitals are putting vulnerable patients at risk, figures show.

Analysis of NHS data by the Liberal Democrats found that the number of health trusts reporting overheating in clinical areas had doubled compared with six years ago, and floods had increased by nearly 60% from last year.

An overheating incident is logged when an occupied ward or clinical area’s daily maximum temperature exceeds 26C, the temperature at which some patients become unable to cool themselves effectively.

The latest government figures show that in the summer of 2022 there were an estimated 2,985 excess deaths due to heatwaves, the highest number on record. Heatwaves also forced a fifth of UK hospitals to cancel operations.

The number of serious flooding incidents, where water caused disruption such as by breaching a building or flooding a road, rose from 176 to 279.

The climate crisis is expected to increase these risks to hospitals and patients. Helen Buckingham, the director of strategy at the Nuffield Trust, said: “These figures are a cause for real concern about the resilience of the NHS’s estate to the growing threat from extreme weather in the UK. As temperatures have climbed, so too have the number of overheating incidents in NHS hospitals.”

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Source: The Guardian, 27 November 2023

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Overhauling CQC ratings ‘could bring greater clarity’, ministers told

Changes to the Care Quality Commission’s one-word ratings “could be beneficial”, Penny Dash has concluded in the final version of her review.

Much of its contents, which is highly critical of the CQC, had already been published in an interim version in July, which prompted health secretary Wes Streeting to declare the regulator “not fit for purpose”.

But the final version of the review, which includes seven recommendations, addresses some areas not covered in the scathing interim report, including on the much-debated issue of the CQC’s single-word ratings.

It notes “the government recently announced that Ofsted would end the use of one-word ratings and so it would be reasonable to similarly consider their use in health and social care

The review adds: ”Changes to one-word ratings could be beneficial in allowing greater clarity to be brought to the different key questions of quality, allowing a ‘balanced scorecard’ approach across [the key CQC inspection domains] ‘safe’, ‘effective’, ‘responsive’/’caring’ and ‘well led’.

However, “all this needs to be set against the need for a straightforward narrative that is accessible for users and patients”.

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Source: HSJ, 15 October 2024

Read Patient Safety Learning's response to the review:

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Overdose calls may be getting too low priority for ambulances

Ambulance services have been urged to look at how suspected overdose and poisoning cases are prioritised after paramedics took 45 minutes to reach a woman with known mental health problems.

Helen Sheath, 33, had been discharged from a mental health unit in early July last year and was still waiting for an outpatient appointment with a psychological assessment and treatment service when she took a fatal dose of sodium nitrate on 20 August.

Her father called an ambulance at 6.20pm when she had locked herself in a bathroom and was threatening to take the sodium nitrate. But Bedfordshire and Luton senior coroner Emma Whitting said her father could not tell whether or not she had taken it, and that in view of her history of suicidal ideation, the call should have been treated as a category two – with an 18 minutes response target – rather than a category three incident.

The first ambulance which was sent to her was diverted on route and it was only after a second call to the East of England Ambulance Service at 6.48pm, that the call was upgraded to category two – when the call handler selected a different set of questions, after being told she had ingested the chemical. A rapid response vehicle arrived at 7.05pm and the mental health street triage team attended six minutes later. Shortly afterwards she became acutely unwell and was taken to Bedford Hospital, where she received treatment but died shortly afterwards.

In a prevention of future deaths report Ms Whitting said: “If the first call had been coded as a category two, it seems likely that the rapid response vehicle, mental health street triage team (and even possibly the double staffed ambulance) would have arrived on scene much earlier (potentially just before or just after Helen had ingested the sodium nitrate) which could potentially have altered the outcome.” 

The case comes just months after two other ambulance trusts were criticised in cases involving suspected or threatened overdoses.

The prevention of future deaths report was sent to the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives and the emergency call prioritisation advisory group, which is run by NHS England. Neither would comment other than saying they would respond to the coroner.

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Source: HSJ, 15 June 2020

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Overcrowding, delays, cross infection: Review reveals emergency department issues

Patients in nine hospitals in Ireland were often treated in the wrong places, sometimes corridors, in situations where it was “unclear” who was supposed to be providing their care, a clinical review has found.

It warned of the potential for people to receive inappropriate specialist input and recommended specific wards be used to avoid so-called “safari rounds” where consultants must seek out scattered patients.

The independent review team consisted of clinical and management experts from Scotland and England who undertook a programme of visits between August and November, 2019.

“The review team witnessed widespread boarding and outliers – any bed, anytime, anywhere and including mixed gender,” the document said.

“This does not create extra capacity, leads to safari rounds, increases length of stay, introduces harm by non-specialist care and increases staff absenteeism.”

Although acknowledging often excellent work by staff, the report was commissioned to examine non-scheduled care at nine hospitals found to be “under the greatest pressures” during the winter season of 2018/2019. These had “significant numbers” of patients waiting for long periods on trolleys.

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Source: The Irish Times, 4 April 2022

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Overcrowding at Forth Valley Royal Infirmary ‘risked harming patients’

NHS managers will be held accountable for failings at an overcrowded hospital where patients were put at risk of “serious harm” and some were left waiting up to 25 hours for a bed, ministers have warned.

Forth Valley Royal Infirmary’s A&E was operating at two and a half times capacity during a visit by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) in September. Inspectors said that patients were at risk because of poor handling of medicines and unsafe working conditions at the hospital, which was placed in special measures by the Scottish government last month.

The Times reported last month that the hospital had been declared “unsafe” by staff after five consultants resigned following severe criticism of the hospital’s leadership. They described it as a “war zone” and told of fire-fighting to cope with patient numbers while working in a “toxic” environment.

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Source: The Times, 6 December 2022

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Overcrowded A&Es ‘much more dangerous now because of covid’

Emergency departments across England are reporting ‘dangerous’ overcrowding similar to levels seen pre-covid, and struggling to maintain social distancing, A&E leaders have warned.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine said it was concerned about covid spreading among the most vulnerable patients, as overall transmission rates continue to rise sharply across the UK.

It was always anticipated that A&E activity would return to pre-covid levels this winter, following a significant drop-off in A&E activity during the spring and early summer, and that service transformation would be needed to help maintain social distancing. But the emergence of widespread overcrowding so far ahead of winter is of serious concern to system leaders.

A&E staff were already being forced to make difficult trade-offs over which patients to isolate, the college’s vice president told HSJ. He also urged NHS leaders not to place unrealistic expectations on the impact a new model involving walk-in patients booking slots by phone could make on addressing overcrowding in emergency departments.

RCEM vice president Adrian Boyle said the NHS was “largely back to the pre-covid levels of crowding” but it was “much more dangerous now because of covid”.

He said: “We are hearing that most emergency departments can’t maintain social distancing safely and staff are having to make fairly difficult trade-offs about which people need to be isolated. No one can be safely social distanced in a corridor.”

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Source: HSJ, 21 September 2020

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Overall CQC ratings to be reintroduced

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is proposing to reintroduce overall care quality ratings for trusts, and put more weight on “expert professional judgement”, in an overhaul of its assessments.

HSJ reported in June that the regulator had begun phasing out overall ratings for trusts and foundation trusts, which had previously been used as a key barometer of organisational success.

This was part of a major change to its assessment regime, decided last year under the CQC’s previous leadership, but given little publicity at the time. Instead, at organisational level, trusts receive only a “well led” rating.

But a consultation now issued proposes reversing this and states: “We are aware of the challenges of appropriately reflecting the quality and leadership of an NHS trust in a single well-led rating. We know that many of our stakeholders placed value on our previous overall quality rating for NHS trusts, and the previous structure of trust-level ratings.”

The approach decided last year has so far only been applied to a small number of trusts, but has led to situations where some sites or services are significantly upgraded or downgraded, with no impact on the overall “well led” rating.

Reviving overall trust quality ratings is one of several proposed reversals to changes introduced under the previous chief executive, Ian Trenholm. 

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Source: HSJ, 16 October 2025

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Over-the-counter health test results accessible via the NHS App

Patients are now able to view the results of at-home blood and DNA tests from MyHealthChecked on the NHS App, through an integration with Patients Know Best (PKB). 

PKB is a personal health record which integrates data sources from NHS and non-NHS health providers as well as devices and information from patients.

The integration with over-the-counter test provider MyHealthChecked, which went live on 25 July 2025, also allows patients to securely share their test results with healthcare professionals. 

The service is available for customers wherever PKB is live with the NHS App, which includes 22 integrated care systems in England, and Swansea Bay University Health Board in Wales.

Read full article.

Source: Digital Health, 8 August 2025

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Over two million patients have to visit GP four times for referral

More than two million patients each year have to make four or more repeat visits to their GP before they get a referral, a patient watchdog has warned.

Patient safety campaigners said people faced waits of “weeks, months or even years” before officially joining NHS waiting lists, and that their health and wellbeing was suffering as a result. They warned it would also add to pressure on other services such as A&E departments.

Research by Healthwatch England revealed what the patient watchdog called a “hidden waiting list”.

“People wait for a GP appointment; they wait for their GP to tell them they will be referred; they wait for the hospital to confirm that referral; and then they join a hospital waiting list,” it said.

“NHS statistics monitor only the hospital waiting list, leaving the steps between getting a GP referral and a letter confirming a hospital appointment as a dangerous ‘blind spot’ for the NHS and patients.”

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Source: The Times, 11 April 2023

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Over the counter genetic tests in UK ‘fail to identify 89%’ of those at serious risk

Over the counter genetic tests in the UK that assess the risk of cancer or heart problems fail to identify 89% of those in danger of getting killer diseases, a new study has found.

Polygenic risk scores are so unreliable that they also wrongly tell one in 20 people who receive them they will develop a major illness, even though they do not go on to do so.

That is the conclusion of an in-depth review of the performance of polygenic risk scores, which underpin tests on which consumers spend hundreds of pounds.

The findings come amid a boom in the number of companies offering polygenic risk score tests which purport to tell customers how likely they are to get a particular disease.

Academics at University College London (UCL) who undertook the research are warning that such tests are so flawed they should be regulated “to protect the public from unrealistic expectations” that they will correctly identify their risk of a particular disease.

The authors concluded: “Polygenic risk scores performed poorly in population screening, individual risk prediction and population risk stratification.

“Strong claims about the effect of polygenic risk scores on healthcare seem to be disproportionate to their performance.”

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Source: The Guardian, 17 October 2023

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Over half of incidents resulting in death reported by Welsh health boards came from Betsi

More than half of all incidents resulting in death reported by health boards in Wales came from troubled Betsi Cadwaladr. The 53% figure from a Welsh Government safety report came to light during First Minister Questions in the Senedd yesterday.

Plaid Cymru Leader Adam Price said there had been “an alarming rate” of patient safety incidents in the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board area and that between December 2018 and November 2019 there were 40 incidents resulting in death registered within Betsi. Between November 2017 and November 2019 there were 520 incidents within Betsi that resulted in death or serious harm - higher than all the other health boards in Wales combined.

Mr Price questioned whether there is an issue with Betsi itself, or whether there is an issue of "under-reporting of serious incidents" in the rest of Wales.

Defending the figures, the First Minister said that reporting incidents and learning from them has become part of the culture of a health board that they “want to see everywhere in Wales”.

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Source: North Wales Live, 29 January 2020

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Over half of ethnic minority NHS leaders consider quitting due to racism

Just over half of senior ethnic minority leaders have considered leaving the NHS due to experiencing workplace racism a survey suggests.

The survey was carried out by the NHS Confederation’s BME Leadership Network and its 123 respondents included chief executives, directors and senior managers.

Responses were collected from network members online before three roundtables were held with senior ethnic minority leaders to understand their experiences and the challenges they have faced in relation to discrimination.

The survey found:

  • 51% of respondents said they had considered leaving the NHS in the past three years because of their experience of racist treatment while working.
  • More than 20% said they had experienced verbal abuse or abusive behaviour targeting racial, national or cultural heritage five times or more in the last three years.
  • 69% had experienced this behaviour from other leaders or managers within their organisation at least once in the same timeframe.
  • 57% had experienced it from leaders or managers in another organisation at least once over the same period.

Joan Saddler, NHS Confederation’s director of equality and partnerships, said the NHS was at risk of losing “committed, highly skilled and motivated talent to institutional racism and discrimination”.

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Source: HSJ, 17 June 2022

You may also be interested in reading: BMA: Racism in medicine

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Over 80% of UK GPs think patients are at risk in their surgery, survey finds

More than 80% of GPs believe that patients are being put at risk when they come into their surgery for an appointment, a new survey shows.

A poll of 1,395 GPs found only 13% said their practice was safe for patients all the time. Meanwhile, 85% expressed concerns about patient safety, with 2% saying patients were “rarely” safe, 22% saying they were safe “some of the time” and 61% saying they were safe “most of the time”.

Asked if they thought the risk to patient safety was increasing in their surgery, 70% said it was.

Family doctors identified lack of time with patients, workforce shortages, relentless workloads and heavy administrative burdens as the main reasons people receiving care could be exposed to risk. The survey, which was self-selecting, also found that:

  • 91% said more GPs would help improve the state of general practices.
  • 84% have had anxiety, stress or depression over the past year linked to their job.
  • 31% know a colleague who was physically abused by a patient in the last year.
  • 24% know of a member of general practice staff who has taken their own life due to work pressures.

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Source: The Guardian, 21 March 2022

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Over 80% of GP practices lack crucial technology, warns NHSE lead

Only 10-15% of GP practices are using all three of the ‘modern’ patient access tools — including overhauling their approach to triage — which are at the centre of NHS England’s primary care recovery plan, its GP lead has told HSJ. 

Amanda Doyle, national director for primary care and community services, told HSJ this was its current estimate of the share of practices which already have in place all three of: digital phone systems; online messaging; and modern triage, response and care navigation.

These are cornerstones of the primary care recovery plan,published by the government and NHS England this month, which says they are prerequisites for offering “modern general practice access”.

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Source: HSJ, 23 May 2023

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Over 47,000 stroke patients to ‘miss out on a miracle treatment’

A new report by the Stroke Association released today warns that, if the thrombectomy rate stays at 2020/21 levels, 47,112 stroke patients in England would miss out on the game changing acute stroke treatment, mechanical thrombectomy, over the length of the newly revised NHS Long Term Plan. This year, NHS England missed its original target to make mechanical thrombectomy available to all patients for whom it would benefit – only delivering to 28% of all suitable patients by December 20212.

The Stroke Association’s ‘Saving Brains’ report calls for a 24/7 thrombectomy service, which could cost up to £400 million. But treating all suitable strokes with thrombectomy would save the NHS £73 million per year. Stroke professionals quoted in the report cite insufficient bi-plane suites, containing radiology equipment, as a barrier to a 24/7 service.

The Stroke Association is calling for:

  • The Treasury to provide urgent funding for thrombectomy in the Autumn Budget 2022, for infrastructure, equipment, workforce training and support, targeting both thrombectomy centres and referring stroke units.
  • Department of Health and Social Care to develop a sustainable workforce plan to fill the gaps in qualified staff.
  • NHS England to address challenges in transfer to and between hospitals in its upcoming Urgent & Emergency Care Plan.
  • Putting innovation - such as artificial intelligence (AI) imaging software and video triage in ambulances - into practice.

Juliet Bouverie, Chief Executive of the Stroke Association said: “Thrombectomy is a miracle treatment that pulls patients back from near-death and alleviates the worst effects of stroke. It’s shocking that so many patients are missing out and being saddled with unnecessary disability. Plus, the lack of understanding from government, the NHS and local health leaders about the brain saving potential thrombectomy is putting lives at risk. There are hard-working clinicians across the stroke pathway facing an uphill struggle to provide this treatment and it’s time they got the support they need to make this happen. It really is simple. Thrombectomy saves brains, saves money and changes lives; now is the time for real action, so that nobody has to live with avoidable disability ever again."

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Source: The Stroke Association, 28 July 2022

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Over 30 sepsis deaths linked to ‘systemic’ failings, investigation reveals

Major progress made in sepsis care during the previous decade has been significantly reversed amid repeated failures in recognising and treating the condition.

HSJ has identified 31 deaths in the last five years where coroners have warned of systemic problems with diagnosing and treating sepsis, including nine cases relating to children. Many of the deaths were deemed avoidable.

Meanwhile, investigations suggest a majority of acute trusts are failing to record their treatment rates for sepsis, which is deemed a crucial aspect of driving improvements.

Repeated shortcomings raised by coroners, including 10 separate cases in 2023, include delays or failures to administer antibiotics, not following protocols for identifying sepsis, and inaccurate, missed or skipped observations.

Health ombudsman Rob Behrens, who issued a report on sepsis failures last year, said the same mistakes were “clearly being repeated time and time again”.

He added: “What is chilling to me is that these [coroners’ reports] fit in almost exactly with the issues we raised in our sepsis report… and even the 2013 sepsis report issued by my predecessor, including unnecessary delays, wrong diagnosis, and failure to provide adequate plans for sepsis.”

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Source: HSJ, 27 February 2024

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Over 285,000 medicines and medical devices seized UK-wide in global action

Medicines and medical devices valued at over £850,000, totalling more than 285,000 items, have been seized by officers from the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as part of a global operation to tackle the illegal sale of medical products, with UK seizures estimated to be worth around 9% of the global total.

In the UK, 48 social media accounts unlawfully offering to supply medicines were also shut down. Officers from the MHRA Criminal Enforcement Unit searched five premises in the West Midlands and London, with two suspects arrested.

During the global week of action coordinated by Interpol, which ran from 23-30 June, this year’s ‘Operation Pangea’ saw countries across the world joining forces to seize non-compliant medical products. The operation also involved the arrests of several suspected organised criminals.

In the UK, anti-depressants, erectile dysfunction tablets, painkillers, anabolic steroids and slimming pills were among the medicines seized.

Andy Morling, Deputy Director (Criminal Enforcement) at the MHRA, said: "Criminals illegally trading in medicines and medical devices are not only breaking the law but they also have no regard for your health. Unlicensed medicines and non-compliant medical devices pose serious risk to public health as both their safety and efficacy can be compromised."

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Source: MHRA, 20 July 2022

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Over 26,000 adults with severe mental illness die prematurely from preventable illness each year

More than 26,000 adults with severe mental illness die prematurely each year from preventable physical illnesses, analysis by the Royal College of Psychiatrists suggests. 

New data from the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities shows 120,273 adults in England with severe mental illness, including psychosis, post-traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia, died before the age of 75 between 2018 and 2020. 

Of these, the College estimates 80,182 deaths (two in three) were potentially preventable, which is an average of 26,727 people each year. 

Preventable deaths include deaths from diseases like cancer and heart disease which could have been prevented with earlier detection and treatment or lifestyle changes. While adults with severe mental illness are more likely to engage in unhealthy behaviours like smoking and drinking alcohol excessively, they are also less likely to access screening and treatment for a range of reasons including stigma associated with having a mental illness.  

While cancer is the leading cause of premature death among those with a severe mental illness, it also significantly increases the risk of dying before the age of 75 across a range of physical health conditions. Adults with severe mental illness are on average:

  • 6.6 times more likely to die prematurely from respiratory disease
  • 6.5 times more likely to die prematurely from liver disease
  • 4.1 times more likely to die prematurely from cardiovascular disease
  • 2.3 times more likely to die prematurely from cancer.

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Source: Royal College of Psychiatrists, 17 May 2023

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Over 170 carers call UK whistleblower helpline during COVID-19 crisis

More than 170 carers have called a whistleblowing helpline since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a report that highlights the voices of frontline workers and lays bare a catalogue of safety concerns.

Compassion in Care, which operates the helpline for care workers, says it is seeing the whistleblowing process move at “unprecedented speed” as the coronavirus crisis unfolds, with many concerns being ignored.

With the coronavirus death toll mounting in care homes, the charity’s report flags the “horrendous” unsafe conditions workers are facing amid concerns over lack of personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as the impact on carers’ mental health.

One whistleblower likens the situation to a “war zone” with people struggling to breathe, while another describes the pain of not having the time, because of the overwhelming workload, to even hold distressed residents’ hands.

In a new report, titled When the Silence Wins, Compassion in Care’s founder, Eileen Chubb, who is herself a former care whistleblower, writes: “During this crisis I have experienced the whistleblowing process moving at unprecedented speed, at such a high-volume and involving whistleblowing issues that are without exception extremely serious."

“What is emerging from these cases is a lack of action by employers in response to genuine concerns."

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Source: The Guardian, 6 May 2020

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Over 17 000 serious incidents reported in mental healthcare last year

The UK’s largest mental health charity, Mind, has published previously unseen data laying bare the full scale of the emergency in mental healthcare, with staff reporting 17,340 serious incidents in 12 months.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) figures shows mental healthcare staff across England reported an incident two times every hour in the last year, where people are treated for issues including self-harm, eating disorders and psychosis.

Incidents included:

  • injuries to patients that caused likely long term sensory, movement or brain damage, or physically damaged their body
  • prolonged physical pain or psychological harm, or shortened life expectancy
  • cases of abuse, including those involving the police
  • injuries for which the patient needed treatment to prevent them dying.

All of these incidents involved care providers raising concerns with the CQC under their statutory duty under Regulation 18.

Dr Sarah Hughes, Chief Executive of Mind, says: “It is deeply worrying that healthcare staff across the country are so concerned about the situation in mental health settings that they are reporting a serious incident once every half an hour. We knew this was a crisis – now we know the scale of this crisis. People seek mental healthcare to get well, not to endure harm. Families are being let down by a system that’s supposed to protect their loved ones when they are most sick. The consequences can be and have been fatal".

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Source: Mind, 10 October 2023

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Over 150,000 more people in England have ME than previously thought, study finds

More than 150,000 more people in England are living with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) than was previously estimated, according to a study that highlights the “postcode lottery” of diagnosis.

The research, published in the peer-reviewed journal BMC Public Health, involved researchers from the University of Edinburgh analysing NHS data from more than 62 million people in England to identify people who had been diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome or post-viral fatigue syndrome.

The data was examined by gender, age and ethnicity, and grouped by different areas of England.

ME, also known as chronic fatigue, is a long-term condition with its main symptoms being extreme fatigue, brain fog, and issues with sleep. The condition’s key feature is known as post-exertional malaise, which is a delayed dramatic worsening of these symptoms following minor physical effort. There is currently no diagnostic test or cure for the disease and its causes are unknown.

The findings showed that the lifetime prevalence of chronic fatigue for women and men in England may be as high as 0.92% of the population for women, and 0.25% for men. This is equivalent to about 404,000 people overall.

The study also revealed stark ethnic inequalities relating to chronic fatigue diagnoses rates. White people with ME in England were almost five times more likely to be diagnosed with the condition than other ethnic groups.

People from Black and Asian backgrounds were least likely to be diagnosed with the condition, with rates between 65% and 90% lower than their white counterparts.

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Source: The Guardian, 22 April 2025

Related reading on the hub:

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Over 1000 'adverse events' in women and infants' care in Scotland

More than 1000 investigations have been launched in Scotland over the past decade into adverse events affecting women and infants' healthcare.

Figures obtained by the Herald show that at least 1,032 Significant Adverse Event Reviews (Saers) have been initiated by health boards since 2012 following "near misses" or instances of unexpected harm or death in relation to obstetrics, maternity, gynaecology or neonatal services.

The true figure will be higher as two health boards - Grampian and Orkney - have yet to respond to the freedom of information request, and a number of health boards reported the totals per year as "less than five" to protect patient confidentiality.

Saers are internal health board investigations which are carried out following events that could have, or did, result in major harm or death for a patient.

Major harm is generally classified as long-term disability or where medical intervention was required to save the patient's life. They are intended as learning exercises to establish what went wrong and whether it could have been avoided. Not all Saers find fault with the patient's care, but the objective is to improve safety.

NHS Lanarkshire was only able to provide data from April 2015 onwards, but this revealed a total of 194 Saers - of which 102 related to neonatal or maternity services, and 80 for obstetrics.

A Fatal Accident Inquiry involving NHS Lanarkshire has already been ordered into the deaths of three infants - Leo Lamont and Ellie McCormick in 2019, and Mirabelle Bosch in 2021 - because they had died in "circumstances giving rise to serious public concern".

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: The Herald, 10 December 2022

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Over 100,000 monkeypox vaccines procured, government says

More than 100,000 doses of the monkeypox vaccine have been acquired in order to combat the spread of the virus, the government has said.

Last month the NHS stepped up its monkeypox vaccination programme in England as infections rose.

Vaccines minister Maggie Throup said the majority of vaccines were being made available in London, with about 75% of confirmed cases in the capital.

But she urged people to wait to be invited to receive their jabs.

While anyone can get monkeypox, the majority of those with the virus are gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.

The latest figures show that nationally there have been 2,436 confirmed cases, with 1,778 of those in London.

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Source: BBC News, 3 August 2022

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Over 1,000 patients occupying hospital beds despite being medically fit to leave

More than 1,000 patients across Kent, Sussex and Surrey are occupying hospital beds despite being medically fit to leave, according to the latest NHS figures.

"Bed blocking" affects the availability of space for incoming patients, which leads to delays in A&E departments and delayed ambulance handovers.

On 30 November, NHS data showed 462 patients in Kent and Medway, 118 in Surrey and 614 in Sussex were ready for discharge.

The NHS said patients who wait longer to leave often have "complex" health and care needs. Kent and Sussex branches said they work with trusts and partners to find the right support.

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Source: BBC, 8 December 2025

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