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Reasons for hospital admissions in people with type 2 diabetes are changing

The most common reasons why people with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) are admitted to hospital with greater frequency than the general population are changing, with hospitalisation for traditional diabetes complications now being accompanied by admissions for a diverse range of lesser-known complications including infections (i.e., pneumonia, sepsis), mental health disorders, and gastrointestinal conditions, according to an analysis of national data from Australia spanning seven years.

The findings, being presented at this year's European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) Annual Meeting in Stockholm, Sweden (19-23 Sept), reveal that just four traditional diabetes complications (cellulitis, heart failure, urinary tract infections, and skin abscesses) were ranked in the top ten leading causes of hospitalisation in men and women with T2DM.

"Although traditional complications such as heart failure and cellulitis remain a substantial burden for people with T2DM, infections less commonly linked with diabetes and mental health disorders are emerging as leading causes of hospital admissions, and have substantial burdens that sometimes exceed the top-ranked well-known complications," says lead author Dr. Dee Tomic from the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Australia.

She adds, "The emergence of non-traditional diabetes complications reflects improvements in diabetes management and people with diabetes living longer, making them susceptible to a broader range of complications. Increasing hospitalizations for mental health disorders as well as infections like sepsis and pneumonia will place extra burden on healthcare systems and may need to be reflected in changes to diabetes management to better prevent and treat these conditions."

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Source: MedicalXpress, 1 September 2022

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Doctor appeals to government to rethink Covid drug

A leading academic is calling on new Health Secretary Therese Coffey to reconsider rolling out a Covid drug for people with weakened immune systems.

Last month the government decided it would not supply Evusheld in the UK.

But Dr Lennard Lee, an academic medical oncologist from Oxford University who is backed by more than 120 leading scientists and clinicians, said a rethink was needed.

The government said more data was required on the treatment.

Evusheld was approved for use in March, but was reviewed after the Omicron variant emerged. The drug's manufacturer AstraZeneca said there was "ample real-world data" that it worked. It is currently available in 32 countries.

Dr Lee told the BBC: "It's time for a re-review of the data, and to think about transparency in terms of why they decided not to do this, and also the pros and cons of doing this.

"We do know that coronavirus cases are likely to go up in winter, and we do know there are people who face increased risks...

"Therefore if there is anything we can do to protect... anyone immunosuppressed I think this is something that does need to be reconsidered."

Research from the US and Israel suggests Evusheld reduces the risk of infection by about 50%, and cuts the risk of serious illness by 90%.

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Source: BBC News, 21 September 2022

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Adult social care in England is in crisis, say Tory council leaders

Adult social care in England is in serious crisis, Tory council leaders have warned the government, as it faces a £3.7bn funding gap and a growing staffing shortage that has brought many local care providers to the brink of collapse.

The intervention by the County Councils Network, which represents 36 mainly Tory-run authorities, comes amid widespread local government concern over the increasing fragile state of social care. Care costs have accelerated recently, fuelled by unexpected wage and energy inflation.

“We face the perfect storm of staffing shortages, fewer care beds, and higher costs – all of which will impact on individuals waiting for care and discharges from hospital,” said Martin Tett, the Tory leader of Buckinghamshire county council.

Cathie Williams, the chief executive of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, said: “Too many people are missing out on vital care and support – we estimate that over half a million people are waiting for assessments, care, or reviews. With over 165,000 staff vacancies, this is only set to get worse. ”

A government spokesperson said: “The health and social care secretary is focused on delivering for patients and has set out her four priorities of A, B, C, D – reducing ambulance delays, busting the Covid backlogs, improving care, and increasing the number of doctors and dentists.

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Source: The Guardian, 21 September 2022

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Panel says US adults should get routine screening for anxiety

For the first time, a US government-backed expert panel has recommended that adults under 65 should be screened for anxiety disorders.

The influential US Preventive Services Task force also said that all adults should be checked for depression, consistent with past guidance.

The change follows widespread warnings from experts on the mental health toll of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The task force stopped short of a screening recommendation for suicide.

The panel acknowledged that suicide is a leading cause of death among American adults but said there was "not enough evidence on whether screening people without signs or symptoms will ultimately help prevent suicide".

The draft guidance is aimed at young and middle-aged adults, including those who are pregnant and post-partum. It envisions the mental health screening as part of routine visits with primary care physicians, said Dr Lori Pbert, a task-force member and professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at UMass Chan Medical School.

"When you go to your primary care provider, you get screened for many, many preventive conditions - blood pressure, heart rate, all kinds of things," she said. "Mental health conditions are just important as other physical conditions, and we really need to be treating mental health conditions with the same urgency that we do other conditions."

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Source: BBC News, 20 September 2022

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Women with type 2 diabetes have 60% increased chance of early death

Women in the UK with type 2 diabetes have a 60% increased risk of an early death and will live five years less than the average woman in the general population, early research suggests.

Scientists have also found that men with the disease have a 44% increased risk of dying prematurely and live 4.5 years less.

Results also suggest that smoking shortens the life expectancy of people with type 2 diabetes by 10 years, while diagnosis at a younger age cuts life expectancy by over eight years.

The findings, presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm, Sweden, are based on a cohort of nearly 12,000 patients at the Salford Royal Hospital in Salford.

“A woman with type 2 diabetes, for example, might live five years less than the average woman in the general population, while someone diagnosed at a younger age might lose eight years of life expectancy.

“It is vital that the groups at the highest risk are made aware of not just the increased risk that they face but also the size of the risk."

“Doing so may make the health advice they are given seem more relevant and so help them make changes that can improve their quality – and length – of life.”

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Source: The Independent, 21 September 2022

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Scotland's A&E waiting times worst on record

Performance on waiting times targets at Scotland's hospital A&E units has hit a new low.

Figures for the week ending 11 September showed just 63.5% of patients were dealt with within four hours.

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said the figures were "not acceptable" and he was determined to improve performance.

Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said the figures showed the "crisis in A&E is not merely continuing, but deepening".

The Scottish government target is that 95% of patients attending A&E are seen and subsequently admitted or discharged within four hours.

Doctors working in emergency medicine have issued stark warnings recently about the impact of long waits in A&E. It is simply not safe, and patients are dying as a result, they say.

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Source: BBC News, 20 September 2022

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Millions in poor health due to lack of rehab after illness, warns UK report

Millions of people in the UK are suffering poor health because they miss out on vital rehabilitation after strokes, heart attacks and cancer, which in turn is also heaping further pressure on the NHS, a damning report warns.

Physiotherapists say some groups of patients are particularly badly affected. Without access to these services, many patients desperately trying to recover from illness became “stuck in a downward spiral”, they said, with some developing other health conditions as a result.

The new report by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) says millions of people in marginalised communities, including those from ethnic minorities, are not only more likely to live shorter lives, but also spend a greater proportion of their lives struggling with health difficulties.

Vital services that could tackle those inequities are either unavailable or poorly equipped to meet their needs, the report warns, adding that “some communities face particular barriers”.

Prof Karen Middleton, the chief executive of the CSP, said: “Rehabilitation services have been under-resourced for decades and were not designed coherently in the first place. This has exacerbated poor health outcomes, particularly for people from marginalised groups.

“It’s not only the individual who suffers. Without adequate access to rehabilitation, health conditions worsen to the point where more and more pressure is eventually piled on struggling local health systems and other public services.

“We desperately need a modernised recovery and rehabilitation service that adequately supports patients following a health crisis and prevents other conditions developing.”

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Source: The Guardian, 21 September 2022

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Many English maternity units not meeting safety standards

More than half of maternity units in England fail consistently to meet safety standards, BBC analysis of official statistics shows.

Health regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) rates 7% of units as posing a high risk of avoidable harm. A further 48% require improvement.

The figures are slightly worse than a few years ago, despite several attempts to transform maternity care.

The regulator says the pace of improvement has been disappointing.

In most cases, pregnancy and birth are a positive and safe experience for women and their families, says the CQC. But when things do go wrong, it is important to understand what happened and whether the outcome could have been different.

Laura Ellis lost her newborn son when he was unexpectedly breech during advanced labour. She checked out the CQC rating of her local hospital, Frimley Park, when she was pregnant. Maternity services were good.

But Laura didn't realise the unit had been told that it required improvement on safety.

Laura said: "It was just so hard. So hard to deal with. So hard to leave as well. How would you leave your baby in hospital when you should be taking them home?"

Frimley Park NHS Foundation Trust says it has made a number of changes since Theo died, including an emergency response if a baby is unexpectedly breech during advanced labour.

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Source: BBC News, 21 September 2022

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New national deadline to eliminate two-year waiters

NHS England has issued a new deadline to treat patients who have been waiting more than two years for treatment, a month after saying it had ‘virtually eliminated’ the longest waits, it has emerged.

The goal of no-one waiting more than 104 weeks for treatment by July this year was one of the first milestones in the elective recovery plan hammered out between NHSE and ministers.

They were not eliminated by the end of July, but the number was reduced to 3,000, having stood at 22,000 in January.

The remaining group consisted of nearly 1,600 patients who had been offered faster treatment elsewhere but did not want to travel, 1,000 who required complex treatment and could not be transferred to another provider and 168 who were not treated by the deadline, according to information issued in the summer by NHSE.

Now integrated care systems have been told there is a new “national expectation” to treat the remaining, final two-year waiters by the end of September. HSJ was told the goal has been framed as an ambition rather than a target because it includes patients who have chosen to wait longer.

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Source: HSJ, 21 September 2022

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‘Out of control’: rise in STDs, including 26% syphilis spike, sparks US alarm

Sharply rising cases of some sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including a 26% rise in new syphilis infections reported last year, are prompting US health officials to call for new prevention and treatment efforts.

“It is imperative that we ... work to rebuild, innovate, and expand (STD) prevention in the US,” said Leandro Mena of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in a speech on Monday at a medical conference on sexually transmitted diseases.

Infections rates for some STDs, including gonorrhoea and syphilis, have been rising for years in the US. Last year the rate of syphilis cases reached its highest since 1991 and the total number of cases hit its highest since 1948. HIV cases are also on the rise, up 16% last year.

An international outbreak of monkeypox has further highlighted the nation’s worsening problem with diseases spread mostly through sex.

David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors, called the situation “out of control”.

Officials are working on new approaches to the problem, such as home-test kits for some STDs that will make it easier for people to learn they are infected and to take steps to prevent spreading it to others, Mena said.

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Source: The Guardian, 20 September 2022

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US abortion bans leave grey areas in complicated pregnancies

Moments after unveiling a bill that would ban all abortions in the United States at 15 weeks, US Senator Lindsey Graham was interrupted by a mother with a devastating story.

"I did everything right and at 16 weeks we found out that our son would likely not live," Ashbey Beasley told a crowded room. "When he was born, for eight days he bled from every orifice of his body," she said.

But, she said, at least she got to choose how to handle her difficult pregnancy, while Mr Graham's law would take away that choice.

"What do you say to someone like me?"

Since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v Wade this summer, states across the US have pushed through abortion bans or severely restricted the procedure. But as such laws have gone into effect, unintended consequences have followed.

Doctors and patients say that confusing standards and the vague language of these laws have had a chilling effect on the medical field in anti-abortion states, leaving tragedies in their wake - and more in the making.

For the last year, Amanda Horton, a Texas doctor who specialises in high-risk pregnancies, has struggled to care for patients with pregnancy complications.

At times, Dr Horton must inform families that their babies have been diagnosed with a fatal foetal anomaly. These conditions are rare and likely to lead to the death of a foetus in utero, or shortly after birth.

But under a strict abortion ban in Texas, her hands are tied.

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Source: BBC News, 17 September 2022

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Britons of black and south Asian origin with dementia die younger, study finds

Britons of black and south Asian origin with dementia die younger and sooner after being diagnosed than white people, research has found.

South Asian people die 2.97 years younger and black people 2.66 years younger than their white counterparts, according to a study by academics from University College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

A team led by Dr Naaheed Mukadam, from UCL’s division of psychiatry, reached their conclusions after studying health records covering the 21 years between 1997 and 2018 of 662,882 people across the UK who were aged over 65.

They found that:

  •  Dementia rates have increased across all ethnic groups.
  •  Black people are 22% more likely to get dementia than their white peers.
  •  Dementia is 17% less common among those of south Asian background.

But they have voiced concern about also discovering that south Asian and black people are diagnosed younger, survive for less time and die younger than white people.

“The earlier age of dementia diagnosis in people of black and south Asian [origin] … may be related to the higher prevalence of some risk factors for dementia such as, in older south Asians, fewer years of education, and in both groups hypertension [high blood pressure], diabetes and obesity,” they write in their paper, published in the medical journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

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Source: The Guardian, 18 September 2022

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Lawyers warned trust that staff could ‘pick and choose’ documents for coroners

An ambulance trust accused of withholding key evidence from coroners was previously warned its staff needed training to ‘understand the real risk of committing criminal offences’ in relation to inquests into patient deaths.

North East Ambulance Service, which has been accused by whistleblowers of withholding details from coroners in more than 90 deaths, was told by its lawyers in 2019 about serious shortcomings in its processes for disclosing information, according to internal documents obtained by a campaigner.

According to the documents, the lawyers said trust staff could “pick and choose” documents to release to coroners “regardless of relevance.”

The following year, an audit report said the issues had not been addressed.

Whistleblowers’ concerns about the trust were first reported by The Sunday Times in the spring, with a review highlighting several cases between 2018 and 2019 where key facts were omitted in disclosures to coroners.

But campaigner Minh Alexander has since obtained new details of warnings that were being made to internally, from lawyers and auditors who were advising the trust.

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Source: HSJ, 20 September 2022

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Therese Coffey could abolish four hour A&E wait targets under ‘emergency’ NHS plan

Therese Coffey is considering abolishing four-hour A&E waiting time targets as part of her “emergency plan” to tackle the NHS.

The new health secretary is understood to be looking at a range of measures to address the growing crisis in the NHS, understood to be announced next Thursday.

But a source close to the discussions told The Independent getting rid of the four-hour waits – first suggested in March 2019 – would have to be given the green light by the new prime minister Liz Truss.

The announcement will focus on the health secretary’s “ABCD” priorities – standing for “ambulances, backlog, care, dentists and doctors” – with improvements to mental health services as an addition.

Policies also being looked at include more call handers for ambulances, more diagnostic community centres, speeding up the hospital building programme, reducing “bureaucratic” burdens on GPs, improving direct access to counselling services for patients and “robust” management of the national dentists’ contract.

There is concern among those involved that the move would see the four-hour wait replaced by a new target, which could be as difficult as the current target to achieve.

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Source: The Independent, 18 September 2022

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Nurse struck off for failing to dispense morphine

A nurse in Somerset has been struck off after she failed to give morphine to a patient before they underwent surgery.

Amanda-Jane Price had been suspended from front-line duties since the incident in March 2019.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council ruled that Miss Price had been "dishonest" with her colleagues and her ability to practice medicine safely was "impaired".

Miss Price had been a nurse at Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton since 2018. On 31 March 2019, Miss Price did not administer morphine to an individual in her care, falsely recording in her notes that morphine had been given.

An investigation by the hospital's emergency medicine consultant found that the morphine dose of 6mg had been noted on the patient's chart, but that the drug had not actually been administered.

Miss Price subsequently admitted to falsifying the prescription chart, and to "being consciously aware of her decision".

As a result of Miss Price's actions, the patient underwent an invasive procedure without analgesia, and subsequently complained of being in pain.

The panel concluded that Miss Price was guilty of misconduct and would initially be suspended.

"This was deliberate dishonesty which concealed her failure in clinical issues and caused actual patient harm to a vulnerable victim," the panel concluded.

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Source: BBC News, 20 September 2022

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Infected blood transfusions killed 1,820 in UK, study estimates

An estimated 1,820 people died in the UK after being given contaminated blood transfusions between 1970 and 1991, a report has found.

The findings were published by the public inquiry into the scandal.

The long period between infection and symptoms appearing makes it difficult to know how many people were infected through a transfusion in the 1970s and 1980s, before it became possible to screen blood donations for the virus.

New modelling for the public inquiry estimated that between 21,300 and 38,800 people were infected after being given a transfusion between 1970 and 1991, with a central estimate of 26,800.

The study, by a group of 10 academics commissioned by the public inquiry, calculated that 1,820 of those died as a result, although the number could be as high as 3,320.

Its findings were based on the rate of hepatitis C infection in the population, the number of blood donations made over that time, the survival rate of the disease and other factors.

It found at least 79 and possibly up to 100 people also contracted HIV through donated blood, based on data provided by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), with most infections between 1985 and 1987.

It said 67 people in that group had now died, although there was no data confirming the causes of death.

The public inquiry into the infected blood scandal began taking evidence in 2019 and is expected to publish its final report in 2023.

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Source: BBC News, 17 September 2022

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Complaint about ‘misleading’ NHS waiting times figures

Watchdogs have been asked to investigate a Scottish government overhaul of NHS waiting times information after surgeons said that some of the figures were “grossly misleading”.

A complaint has been made to the Office for Statistics Regulation, which ensures that important public data is trustworthy, about a new guide for patients on the NHS Inform website. Concerns have also been raised with Audit Scotland, which monitors public spending and NHS performance.

Last month Humza Yousaf, Scottish health secretary, unveiled the platform claiming that it would reassure patients about waiting times. But the times given reflect only the experience of patients treated over a three-month period.

In orthopaedics, surgeons say, only the most urgent cases are being prioritised while some patients face languishing on waiting lists for years due to lack of capacity.

NHS Inform says that people waited a median of 26 weeks between April and June for orthopaedic care, but surgeons argue that this gives a false impression. Dr Iain Kennedy, new chairman of the British Medical Association in Scotland, said the way the figures have been compiled would suggest that people are still not getting a realistic picture of delays.

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Source: The Times, 16 September 2022

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Muckamore Abbey Hospital: Bid to suspend public inquiry dismissed

A legal bid to suspend the public inquiry into alleged abuse at Muckamore Abbey hospital has been dismissed by a High court judge.

The applicant in the case has been granted anonymity.

They challenged Health Minister Robin Swann's refusal to suspend the public inquiry until criminal proceedings against them had concluded.

Lawyers argued that the applicant's article six right to a fair trail had been jeopardised.

The applicant's lawyers cited "adverse and prejudicial" commentary already in the media.

Rejecting the application the judge, Mr Justice Colton, said that the applicant's article six rights were fully protected within the criminal trial process.

The judge referred to submissions from the applicant's legal team who had argued that if the inquiry recommences as planned this month, it would consider evidence reported by the media which could affect the ability of a jury to act impartially.

The judge told the court there was nothing to suggest that there had been a "virulent media campaign" about the applicant.

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Source: BBC News, 15 September 2022

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Surrey coroner criticises government Covid face mask guidelines after paramedic's death

A coroner has said she does not understand why frontline workers were not required to wear a mask during lockdown after hearing a paramedic had died with Covid. A two-day inquest into the death of Peter Hart, who died on his 52nd birthday, concluded on Tuesday (September 13) with assistant coroner Dr Karen Henderson ruling the father-of-three died of natural causes caused by Covid.

She said on the balance of probabilities he caught the disease while working at East Surrey Hospital, where he died on May 12, 2020. During the onset of the pandemic only healthcare workers tending to those suspected of having Covid-19 were required to wear personal protective equipment (PPE). In accordance with national guidelines, Mr Hart, who was treating patients not suspected of having the virus, did not need to.

“Retrospectively it is difficult to comprehend why the national guidance said PPE did not need to be used for all patients and healthcare workers at the earliest opportunity,” Dr Henderson said. “Although there appears a lost opportunity to ensure maximum protection I make no finding of fact whether this contributed to Mr Hart’s death.

“Patients not suspected to have Covid were not expected to wear face masks. This is in effect a perfect storm and given evidence of Mrs Hart I am satisfied Mr Hart contracted Covid during his work at East Surrey Hospital,” she added.

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Source: Surrey Live, 13 September 2022

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Rollout of omicron vaccine threatened by ‘flimsy needles’

NHS staff have warned that needles supplied with a Covid vaccine which targets the omicron strain are “not fit for purpose” and could place vaccinators and members of the public at risk.

Dozens of messages shared on an NHS staff forum reveal widespread concerns about the needles supplied with the Moderna SpikeVax vaccine, which are said to bend when vaccinators pierce the top of the vial containing the Covid-19 vaccine doses.

The SpikeVax bivalent vaccine was the first to target both the original and the omicron strain of the virus. It is due to play a key role in the NHS’s autumn Covid vaccination booster programme. 

One pharmacist said: “They [the needles] just are not fit for purpose and as such we are not using them and are using the original needles until a solution is found”.

A UK Health Security Agency spokesperson confirmed the problem, stating: “We are aware that some NHSE sites are experiencing some problems with the use of the new needle and syringe being supplied for administrating the Moderna bivalent vaccine. We are in touch with the supplier about these concerns, including the facilitation of additional training support, but if necessary will also offer an alternative suitable product to avoid any disruption to the vaccination programme.”

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Source: HSJ, 15 September 2022

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Police prepare for investigation into mental health unit following alleged mistreatment of patients

Police are preparing to investigate alleged mistreatment of patients at a mental health unit. The Edenfield Centre based in the grounds of the former Prestwich Hospital in Bury is at the centre of the claims.

The unit cares for adult patients. The Manchester Evening News understands that action was taken after the BBC Panorama programme embedded a reporter undercover in the unit and then presented the NHS Trust which runs it with their evidence.

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said: "We are aware of the allegations and are liaising with partner agencies to safeguard vulnerable individuals and obtain all information required to open an investigation."

A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust said: "We can confirm that BBC Panorama has contacted the Trust, following research it conducted into the Edenfield Centre. We would like to reassure patients, carers, staff, and the public that we are taking the matters raised by the BBC very seriously".

"Immediate action has been taken to address the issues raised and to ensure patient safety, which is our utmost priority. We are liaising with partner agencies and stakeholders, including Greater Manchester Police. We are not able to comment any further on these matters at this stage."

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Source: Manchester Evening News, 14 September 2022

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FBI spotlights cybersecurity risks of outdated medical devices

On Tuesday, the FBI issued a report offering recommendations to address a number of cybersecurity vulnerabilities in active medical devices stemming from outdated software, as well as the lack of security features in older hardware.

Once exploited, the vulnerabilities could impact healthcare facility operations, patient safety, data confidentiality and data integrity. If a cyberattacker takes control, they can direct devices to give inaccurate readings, administer drug overdoses or otherwise endanger patient health.

The FBI noted in its briefing that a mid-year healthcare cybersecurity analysis found that equipment vulnerable to cyberattacks includes insulin pumps, intracardiac defibrillators, mobile cardiac telemetry, pacemakers, and intrathecal pain pumps.

Routine challenges include the use of standardised configurations, specialised configurations – including a substantial number of managed devices on a network – and the inability to upgrade device security features, according to the FBI's announcement.

The agency further adds that research has found an average of 6.2 vulnerabilities per medical device and that 40% of medical devices at the end-of-life stage offer little to no security patches or upgrades.

 

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Source: Healthcare IT News, 13 September 2022

 

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Leapfrog Group will measure US hospitals on diagnostic performance in 2024

The Leapfrog Group will add a section to its annual survey in 2024 asking US hospitals to report their progress on evidence-based practices designed to prevent and reduce patient injury and death from diagnostic error and delay.

This Autumn, Leapfrog will pilot test survey questions about a range of diagnostic practices from holding leaders accountable for diagnostic safety to openly communicating diagnostic errors to patients and optimising electronic records to support accurate and timely diagnosis.

Results of the Leapfrog Hospital Survey — completed voluntarily each year by more than 2,300 U.S. hospitals — rate participants’ progress toward Leapfrog’s standards for safety, quality and transparency and are publicly reported. Since 2000, the survey has been the centerpiece of Leapfrog’s mission to “support informed health care decisions and promote high-value care.” The results are also used by hospitals to benchmark their performance to others in the industry.

The addition to the survery is part of a larger push to reduce harm caused by diagnostic error.

Leapfrog is working with the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM) on a multi-year project called “Recognizing Excellence in Diagnosis.”

Mark L. Graber, SIDM’s Founder and President Emeritus, expects that including diagnosis in the survey will elevate organizations’ interest in addressing diagnostic error. “Healthcare organizations need to address the harm arising from diagnostic error in their own hospitals.” says Dr. Graber. “The new Leapfrog report gives them ideas on where to start.”

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Source: Betsey Lehman Center, 14 September 2022

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Covid-19: Commission describes “massive global failures” of pandemic response

The global response to the first two years of the Covid-19 outbreak failed to control a pandemic that has led to an estimated 17.7 million deaths to date, a major review has concluded.

The Lancet Commission on lessons for the future from the Covid-19 pandemic, produced by 28 world leading experts and 100 contributors, cites widespread failures regarding prevention, transparency, rationality, standard public health practice, operational coordination, and global solidarity. It concludes that multilateral cooperation must improve to end the pandemic and manage future global health threats effectively.

The commission’s chair, Jeffrey Sachs, who is a professor at Columbia University and president of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, said, “The staggering human toll of the first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic is a profound tragedy and a massive societal failure at multiple levels.”In its report, which used data from the first two years of the pandemic and new epidemiological and financial analyses, the commission concludes that government responses lacked preparedness, were too slow, paid too little attention to vulnerable groups, and were hampered by misinformation.Read full story

Source: BMJ, 14 September 2022

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Staff warned of ‘harrowing’ care standards review

Trust staff have been warned that an independent investigation into maternity services will be ‘a harrowing read’ with a ‘profound and significant impact’.

The report into services at East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust between 2009 and 2020 had been expected to be published on Wednesday 21 September. However, this morning families involved in the investigation received an email saying publication would be postponed to an unknown date in October..  

Next Wednesday, when the report was expected to be released and a statement made to Parliament, has been set aside for all MPs to take an oath of allegiance to King Charles III. 

An email sent to staff at East Kent last week and seen by HSJ said publication would place “significant focus on the trust and all of our services”, and that the trust would make support available to staff as well as former, current and potential patients. The trust will not see the report before publication.

The investigation – led by Dr Bill Kirkup, who also led the Morecambe Bay maternity investigation – was prompted by the death of week-old Harry Richford after a traumatic birth at the trust’s Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, Hospital in Thanet in 2017. Around 200 families are thought to have contacted the investigation team with concerns around maternity care.

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Source: HSJ, 15 September 2022

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