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'He was there four hours begging for help'

An 86-year-old man died after lying in the road waiting more than four hours for an ambulance, his family have said.

George Ian Stevenson was hit by a car near his home in Johnstown, Wrexham county, last Wednesday. His family said the first 999 call was made at 19:31 GMT, and the ambulance did not arrive until 23:37 GMT.

The Welsh Ambulance Service is looking into the incident, but said that at the time of the call, all its vehicles were already committed to other patients.

Two off-duty paramedics stopped to help, but were reluctant to move him in case they caused further injury.

Mr Stevenson's granddaughter, Ellie Williams said on the night of the accident it was raining, freezing and foggy.

She said: "Left there for four hours, begging for help, waiting for help. And that makes us so sad.

"A hard-working man who has paid his taxes all his life and paid into the system has been let down when he's needed them the most, and I just can't quite comprehend what has happened to him."

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Source: BBC News, 8 March 2022

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'Gross failure in care' of baby starved of oxygen

There was a "gross failure in basic care" which led to a baby being starved of oxygen during birth, a coroner said.

Zak Ezra Carter died at the Royal Gwent Hospital, Newport, two days after being born in July 2018 at Ystrad Fawr Hospital in Caerphilly county.

Gwent coroner Caroline Saunders said the monitoring of Zak and his mother Adele Thomas fell "well below the standards expected". She said she was reassured the health board had taken steps to improve care.

Ms Thomas told the Newport hearing she felt "scared" and staff "didn't care" when she arrived to give birth on 20 July 2018. In a statement to the inquest she described being turned away from the centre after going into labour on three occasions, before being admitted on the fourth.

Ms Thomas said she was initially offered paracetamol as pain relief at the midwife-led centre.

She described "a lot of arguing between nurses", one of whom was "bolshie and rude and rough handled me", adding the midwives "did not appear to be in any rush". 

When Zak was born, he was described as being "white and pale" and without a heartbeat. He did not cry and was taken away to a room for resuscitation. Zak was transferred to the Royal Gwent Hospital where he died two days later.

During the first stage of labour, Prof Sanders said "everything was progressing at a normal healthy rate and the fetal heart rate was recorded as completely normal". But she said it was "highly unusual" for the heart rate to not be documented contemporaneously, and the midwives had not been able to explain why they had not done so.

Recording a narrative conclusion, Ms Saunders said the monitoring of Ms Thomas and her baby had "fallen well below the standards expected", leading to a "gross failure in basic care" of them in the later stages of labour.

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Source: BBC News, 18 March 2021

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'Great day for safety': Patients harmed by drugs and devices back commissioner role

An Independent Patients' Commissioner is set to be appointed to act as champion for people who have been harmed by medicines or medical devices.   

Baroness Cumberlege, who recommended the new role in a landmark report earlier this year, announced that the government had budged on the issue after initial resistance.

She welcomed the move saying: "Had there been a patient safety commissioner before now, much of the suffering we have witnessed could have been avoided."

But she added "the risk still remains" and further urgent action is needed to protect patients from potentially harmful drugs."

At an online meeting of parliamentarians, the baroness described the testimony of a victim of the medical device vaginal mesh, which has left some patients in chronic pain.

The woman had told her review team: "This device took everything from me. My health, my life, my job, my dignity, my marriage, my freedom."

Reflecting on this the baroness added: "The scale of suffering we witnessed means nothing short of profound change is necessary. Not necessary in a couple or three years, but necessary now."

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Source: Sky News, 16 December 2020

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'Generation X' adults from poorer families more likely to have multiple long-term conditions

More than one in three middle-aged British adults are suffering from at least two chronic health conditions, including recurrent back problems, poor mental health, high blood pressure, diabetes and high-risk drinking, according to research that warned that health in midlife is on the decline.

The study of “generation X” adults born in 1970 found that those who grew up in poorer families were 43% more likely to have multiple long-term health conditions than their peers from wealthier households. Those who had been overweight or obese as children, who had lower birthweight and who had experienced mental ill-health as teenagers were also at increased risk of poor health in midlife.

Dawid Gondek, the UCL researcher who authored the paper, said: “This study provides concerning new evidence about the state of the nation’s health in midlife. It shows that a substantial proportion of the population are already suffering from multiple long-term physical and mental health problems in their late 40s, and also points to stark health inequalities, which appear to begin early in childhood.”

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Source: The Guardian, 28 July 2021

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'Frail' people like me should not be denied lifesaving Covid care

A frailty index is rationing treatment for older and disabled people who catch coronavirus, says Patience Owen. Patience has has a debilitating connective tissue disorder and, like thousands of others with rare conditions, is already in a minority within a minority, marginalised by our NHS, battling increasing disability day by day.

Back in March, without consultation and days before the first lockdown, the Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), a worldwide tool used to swiftly identify frailty in older patients to improve acute care, was adapted by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). It asked NHS staff in England to score the frailty of Covid patients. Rather than aiming to improve care, it seems the CFS – a fitness-to-frailty sheet using scores from one to nine – was used to work out which patients should be denied acute care. Nice’s new guidelines advised NHS trusts to “sensitively discuss a possible ‘do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation’ decision with all adults with capacity and an assessment suggestive of increased frailty”.

"Checking the scale, I found I would score five, the 'mildly frail' category, and therefore should I get Covid I could be steered towards end-of-life care. Bluntly, if I catch the virus, the NHS may help me to die, not live," says Patience.

By early April, there was a proliferation of illegal “do not resuscitate” (DNR) notices in care homes for people with learning disabilities, and for older people in care homes and in hospitals. Many acutely ill patients stayed at home with Covid symptoms in the belief that they risked being denied care in hospital. Following warnings by the healthcare regulator, the Care Quality Commission, and other medical bodies, that the blanket application of the notices must stop, and legal challenges by charities, exclusions were made to the NICE guidelines.

These included “younger people, people with stable long-term disabilities, learning disabilities or autism”. Yet the guidelines remain in place, in spite of the fact that they appear to contravene the Human Rights Act (including the right to life, article 2, and the right to non-discrimination, article 14). 

A spokeswoman for NICE says it is “very aware of the concerns of some patient groups about access to critical care, and we understand how difficult this feels. Our COVID-19 rapid guideline on critical care was developed to support critical care teams in their management of patients during a very difficult period of intense pressure."

“'Difficult' is a hollow word for the feeling of being selected to die," says Patience. "It’s difficult not to conclude that those with long-term conditions and disabilities, like myself, have become viewed as a sacrificial herd."

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Source: The Guardian, 29 September 2020

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'Exhausted and broken' midwives at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds speak out about 'substandard care' in whistleblowing letter

Midwives at Suffolk Hospital have spoken out in a whistleblowing letter describing problems in their department as ‘demoralising and heartbreaking’.

In the letter, written by midwives who declined to give their names "for fear of retribution", describe constant staff shortages, a culture of blame and fear, a high pressure environment and substandard care, saying " We entered midwifery to be able to give women centred, holistic care. Instead it feels like we are being overwhelmed by the unmanageable and relentless workload, and as a result are giving substandard care which is demoralising and heartbreaking. We are all feeling like we are now desperate for change. This change is beyond what we can achieve ourselves so we urge you to please help us to generate it. It should not be accepted or tolerated for us to be forced into giving unsafe care entirely due to unsafe staffing". 

In response, Karen Newbury, head of midwifery at the trust, said: “We are working exceptionally hard to recruit additional midwives and we are very grateful for the flexibility and dedication of our staff in ensuring that we provide a safe and caring service – this was recognised by our Care Quality Commission inspection in April which found we managed safety well. We have recently completed recruitment so there will be at least two senior midwives on every shift to provide flexible and experienced support to our maternity teams, and we are working with colleagues regionally to recruit staff both locally and internationally as well as running a full student training programme.”

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Source: Suffolk News, 20 August 2021

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'Ethnic bias' delayed care before Liverpool woman's death

"Cultural and ethnic bias" delayed diagnosing and treating a pregnant black woman before her death in hospital, an investigation found.

The probe was launched when the 31-year-old Liverpool Women's Hospital patient died on 16 March, 2023.

Investigators from the national body the Maternity and Newborn Safety Investigations (MSNI) were called in after the woman died.

A report prepared for the hospital's board said that the MSNI had concluded that "ethnicity and health inequalities impacted on the care provided to the patient, suggesting that an unconscious cultural bias delayed the timing of diagnosis and response to her clinical deterioration".

"This was evident in discussions with staff involved in the direct care of the patient".

The hospital's response to the report also said: "The approach presented by some staff, and information gathered from staff interviews, gives the impression that cultural bias and stereotyping may sometimes go unchallenged and be perceived as culturally acceptable within the Trust."

Liverpool Riverside Labour MP Kim Johnson said it was "deeply troubling" that "the colour of a mother's skin still has a significant impact on her own and her baby's health outcomes".

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Source: BBC News, 16 February 2024

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'Doing my cancer treatments alone was scary'

A campaign has started to prevent children and young people receiving cancer treatment alone in the pandemic.

Charities behind the #Hand2Hold campaign want to enable all young people aged 16 to 25 to be allowed a chaperone, instead of only some.

Mikaela Forrester, 18, from Somerset had some of her cancer treatments alone and said she did not want other young people to have that experience.

She said without her mother she found it "scary" and "lonely".

Miss Forrester lives in Frome and was diagnosed in July 2019 with Stage 2 Hodgkin Lymphoma, an uncommon cancer that develops in the lymphatic system. In March 2020 she was told she had relapsed and would need to undergo a further round of chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and a stem cell transplant.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, she was told she had to have those treatments on her own, without immediate support from her family or friends.

She said: "When I had my transplant and my cells harvested with three weeks in hospital, with no visitors, it was just so scary. It was quite lonely."

"Even if I could hug my parents, or if they could stand two metres away with a mask on, just knowing they were there during the most difficult times would have made me feel comfortable because it was so overwhelming."

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Source: BBC News, 16 February 2021

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'Distressing' 999 wait highlights South West Ambulance delays

South West Ambulance has the longest waits in the country for people to get through to the operator. It takes almost a minute on average for ambulance control to answer 999 calls compared with just five seconds for the West Midlands service.

Jean and Claire Iles called 999 six times to request an ambulance for Steven Iles' internal bleeding and two of their calls were unanswered for 10 minutes

"He just looked at me and he just passed away before they could even get to him," 41-year-old Claire Iles said.

"I rang about 4pm and said he has gone grey, and I said if you don't come now he is going to die, and it was still 20 minutes before the ambulance turned up."

She was at home with her parents in Yate, near Bristol, when her father, Steve, 63, fell ill.

It took 11 hours for a South West Ambulance crew to arrive, but Jean said by that time it was too late.

Mr Iles died at 17:10 GMT on 19 March from a strangulated hernia that cut off the blood supply to his heart.

The trust has apologised for the distress and anxiety caused but said it remained under "enormous pressure".

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Source: 4 November 2022

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'Dire' situation for adults waiting for ADHD diagnosis in NI

Adults in Northern Ireland seeking assessment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are being forced to go private because of a dire lack of referral services in some areas, a charity has said.

Some health trusts have not been able to accept new referrals for adult assessment and diagnosis.

ADHD charities said a lack of services or even waiting lists has forced many people to pay for a private diagnosis.

The charity's chief executive Sarah Salters added that some people who do get a private diagnosis cannot then get medication from their GP through the NHS.

The Department of Health said officials "are considering longer-term arrangements" for ADHD services, with future decisions "likely to be subject to ministerial approval and availability of funding".

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Source: BBC News, 2 April 2023

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'Dire' lack of dentists prompts self-medication

A "dire" lack of dentists has led to people "self-medicating every night", an MP has said.

Barrow and Furness MP Simon Fell said his constituents included seven-year-olds who had never seen a dentist and pregnant women who could not get an appointment.

“That simply is not good enough," he said.

"I now have constituents who have not seen a dentist in years," he said.

“There are pregnant mothers who are unable to make their appointments, constituents who are self-medicating every night because they cannot find care, seven-year-olds who have never seen a dentist and constituents performing their own dental care with packs they buy from Boots the Chemist."

Mr Fell told Parliament dental practices had told him they were unable to recruit enough dentists, especially in "rural, isolated areas such as mine".

He had been told the process for bringing in dentists from overseas "does not meet demand" and the administration for recording patient care, and the resulting payment to dentists, was "long-winded and overly complex", he said.

 

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Source: BBC News, 3 May 2023

 

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'Dial 999 for stroke emergencies despite coronavirus'

People who may be having a stroke should still call 999 for emergency medical care, even during the coronavirus pandemic, say UK experts.

They are concerned that many are not seeking urgent help when they most need it, possibly due to fear of the virus or not wanting to burden the NHS.

Any delay in seeking help can lead to disability or even death, warns the Stroke Association. Prompt assessment and treatment saves lives, it says.

Data suggest people are currently staying away from hospitals, which is fine unless you really need care.

Latest figures for England and Scotland suggest attendance to Emergency Departments has dropped by over a third on the same week last year. Those who need urgent medical help should still attend, say experts.

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Source: BBC News, 6 April 2020

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'Diabetes burnout': The mental health impact of diagnosis

"It's a full-time job that you can't quit. It's a massive burden that you didn't ask for, didn't expect."

Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 19, Naomi, now 33, says she reached a point where she simply could not handle "the physical or mental challenges of diabetes any more", a condition known as "diabetes burnout".

About 250,000 people in England have type 1 diabetes, which means the body cannot produce insulin, the hormone that controls blood sugar levels. It can lead to organ damage, eyesight problems and - in extreme cases - limb amputation. But for many there is also a significant psychological impact of learning to manage the condition.

Naomi felt she could no longer bear testing her blood sugar levels many times each day to calculate how much insulin she needed to inject, even though she knew she was risking her long-term health and putting herself in extreme danger, at risk of developing diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), which can lead to a coma. She became so ill she was admitted to an eating disorder unit even though she was not struggling to eat.

The head of the unit, Dr Carla Figueirdo, says of her diabetes patients: "These people are seriously unwell, seriously unwell. They are putting themselves at harm every day of their lives if they don't take their insulin."

Naomi's consultant at the Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Dr Helen Partridge, says the psychological impact of a diabetes diagnosis should not be underestimated. 

The hospital is hosting one of two NHS England pilot projects looking at how to treat type 1 diabetes patients whose chronic illness affects their mental health.

NHS England diabetes lead Prof Partha Kar says: "The NHS long-term plan commits strongly on getting mental and physical health together. If we do tackle these two together, it will help improve outcomes."

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Source: BBC News, 16 November 2020

 
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'Daily life is a struggle without my ADHD medicine'

"Taking medication meant my brain was quiet for the first time; it was amazing, I cried because I was so happy," Jass Thethi, whose life was transformed after an ADHD diagnosis just over a year ago, told a BBC North West investigation.

But the 34-year-old's joy was short-lived because, like more than 150,000 others who live with the condition and are reliant on medication, Jass has been affected by a UK-wide medicine shortage that started in September.

Jass, who lives in Levenshulme, Greater Manchester, said: "When the medication shortage started I had to go back to white knuckling everyday life… I had to take the decision to change things and I had to quit the job I was doing."

The charity ADHD UK said it had recorded a "significant decline" in the availability of medicines, with only 11% having their normal prescription in January, a drop from 52% in September.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said increased global demand and manufacturing issues were behind the shortages.

Dr Morgan Toerien, associate specialist in mental health at Beyond Clinics in Warrington, said Jass's experience was not unique and many patients' lives had been "completely destabilised".

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Source: BBC News, 27 February 2024

Have you (or a loved one) ever been prescribed medication that you were then unable to get hold of at the pharmacy? 

To help us understand how these issues impact the lives of patients and families, please share your experience and insights in our Community post.

We would also like to hear from pharmacists working in community or hospital settings, and others who have insights to share on this issue. 

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'Dads can get postnatal depression too'

Becoming a father can be the happiest time in a man's life, but for some it can bring unexpected feelings of anxiety, stress and guilt. Until recently, mental health concerns for new dads were little understood and, often, went unaired. But some men who have experienced postnatal depression hope telling their stories will encourage others to open up.

When Stephen's daughter was born five years ago he knew he was meant to feel happy but instead began to think his wife and newborn child might be better off without him.

"You don't get a chance to sit back, take it in, relax and enjoy it," he said. "I'd come home on a weekend after a long week, tired out, and my wife was back at work, working weekends."

"It just affects you, you don't see each other, you don't have the chance to enjoy it, and all the stress and anxiety builds up. I got to such a low point I considered my family were better off without me."

An international study in 2010 suggested that as many as one in 10 men struggle with postnatal depression (PND). More recently, in 2015, a survey by the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) found one in three new fathers had concerns about their mental health.

The NCT has called for more recognition around mental health issues affecting new dads. It has set up Parents in Mind: Partners Project, which offers support to everyone who has an active role raising a child under two.

"Becoming a parent is an emotional rollercoaster," said Catherine Briars, who runs the project in St Helens.

"Fathers sometimes feel uncomfortable opening up about their feelings but we encourage them to do so if they're struggling. It's often the first step to recovering and regaining good mental health."

She said they encourage men to talk to someone they trust or their GP.

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Source: BBC News, 19 November 2021

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'Crumbling hospitals’ are putting patient safety and care at risk

Hospitals throughout the NHS are in such a poor state of repair that patient safety and care is being put at risk, according to an investigation by the Labour Party. A freedom of information requests sent to every hospital trust in England highlighted problems such as sewage and water leaking on to hospital wards, broken lifts and ceilings collapsing. The incidents have affected patient care, often leading to the cancellation of appointments and leaving people waiting longer for vital treatment. It is speculated that these issues are not just confined to secondary care.

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Source: Nursing Notes, 5 July 2019

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'Corridor nursing' becoming norm in packed A&Es, warn medics

A&E units are so overcrowded that growing numbers of patients have to be looked after in hospital corridors, warn nurses and doctors.

There are rising concerns that the “shameful” trend means people stuck in corridors are not getting the care they need, or they may be even coming to harm. A&E health professionals say “corridor nursing” is becoming increasingly widespread as emergency departments become too full to look after the sheer number of people seeking treatment.

In a survey of 1,174 A&E nurses in the Royal College of Nursing’s (RCN) Emergency Care Association, 73% of those polled said they looked after patients in a “non-designated area” such as corridors every day and another 16% said they did so at least once a week, while 90% said they feared patient safety was being put at risk by those needing care having to spend time in areas of hospitals which did not have medical equipment or call bells.

Staff have had difficulty administering urgent doses of intravenous antibiotics to such patients, some of whom have been denied privacy and found it harder to use a toilet or been left in distress, nurses said.

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Source: The Guardian, 26 February 2020

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'Classic triad' of symptoms misses positive COVID-19 cases, study finds

New research led by researchers at King’s College London suggests that restricting testing to the ‘classic triad’ of cough, fever and loss of smell which is required for eligibility for a PCR test through the NHS may have missed cases. Extending the list to include fatigue, sore throat, headache and diarrhoea would have detected 96% of symptomatic cases.

A team of researchers at King’s and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) analysed data from more than 122,000 UK adult users of the ZOE COVID Symptom Study app. These users reported experiencing any potential COVID-19 symptoms, and 1,202 of those reported a positive PCR test within a week of first feeling ill.

While PCR swab testing is the most reliable way to tell whether someone is infected with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the analysis suggests the limited list of three does not catch all positive cases of COVID-19.

Testing people with any of the three ‘classic’ symptoms would have spotted 69% of symptomatic cases, with 46 people testing negative for every person testing positive. However, testing people with any of seven key symptoms - cough, fever, anosmia, fatigue, headache, sore throat and diarrhoea - in the first three days of illness would have detected 96% of symptomatic cases. In this case, for every person with the disease identified, 95 would test negative.

Researchers also found users of the Symptom Study App were more likely to select headache and diarrhoea within the first three days of symptoms, and fever during the first seven days, which reflects different timings of symptoms in the disease course. Data from the ZOE app shows that 31% of people who are ill with COVID-19 don’t have any of the triad of symptoms in the early stages of the disease when most infectious.

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Source: King's College London, 17 February 2021

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'Catastrophic' consequences after oxygen error

A patient in north Wales suffered "catastrophic" consequences when staff didn't connect their oxygen supply correctly.

The Betsi Cadwaladr health board, which was caring for the patient at the time, is investigating and says it was one of a small number of recent similar incidents.

But it refused to say whether the patient died, or to explain what the “catastrophic” consequences were.

It says it is working to improve staff training to avoid similar incidents happening again.

On Tuesday, Wales' health minister Eluned Morgan said the health board still had "a lot to do," before it could be taken out of special measures.

A report to the committee said: “Further patient safety incidents have occurred in the health board related to the preparation and administration of oxygen using portable cylinders.

“On review, the cylinder had not been prepared correctly, resulting in no flow of oxygen to the patient.

“One incident had a catastrophic outcome and is under investigation.”

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Source: BBC News, 20 February 2024

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'Care homes are being deprived of dental services'

A care home manager said it had become an "impossibility" to get NHS dentists to visit her elderly residents when they needed treatment.

Liz Wynn, of Southminster Residential Home, near Maldon in Essex, said she had battled for years for site visits.

It comes as a health watchdog revealed that 25% of care home providers said their patients were denied dental care.

NHS Mid and South Essex said it was considering a number of approaches to improve access for housebound patients.

Ms Wynn said the shortage of NHS community dentists available to come into the home to carry out check-ups and treatment had been an "on-going concern" for almost 10 years.

Ms Wynn said the home relied on its oral care home procedures - such as checking residents' mouths daily - to prevent problems from escalating. However, she said while its residents were "our family", conditions such as dementia made it difficult to spot when patients were in pain.

She also said poor dental hygiene in the elderly could result in a number of potentially life-threatening infections.

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Source: BBC News, 24 April 2023

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'Bullying, unsafe practices and dysfunctional culture': Consultant speaks out on Shropshire maternity scandal

A former consultant gynaecologist has told how he raised concerns over bullying, unsafe practices and a "dysfunctional culture" ahead of a report into a maternity scandal.

Bernie Bentick, who worked at Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals Trust (Sath) for almost 30 years, has spoken publicly about maternity care at the trust for the first time.

Sath is at the centre of the largest inquiry in the history of the NHS into maternity care, which is expected to report next month. An official investigation is examining the care that 1,862 families received.

Mr Bentick says he told senior management several times about a deteriorating culture at Sath.

“I was increasingly concerned about the level of bullying, of dysfunctional culture, of the imposition of changes in clinical practice that many clinicians felt was unsafe," Mr Bentick told BBC's Panorama.

"If the resources had been made available to employ adequate numbers, to provide safe levels of care in accordance with national guidelines, then the situation may have been profoundly different.”

Mr Bentick went on to say that though some “cursory” investigations were launched into his complaints, he believed the trust responded in a way that tried to “preserve the reputation of the organisation.”

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Source: Shropshire Star, 23 February 2022

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'Breaking point': fears over lack of intensive care beds for children

Critically ill children are being rushed from one part of England to another because NHS hospitals are running short of intensive care beds in which to treat them, the Guardian has revealed.

An increase in severe breathing problems in children driven by winter viruses and infections, including flu, means some are having to be transferred sometimes many miles from their home area because there are not enough paediatric intensive care (PICU) beds locally.

Specialist doctors who staff the units say the situation is “dangerous and rotten for the families” involved and that staff are firefighting to handle the number of children needing sometimes life-saving care, many of whom are on a ventilator to help them breathe.

In the past few weeks, young patients have been sent from the Midlands to Sheffield, from London to Cambridge, and from one side of the Pennines to the other in order to get them a place in a PICU.

One doctor at a PICU in the Midlands said: “PICU beds are always in high demand. But since winter hit this year, around six weeks ago, the situation feels like we are simply firefighting. Many days I come on shift to find there are no beds in [our] region and the patients referred to us end up in Southampton, Sheffield, Oxford and other centres far away."

“The PICU network is overstretched. There aren’t enough beds, nurses or skilled doctors.”

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Source: The Guardian, 29 December 2019

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'Bolder government action' needed to address inequalities in dementia risk

"Bolder government action" is needed to address inequalities in dementia risk, the charity Alzheimer's Research UK has warned this week. The comments come in response to findings from four new studies presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC) which link socio-economic deprivation with increased risk of dementia and cognitive decline.

Dr Susan Mitchell, head of policy at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said: "These findings are a stark reminder of the health gap between the most and least deprived in society, with the most deprived at a higher risk of developing dementia.

"Ultimately, these inequalities are profoundly unfair, but they are also avoidable. The Government has a key role in addressing inequalities through a range of measures to improve poverty, employment, housing and education."

She added: "We urge Government to make dementia prevention a key priority in its aim to level up healthcare across the country, and hope the forthcoming health disparities white paper lays the foundation for a fairer, healthier nation."

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Source: Medscape, 5 August 2022

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'Blown away’: Australian coronavirus researchers examine everything from breastfeeding to explosives technology

A new report by Research Australia details more than 200 ongoing COVID-19 studies that extend far beyond the search for a vaccine.

Almost every COVID-19 research project being led by Australians has been in the new report, including studies of breastfeeding guidelines for parents with COVID-19, filter systems to remove the virus via air-conditioning systems, monitoring of sewage to detect the prevalence of COVID-19, and repurposing technology normally used to identify explosives to see if it can detect the presence of COVID-19.

The report was compiled by Research Australia, the national peak body for health and medical research.

It’s chief executive, Nadia Levin, said the report was not a complete catalogue of COVID-19 related research in Australia, but provided a useful insight into the scale of the response from the health and innovation sectors.

“All of this Australian research kept popping up and we were blown away by the scale and scope of it, so we asked all of our members to share what they are working on,” Levin told the Guardian Australia.

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Source: The Guardian, 27 June 2020

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'Appalling' gynaecology waiting times in NI under rapid review

Waiting times for gynaecology services in Northern Ireland are so bad that an independent and rapid review is taking place, BBC News NI has learned.

It is being conducted by the Getting it Right First Time (GIRFT) programme which helps improve the quality of care within the NHS.

A GIRFT team spent a week this month visiting all five health and social care trusts.

In October 2022, 36,900 women in NI were on a gynaecology waiting list. A report from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said that figure was a 42% increase since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and that Northern Ireland had the longest gynaecological waiting lists in the UK.

While waiting lists show that some women are waiting about 110 weeks to see a consultant gynaecologist for the first time, consultants have told BBC News NI that the reality is women depending on their medical issue are waiting much longer.

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Source: 31 May 2023

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