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Ukraine: GPs get updated guidance on treating refugees and returning citizens

GPs have received updated guidance on providing healthcare to people coming from Ukraine.

In a bulletin to general practices on 10 March notifying them of the update from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, NHS England said that the health service was starting to see refugees and citizens returning from Ukraine and reminded practices that proof of identity is not required for registration at a practice.

The guidance advises practices to explain to people coming from Ukraine how the NHS works and their entitlements to healthcare, to ensure that they are up to date with the UK immunisation schedule, and to ask about any travel plans they may have to visit friends and relatives in their country of origin.

GPs are also advised to:

  • Screen all new entrants, including children, for tuberculosis
  • Ascertain any risk factors for hepatitis B infection that may indicate the need for screening (owing to its low prevalence in the UK)
  • Consider screening for hepatitis C, because of a considerably higher prevalence in Ukraine than in the UK
  • Ensure that travellers are offered typhoid immunisation and advice on preventing enteric fever
  • Consider nutritional and metabolic concerns (anaemia, vitamin D, vitamin A, iodine)
  • Work with a professional interpreter where language barriers are present
  • Consider the effects of culture, religion, and gender on health
  • Assess for mental health conditions, and
  • Refer pregnant women to antenatal care.

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Source: BMJ, 14 March 2022

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Ukraine refugees not accessing NHS despite need

Many Ukraine refugees who were receiving regular care before leaving the country say they have not continued it since arriving in the UK, prompting warnings they have not been ‘empowered to seek support’.

Data published by the Office for National Statistics earlier this month on the experiences of visa holders entering the UK under the Ukraine Humanitarian Schemes revealed 74 per cent of those surveyed who had been receiving regular treatment before they left Ukraine said this had stopped since arriving in the UK.

Meanwhile, 65% of those who were receiving regular prescriptions for medications or drugs while in Ukraine had not accessed these since arriving in the UK.

Refugee Council policy and research officer Kama Petruczenko warned refugees “are facing many barriers which are not currently being addressed”.

Ms Petruczenko added: “As the ONS data shows, those who need to speak with health professionals are unable to because of the language barrier and it is very likely that many of the respondents who said they did not need medical assistance, are unable to understand how the UK health system works and are not empowered to seek support.”

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Source: HSJ, 1 June 2022

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Ukraine refugees in UK face waits of up to two years for war trauma therapy

Traumatised Ukrainian refugees who have sought sanctuary in the UK may have to wait two years before they can get specialised therapy to help them heal from the horrors of war, according to experts.

Therapists who specialise in treating war trauma say they have seen NHS waiting lists of two years before refugees can access the specialist treatment they need.

Services across the UK are patchy with some areas “treatment deserts when it comes to trauma”, according to Emily Palmer-White, a psychotherapist and community manager at the charity Room to Heal, which provides support for people who have fled persecution.

“There are often extremely long waiting lists. I have been told two years. You can’t separate the psychological from the practical – it’s more difficult to help people if they’re preoccupied with survival,” said Palmer-White.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said officials recognised the trauma Ukrainians were facing and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with them. However, beyond having access to NHS care officials did not cite any specific provision to provide newly arrived refugees with trauma support.

Prof Cornelius Catona, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said the visa delays of several weeks would likely exacerbate mental illness for those already struggling and that the refugee schemes should have included a mechanism for spotting signs of trauma early.

Viktoriia Liamets, a Ukrainian child and family therapist who recently arrived in the UK after fleeing the war, said Ukrainians arriving in Britain had multiple and complex traumas to contend with.

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Source: The Guardian, 9 May 2022

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UK’s renewed Covid fight must not come at cost of cancer patients, say medics

Health experts have expressed fears over the impact tighter Covid restrictions in England could have on cancer patients as alarming new figures reveal that the number taking part in clinical trials plummeted by almost 60% during the pandemic.

Almost 40,000 cancer patients in England were “robbed” of the chance to take part in life-saving trials during the first year of the coronavirus crisis, according to a report by the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), which said COVID-19 had compounded longstanding issues of trial funding, regulation and access.

Figures obtained from the National Institute for Health Research by the ICR show that the number of patients recruited on to clinical trials for cancer in England fell to 27,734 in 2020-21, down 59% from an average of 67,057 over the three years previously. The number of patients recruited for trials fell for almost every type of cancer analysed.

Health experts said the relentless impact of Covid on the ability of doctors and scientists to run clinical trials was denying many thousands of cancer patients access to the latest treatment options and delaying the development of cutting-edge drugs.

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Source: The Guardian, 9 December 2021

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UK’s Covid vaccines cut hospital admissions by around 90%, study shows

The COVID-19 vaccines deployed in the UK substantially reduce the risk of hospital admission, real-world data from Scotland has shown.

Four weeks after receiving a first dose, both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca jabs cut hospitalisation with the disease by up to 85 and 94%, respectively.

Among those aged 80 years and over – one of the most vulnerable groups – the two vaccines were associated with a combined 81% reduction in hospitalisation risk.

Scientists from the University of Edinburgh, the University of Strathclyde, and Public Health Scotland gathered vaccine data between 8 December and 15 February, during which 1.14 million doses were administered among the Scottish population.

Researchers analysed data for every week during the study – including GP records on vaccination, hospital admissions, death registrations and laboratory test results – and compared the outcomes of those who had received their first jab with those who had not.

Lead researcher Professor Aziz Sheikh said: "These results are very encouraging and have given us great reasons to be optimistic for the future. We now have national evidence – across an entire country – that vaccination provides protection against Covid-19 hospitalisations."

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Source: The Independent, 22 February 2021

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UK’s biggest GP chain replacing doctors with less qualified staff

The UK's biggest chain of GP practices lets less qualified staff see patients without adequate supervision, an undercover BBC Panorama investigation has found.

Operose Health is putting patients at risk by prioritising profit, says a senior GP.

The company, with almost 600,000 NHS patients, is owned by US healthcare giant Centene Corporation. 

BBC Panorama sent undercover reporter Jacqui Wakefield to work as a receptionist at one of the UK company's 51 London surgeries. 

A GP working at the practice said they were short of eight doctors. The practice manager said they hired less qualified medical staff called physician associates (PAs), because they were "cheaper" than GPs.

Physician associates were first introduced by the NHS in 2003, so that doctors could deal with more complex patient needs. PAs are healthcare professionals who have completed two years of post-graduate studies on top of a science degree, as opposed to 10 years education and training for GPs. They support GPs in the diagnosis and management of patients, but should have oversight from a doctor.

Panorama gathered evidence that PAs were not being properly supervised at the Operose practice. The PAs told the undercover reporter they saw all sorts of patients, sometimes without any clinical supervision. They said the practice treated them as equivalent to GPs.

Prof Sir Sam Everington, a senior practising GP at an unconnected partner-run practice, reviewed BBC Panorama's undercover footage and said he was concerned for patient safety.

During the undercover investigation at the London practice, administrative workers also revealed a backlog of thousands of medical test results and hospital letters on Operose computer systems. 

One worker said they were tasked with getting through 200 documents a day, deciding which were important enough to be seen by a GP or pharmacist and which would be filed to the patient's records. One member of staff, worried about making mistakes said they sometimes used Google to help them work out what to do with the documents.

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Source: BBC News, 11 June 2022

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UK's long Covid patients facing postcode lottery for support

Long Covid patients have voiced growing frustration at a “postcode lottery” in clinical support for debilitating symptoms, with some areas of the UK offering no specialist clinics more than a year after coronavirus took hold.

Other sufferers said they were disappointed by long Covid clinics investigating certain symptoms only, with no comprehensive treatment plan.

Official figures suggest there are almost 700,000 Britons with Covid symptoms lasting over three months. In October, NHS England announced more than £10m for a network of clinics bringing together doctors, nurses, therapists and other NHS staff to conduct physical and psychological assessments and recommend treatments for long Covid patients.

Additional local funding would also be available to help establish a clinic in every area, the NHS England chief executive, Simon Stevens, said. By December, 69 clinics had been set up in England with a further 12 sites earmarked to launch in January.

But Louise Barnes, founder of the Post Acute Covid Syndrome 19 (Pacs19) patient advocacy group, said a survey of 200 British members revealed about 90% had not been able to access a clinic because there wasn’t one available, their GP could not refer them or they were declined without explanation. Others were disappointed by the type of services on offer.

Barnes said: “Patients in the UK have waited going on a year to get support for the multitude of symptoms they’ve been experiencing. To finally think you are going to get referred to a clinic but your GP tells you they don’t have any information, or you get there to find it’s a ‘respiratory-only clinic’ or only staffed by physiotherapists leaves them feeling despondent. For the most part, sadly, patients are coming away massively feeling let down and with no viable treatment plan offered – even a rudimentary one, whilst a treatment is found."

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Source: The Guardian, 6 April 2021

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UK women forced to wear face masks during labour, charity finds

Nearly one in five pregnant women in the UK were forced to wear a face covering during labour, according to research by a charity, despite official health guidance saying they should not be asked to do so.

Women described feeling unable to breathe, having panic attacks or even being sick during labour because they were made to wear a face covering.

The research was carried out by the charity Pregnant Then Screwed, who surveyed 936 women who gave birth during December. It found that 160 of those who went into labour were made to wear a face covering. This goes against current joint UK guidance, published in July 2020 by the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

The guidance says that women should not be asked to wear a face covering of any kind during natural labour or during caesarean births because of the risk of harm and complications.

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Source: The Guardian, 14 May 2021

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UK virus-tracing app switches to Apple-Google model

In a major U-turn, the UK is ditching the way its current coronavirus-tracing app works and shifting to a model based on technology provided by Apple and Google.

The Apple-Google design has been promoted as being more privacy-focused. However, it means epidemiologists will have access to less data.

The government now intends to launch an app in the autumn, but it says the product may not involve contact tracing at that point. Instead the software may be limited to enabling users to report their symptoms and order a test.

Baroness Dido Harding - who heads up the wider Test and Trace programme - will only give the green light to actually deploying the Apple-Google technology if she judges it to be fit for purpose, which she does not believe is the case at present. It is possible this may never happen.

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Source: BBC News, 18 June 2020

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UK variant less associated with loss of taste and smell

People infected with the new variant of coronavirus that first emerged in the UK are less likely to report a loss of taste or smell, but more likely to report “classic” symptoms, such as coughing, sore throat or fatigue, a survey has found.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the symptom of impaired taste and smell in those with COVID-19 was “significantly less common” in people who tested positive for the new variant compared with those who had other variants.

However, there was no evidence of any difference in symptoms related to shortness of breath or headaches, according to the provisional data published in the organisation’s infection survey.

The data also indicated that people infected with the new variant were more likely to report having symptoms. These were self-reported and not professionally diagnosed, and cover the period between 15 November and 16 January.

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Source: The Independent, 27 January 2021 

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UK vaccine rollout 'breaking link' between infections and death

Increasingly strong evidence shows that the UK's vaccination programme is breaking the link between COVID-19 cases and deaths, scientists tracking the epidemic have said.

A study found infections had fallen by roughly two-thirds since February, before beginning to level off. 

This is probably because people are beginning to mix more - but deaths have not followed the same pattern.

This was not the case before January, when the vaccine rollout began.

The research, commissioned by the government and run by Imperial College London, is based on swabs taken from 140,000 people selected to represent England's population. Of that group, who were tested for the virus between 11 and 30 March, 227 had a positive result, giving a rate of 0.2%, or one in 500 people. But in people over the age of 65, the infection rate was half that with one in 1,000 people testing positive for Covid.

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Source: BBC News, 8 April 2021

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UK trails other countries on waiting times for cancer treatment, study finds

Cancer patients in the UK wait up to seven weeks longer to begin radiotherapy or chemotherapy than people in comparable countries, research has revealed.

The stark findings are yet more damning evidence of the extent to which the UK lags behind other nations, as experts warn that people’s chances of survival are being affected by long waits for treatment.

In the first research of its kind, experts at University College London analysed data from more than 780,000 cancer patients diagnosed between 2012 and 2017 in four comparable countries: Australia, Canada, Norway and the UK. Eight cancer types were included: oesophageal, stomach, colon, rectal, liver, pancreatic, lung and ovarian cancer.

The two studies, published in the Lancet Oncology, were the first to examine treatment differences for eight cancer types in countries across three continents. UK patients experienced the longest waits for treatment, the research found.

The average time to start chemotherapy was 48 days in England, 57 in Northern Ireland, 58 in Wales and 65 in Scotland. The shortest time was 39 days in Norway.

In radiotherapy, the UK fared even worse. It took 53 days on average for treatment to begin in Northern Ireland, 63 in England, 79 in Scotland and 81 in Wales.

Cancer Research UK, which part-funded the two studies, said delays to begin treatment were partly a result of the UK government’s lack of long-term planning on cancer in recent years. Countries with robust cancer strategies backed by funding had seen better improvements in survival rates, it said.

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Source: The Guardian, 27 February 2024

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UK to strengthen regulation of medical devices to protect patients

New plans to strengthen the regulation of medical devices to improve patient safety and encourage innovation have been published.

Following the UK’s exit from the European Union (EU), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has a unique opportunity to improve how medical devices and in vitro diagnostic medical devices (IVDs) are regulated in the UK.

The package of reforms will apply to medical devices such as hearing aids, x-ray machines and insulin pumps; new technologies such as smartphone apps and Artificial Intelligence (AI); as well as certain cosmetic products like dermal fillers.

The new measures include:

  • Strengthening the MHRA’s powers to act to keep patients safe. Giving the public and patients greater assurance on both the performance and safety of the highest-risk medical devices, such as those which need to be implanted.
  • Increasing the scope and extent of regulation to respond to public need. Enhancing systems that are already in place to better protect users of medical devices and certain cosmetic products, and providing greater assurance of their performance and safety.
  • Addressing health disparities and mitigating identified inequities throughout medical devices development and use. Mitigating against inequities in medical devices, ensuring they function as intended for diverse populations. The government has launched a review into the potential equity issues in the design and use of medical devices to tackle health inequalities and will update in due course.
  • Making the UK a focus for innovation, and the best place to develop and introduce innovative medical devices. Ensuring the new regulatory framework encourages responsible innovation so that patients in the UK are better able to access the most advanced medical devices to meet their needs.
  • Setting world-leading standards and building the new UKCA mark. Transforming a new stamp of certification, replacing the CE mark, into a trusted brand that signifies global safety, health and environment protection standards have been met for medical device products. This will in turn boost the MHRA’s global reputation and growing partnerships with other regulators.

Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid said: "Now we have left the EU, these new changes will allow innovation to thrive and ensure UK patients are among the first to benefit from technological breakthroughs."

"We are now able to introduce some of the most robust safety measures in the world for medical devices to ensure patients are protected."

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Source: Gov.UK, 26 June 2022

 

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UK to recruit nurses from Nepal under new government deal

Up to 100 nurses are to be recruited from Nepal to work in the NHS, despite global restrictions on employing health workers because of staff shortages in the country.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Government of Nepal have signed a new government-to-government agreement regarding the recruitment of Nepali health professionals to the UK.

The move comes after the new health and social care secretary Steve Barclay announced plans to “significantly increase” overseas recruitment of health workers to help mitigate staff shortages in the UK. A 15-month pilot phase will initially see up to 100 nurses recruited from Nepal to work at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

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Source: Nursing Times (23 August 2022)

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UK to give emergency approval to any Covid vaccine breakthrough

Any new and effective Covid vaccine will be given emergency approval for use in the UK and an expanded workforce will be trained to give the injections to immunise as much of the population as possible quickly, the government has said.

A change in the law will allow the UK regulator, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), to grant temporary approval for a vaccine from October, before it has been given a licence by the European authorities, which would be the normal procedure. The UK will be out of the EU from January and will approve drugs and vaccines without Brussels’ involvement.

Ministers say there will be no shortcut on safety or effectiveness, and that any vaccine will be approved for the UK only if it meets the highest standards.

The deputy chief medical officer for England, Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, said: “We are making progress in developing COVID-19 vaccines, which we hope will be important in saving lives, protecting healthcare workers and returning to normal in future.

“If we develop effective vaccines, it’s important we make them available to patients as quickly as possible but only once strict safety standards have been met. The proposals consulted on today suggest ways to improve access and ensure as many people are protected from Covid-19 and flu as possible without sacrificing the absolute need to ensure that any vaccine used is both safe and effective.”

The MHRA has the power to grant an unlicensed medicine or a vaccine temporary authorisation where a product is proven safe and effective and in the best interest of the patient on the basis of available evidence.

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Source: The Guardian, 28 August 2020

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UK to bring in licensing scheme for Botox and filler procedures

People administering Botox or fillers will be required to have a licence under new laws after an “unacceptable” rise in reports of botched cosmetic procedures in the UK.

The legislation to protect against rogue practitioners will make it an offence to perform such non-surgical work without a licence after Sajid Javid said “far too many people have been left emotionally and physically scarred” when things have gone wrong.

The health secretary recognised that most of those in the aesthetics industry “follow good practice” when it comes to patient safety but said it was time to think about the harm botched cosmetic procedures can have.

“We’re doing all we can to protect patients from potential harm, but I urge anyone considering a cosmetic procedure to take the time to think about the impact on both their physical and mental health and ensure they are using a reputable, safe and qualified practitioner,” he said.

Maria Caulfield, the minister for patient safety, said the spread of images online via social media has led to a rise in demand for Botox and fillers and there had been a subsequent increase in people suffering the consequences of badly performed procedures.

She said: “While these can be administered safely, we are seeing an unacceptable rise in people being left physically and mentally scarred from poorly performed procedures.”

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Source: The Guardian, 28 February 2022

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UK swapped to fatal US blood products to save money, minutes suggest

The British government was willing to risk infecting NHS patients to get “lower-priced” blood products, according to a document that campaigners claim proves state and corporate guilt in one of the country’s worst ever scandals.

A public inquiry into the deaths of an estimated 2,900 people infected with conditions such as HIV and hepatitis will publish its final report in May, four decades after the NHS started prescribing blood and blood products – including from drug users, prisoners and sex workers – sourced from the USA.

Within the thousands of documents disclosed to the inquiry, internal company minutes have emerged that campaigners say provide the final compelling piece of evidence of the commercial greed and state negligence that destroyed thousands of lives.

In November 1976, Immuno AG, an Austrian company that was a major supplier to the Department of Health, was seeking a licence change to allow it to supply a blood product from those paid to donate in the US rather than donors without a financial incentive in Europe.

According to the minutes of a meeting of medics in the company, it had been “proven” that there was a “significantly higher hepatitis risk” from a concentrate known as Kryobulin 2 made from US plasma compared with that from Austria and Germany.

The company had concluded there was a “preference” in the UK for the cheaper US option. The memo of the meeting said: “Kryobulin 2 will be significantly cheaper than Kryobulin 1 because the British market will accept a higher risk of hepatitis for a lower-priced product. In the long-term, Kryobulin 1 will disappear from the British market.”

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Source: The Guardian, 14 April 2024

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UK survey suggests 1.3 million have Long Covid

About 1.3 million people in the UK have Long Covid symptoms lasting more than four weeks after an initial infection, an Office for National Statistics survey suggests. Of those, 892,000 (70%) first caught the virus at least 12 weeks ago and 506,000 (40%) at least a year ago.

The survey asked nearly 352,000 people to record their own symptoms. There is no universally agreed definition of long Covid and different studies use varying definitions.

The ONS survey, over four weeks in November and December 2021, suggests, of those with Long Covid:

  • 51% have fatigue
  • 37% have loss of smell
  • 36% have shortness of breath
  • 28% have difficulty concentrating.

University of Exeter senior clinical lecturer Dr David Strain said: "The stark warning here is that, based on this, in the previous waves, over 800,000 people have their day-to-day activities significantly affected over three months after catching Covid and nearly a quarter of a million report this has a dramatic impact on their quality of life.

"As we continue to see case numbers of Omicron rise, we must be wary that our reliance purely on hospitalisations and death as a measure of the risk from Covid could grossly underestimate the public-health impact of our current Covid strategy."

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Source: BBC News, 6 January 2022

 

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UK surgical workforce census 2023 opens

The Royal College of Surgeons of England is conducting a census to gain a better understanding of the surgical workforce.

Through the census, they will be able to gather comprehensive information on the composition of the surgical workforce, its demographics and working practices. Most importantly, it allows members of the surgical workforce to share the most pressing challenges they are facing. 

It aims to:

  • Better appreciate the needs, challenges, and working practices of the surgical workforce.
  • More effectively represent and advocate for the workforce.
  • Offer better support
  • Create a better working environment.
  • Enhance sustainability, including measures to improve retention, recruitment and work-life balance.
  • Improve future planning.

Take part in the survey

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UK study highlights heart disease risk from older types of hip replacement

Patients who have had older types of hip replacement may be at greater risk of heart damage than previously thought, researchers have said, because of cobalt leaching out of so-called metal-on-metal implants.

Tens of thousands of UK patients were fitted with these devices during the 2000s, when they were marketed as a solution for young, active patients who needed a hip replacement that would last a lifetime.

The issue is that tiny metal ions made up of cobalt and chromium are thought to break off from the implants and leak into the blood, and there are fears this could cause muscle, bone and organ damage.

Surgeons began to voice concerns about the implants in 2008, and in 2012 the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) issued guidance recommending annual blood or MRI checks for patients who had received them. Since then, mounting evidence has suggested that such individuals may be at greater risk of heart disease.

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Source: The Guardian, 26 April 2023

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UK spent only £15m on brain tumour research after promising £40m

Ministers have spent only £15m in five years on research into tackling brain tumours, the biggest killer of adults and children under 40, while boasting about delivering £40m, MPs have found.

The revelation emerged in a damning report seen by the Guardian that is due to be published this week by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on brain tumours after a two-year inquiry.

The research system is “unfit for purpose”, patients are being denied access to clinical trials, and families have been let down by promises of “millions of pounds of investment which hasn’t materialised”, the report says.

The APPG report also highlights a “valley of death” in which potential new treatments developed in the laboratory “fail to reach patients” because of unnecessary red tape. Some children are being denied access to clinical trials, and the national brain tumour research database is “not reliable”.

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Source: The Guardian, 27 February 2023

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UK skin cancer deaths higher in men than women

More men are dying from melanoma skin cancer than women in the UK, Cancer Research UK is warning as the country's heatwave continues.

Rates of the cancer, which can develop in sun-damaged skin, have been rising in both men and women in recent years.

Late diagnosis may be part of the reason why men are faring worse.

Melanoma is treatable if it is diagnosed early - the charity is urging people to take care in the sun and get any unusual skin changes checked.

Melanoma death rates have improved for women in the last 10 years, but not for men.

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research, says the figures "drive home the importance of sun safety".

"We all need to take steps to protect ourselves from the sun's harmful UV rays. Getting sunburnt just once every two years can triple your risk of skin cancer," she adds.

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Source: BBC News, 15 July 2022

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UK sees coronavirus infections spike as global death toll hits 3,000

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will say there is “little doubt” the coronavirus will present a “significant challenge” for the UK as he chairs a Cobra meeting to discuss the government’s response to the outbreak.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, has warned it was now “inevitable” the deadly virus would “become endemic” in the UK as 13 more cases of Covid-19 were announced, bringing the total number to 36. The Cobra meeting will bring together senior ministers and the Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty and Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.

Meanwhile the worldwide death toll from the disease has passed 3,000, with more than 80,000 cases worldwide. Several countries in Europe, the Middle East and the Americas have banned large gatherings and imposed stricter travel restrictions in an attempt to limit infections.the Americas have banned large gatherings and imposed stricter travel restrictions in an attempt to limit infections.

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Source: The Indpendent, 2 March 2020

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UK risks becoming reliant on overseas care workers, report warns

The UK risks becoming highly reliant on overseas care workers after nearly 58,000 visas were issued for the sector last year, a report says.

Analysis by the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford found that the demand for foreign staff had left the NHS and care homes open to “vulnerabilities” including “exposure to international competition for health workers and risks of exploitation”.

The study, commissioned by the employment group ReWAGE, also examined where care workers were coming from. In 2022, 99% of care workers sponsored for work visas in the UK were from non-EU countries. The top countries were India (33%), Zimbabwe (16%), Nigeria (15%) and the Philippines (11%).

Dr Madeleine Sumption, the director of the Migration Observatory, said: “Health and care employers have benefited a lot from international recruitment.

“But relying this much on overseas recruits also brings risks. For example, care workers on temporary visas are vulnerable to exploitation and the rapid growth in overseas recruitments makes monitoring pay and conditions a real challenge.”

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Source: The Guardian, 27 June 2023

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UK rights watchdog endorses compulsory Covid jabs for care home staff

The prospect of care home workers being required to get vaccinated against COVID-19 has moved a step closer, with a crucial endorsement from the UK’s human rights watchdog.

Ministers are considering changing the law to make vaccination a condition of deployment for people in some professions that come into regular close contact with elderly and vulnerable people at high risk from the coronavirus.

In a report to the government seen by the Guardian, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) admitted that making vaccines compulsory for care home staff would be a “significant departure from current public health policy”.

But they judged that ministers were “right to prioritise protection of the right to life for residents and staff” and said it would be reasonable for care home workers to need a jab “in order to work directly with older and disabled people, subject to some important safeguards”.

The EHRC is also likely to make a similar recommendation about healthcare workers, after the vaccines minister, Nadhim Zahawi, suggested over the weekend that NHS staff could face mandatory jabs, too, as some patients were “being infected in hospital”.

Zahawi said no decisions had been made yet, and stressed there was a precedent: surgeons were required to be vaccinated against hepatitis B. He added: “It would be incumbent on any responsible government to have the debate, to do the thinking about how we go about protecting the most vulnerable by making sure that those who look after them are vaccinated.”

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Source: The Guardian, 2 June 2021

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