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'Our hospitals weren't made to use this much oxygen'

Shortages are dogging the fight against the coronavirus. At Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI) it's still only possible to test six staff for the virus per day, consultants have been making their own personal protective equipment, and there's an urgent need to save oxygen.

Searching for ways round the problem, Dr Tom has been working with Leeds University on a 3D-printed valve that could be attached to the hospital's ventilators to reduce the amount of oxygen they use.

But he also began looking at CPAP machines used to treat sleep apnoea at home. These maintain air at a continuous pressure, inside a mask, to keep the user's airways open - they have to be repurposed to provide oxygen for use in the hospital, but they use much less of it than standard hospital ventilators.

They said, 'Yes we've got 2,000, how many do you want?''' he says. "And so our plan is to start with 100 and to see whether, if we use these early enough during a patient's stay, we can prevent people deteriorating and needing to go on to the more complex ventilators, and needing to come to the intensive care unit."

We've been testing them over the weekend, and there's evidence from China and from the US that they seem effective. They just help inflate your lungs and that seems to be beneficial.

They are also very simple, which means that there's no need for a huge amount of training.

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Source: BBC News, 7 April 2020

 

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'One in a million’ matron is crowned RCN Nurse of the Year

Royal College of Nursing (RCN) member Tara Matare has won the coveted title of RCN Nurse of the Year 2019. She scooped the leadership category at the RCNi Nurse Awards before being crowned the overall winner. Tara has tackled short staffing, improved workplace culture and enhanced patient care at her ophthalmology unit at Whipps Cross Hospital in London. Over a 14-year mission to overhaul the unit, there have been a steady stream of challenges, including fighting ophthalmology’s corner to ensure it wasn’t overlooked in favour of higher-profile inpatient services and tackling an ingrained culture of bullying.  

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Source: Royal College of Nursing, 4 July 2019

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'Not fit for purpose': UK medics condemn Covid-19 protection

Frontline NHS staff are at risk of dying from Covid-19 after the protective gear requirements for health workers treating those infected were downgraded last week, doctors and nurses have warned.

Hospital staff caring for the growing number of those seriously ill with the disease also fear that they could pass the infection on to other patients after catching it at work because of poor protection.

Doctors who are dealing most closely with Covid-19 patients – A&E medics, anaesthetists and specialists in acute medicine and intensive care – are most worried.

A doctor in an infectious diseases ward of a major UK hospital, who is treating patients with Covid-19, said: “I am terrified. I am seriously considering whether I can keep working as a doctor.”

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Source: The Guardian, 16 March 2020

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'No-one joined the dots' - grandad who exposed an NHS scandal

More than 200 families in south-east England will learn today the results of a major inquiry into the maternity care they received from a hospital trust. The investigation into East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust follows dogged campaigning by one determined bereaved grandfather.

Derek Richford's grandson Harry died at East Kent Hospitals after his life support system was withdrawn.

Sixty one-year-old Derek had never campaigned for anything in his life. His initial approach was to wait for East Kent Hospitals Trust to investigate the death, as it had promised.

However, one nagging issue that was to become central to Derek's view of the trust, was the hospital's continual refusal to inform the coroner of Harry's death. The family repeatedly requested it, but the trust said it was unnecessary as it knew the cause, namely the removal of the life support system.

The hospital also recorded Harry's death as "expected" - again because his life support system had been withdrawn. On both points, the family were left confused and increasingly angry.

In early March 2018, some four months after Harry's death, the family finally received the outcome of the trust's internal investigation - known as the Root Cause Analysis (RCA). The RCA indicated multiple errors had been made in Harry and Sarah's care and treatment, and his death was "potentially avoidable".

Prior to the meeting, Derek wrote to the Kent coroner's office outlining in general the circumstances of Harry's case, asking if that was the type they would expect to be notified of. The email response from the coroner's office was clear. It said: "Based on the facts you have presented, this death should have been reported to the coroner."

Despite this, at the meeting with the trust, the lead investigator into Harry's death told the family: "If we have a clear cause of death by and large we do not involve the coroner."

The family's insistence eventually paid off - five weeks after that meeting, the trust informed the coroner of Harry's death.

While his son and daughter-in-law started trying to recover from the trauma of losing Harry, Derek turned his attention to investigating East Kent, one of the largest hospital trusts in England.

"When I started investigating what was going on with Harry, it was very much like peeling back an onion. 'Hang on a minute, that can't be right, that doesn't add up.' Ever since I was a small kid, justice has been so important to me.

"What I found was that, up to that point, no-one had ever joined the dots. And that's so important. I think this had to happen, someone had to do it. There will be families before us that wish they did it. We will be saving a level of families after us."

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Source: BBC News, 19 October 2022

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'New variant' of coronavirus identified in England

A new variant of coronavirus has been found which is growing faster in some parts of England, MPs have been told.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said at least 60 different local authorities had recorded Covid infections caused by the new variant.

He said the World Health Organization had been notified and UK scientists were doing detailed studies.

He said there was "nothing to suggest" it caused worse disease or that vaccines would no longer work.

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Source: BBC News, 14 December 2020

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'My NHS hell waiting for surgery and information'

Former BBC Technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones, now a writer and podcaster, has Parkinson's disease. Two weeks ago, after fracturing his elbow in a nasty fall, he found out just how difficult it can be to get answers from the NHS.

"Getting information about one's treatment seems like an obstacle race where the system is always one step ahead. But communication between medical staff within and between hospitals also appears hopelessly inadequate, with the gulf between doctors and nurses particularly acute.

"I also sense that, in some cases, new computer systems are slowing not speeding information through the system. On Saturday morning, as we waited in the surgical assessment unit, four nurses gathered around a computer screen while a fifth explained to them all the steps needed to check-in a patient and get them into a bed. It took about 20 minutes and appeared to be akin to mastering some complex video game beset with bear traps."

Rory's latest experience as a customer of the health service has left him convinced that more money and more staff won't solve its problems without some fundamental changes in the way it communicates.

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Source: BBC News, 29 October 2023

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'My message to young people is just do the right thing' – teenage virus survivor's plea

A Dublin teenager has told of his harrowing battle with COVID-19 and is urging other young people to take the disease seriously.

Jack Edge, 17, from Rathfarnham, had no underlying health conditions when he contracted the virus in April. Five months on and three hospital admissions later, the Leaving Cert student is still suffering from the "destruction" the virus wreaked on his body.

Jack first displayed symptoms of COVID-19 on 15 April and five days later was admitted to Tallaght University Hospital. Within hours of being hospitalised, he was fighting for his life. Jack had to be put on a ventilator to help him breathe for 12 days. As his condition stabilised, he was transferred to a high dependency unit.

Jack said: "I couldn't sleep for three days. Every time I closed my eyes, there was just dizziness and loads of colours. "I literally stayed in the bed for 72 hours, just staring at the wall. I had a lot of dark times in the hospital, since I do struggle with anxiety too."

"But the care I received was absolutely amazing. They came in and talked to me if I needed to talk, as I would often get lonely, as it was mainly just me in an isolation room."

However, surviving COVID-19 was just the first step for Jack. On 28 May, he was readmitted to hospital in excruciating pain. Doctors told him he may have suffered nerve damage associated with the virus.

"I’m currently taking 18-20 tablets a day. Tablets for the nerve damage, for pain and for my anxiety. "

"I basically have to learn to walk again. I do two to two-and-a-half hours of physio every day, depending on how much energy I have. I wake up some days and I get really upset. I still don’t know why this happened to me or how I got it."

Jack hopes that by sharing his story he can raise awareness of the dangers and debilitating long-term effects of COVID-19 for young people.

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Source: RTE News, 2 October 2020

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'My husband cried on the phone, begging for help'

A man who experiences regular mental health crises says an NHS scheme designed to offer support during emergency episodes has become broken.

The trust running the service says a crisis team offers immediate support in an emergency, and a 24-hour helpline.

But when Mark Doody, who has bipolar disorder, cried "down the phone, begging the team for help", he was told to call an ambulance, his wife said.

The trust said a 999 call could sometimes be the appropriate action.

Trish Doody cited a "dreadful" deterioration in mental healthcare where the couple lived in Redditch, Worcestershire.

She said while her husband was able to get support if an emergency happened "between 9am and 5pm", assistance became difficult outside of those hours.

Mr Doody said his condition meant he experienced a mental health crisis every three months. He has also made suicide attempts.

Mental healthcare provision in the county had gone downhill over the last 20 years, Mrs Doody said, with her husband adding: "The system is just broken really."

Healthwatch Worcestershire, which helps hold the NHS to account locally, said it was "exploring" whether there was a problem with the crisis helpline, and was also aware of delays for those seeking one-to-one counselling, which it said the trust was tackling.

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Source: BBC News, 22 March 2022

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'My exhausting smear test battle'

Many dread being invited for their cervical smear test - but Laurie Hodierne found it exhausting to have to keep asking for appointments, and trying to chase up the result.

He is one of a number of transgender men who still have a cervix but are no longer registered as female at their GP surgery. Laurie was re-registered as male without requesting it, he says. And this means he could miss out on potentially life-saving cervical smear tests because he is not automatically called up for screenings.

As a doctor, Laurie worries others who might be less able to navigate the health system will simply give up trying to get their smear test.

"I understand how the systems work and the language - and despite all of that I find it exhausting," he says. "You keep coming up against a brick wall. It's a healthcare inequality in the sense that you aren't able to get access to the screening programme in the same way."

NHS patients registered as female are invited to a cervical-cancer screening every three years between the ages of 25 and 50, and then every five years until they are 65.

But anyone who has a cervix can develop cervical cancer. The disease often has no symptoms in its early stages and can be fatal.

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Source: BBC News, 17 May 2021

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'My dying husband could not get an ambulance'

Ambulance bosses have apologised to the family of a man who died after he had a heart attack but no ambulance came.

Martin Clark, 68, started suffering with chest pains at his home in East Sussex on 18 November - before any strike action started in the NHS.

His family rang three times for an ambulance and after waiting 45 minutes drove him in their car to hospital. When they arrived, the father of five went into cardiac arrest and, despite receiving medical attention, died.

Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan of the British Heart Foundation (BHF), said cases such as the Clarks' were "incredibly distressing".

"The difference between life and death can be a matter of minutes when someone is having a heart attack or stroke," she said. "Extreme delays to emergency heart and stroke care cannot become a new normal. Healthcare staff are doing all they can—but there aren't enough of them and many will be working in difficult conditions without fit-for-purpose facilities."

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Source: BBC News

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'My daughter's Long Covid is not nonsense'

In September 2021 Caitlin Glasgow, then 10-years-old, was diagnosed with Covid. She never fully recovered.

"The rest of Caitlin's classmates all returned to school after isolating for 10 days, but she was still in bed after six weeks," recalls her mother Lorna.

Lorna believes her daughter has Long Covid. She is one of 175,000 people in Scotland who say they are still affected by the illness.

Lorna, who lives in Penicuik in Midlothian, said her local GP was helpful and concerned for Caitlin, but it has been difficult to understand why she hasn't recovered like her friends.

"She still gets pains in her legs, that's probably the worst thing along with the fatigue. There's breathlessness, chest and tummy pain, brain fog and she gets quite light-headed at times."

A report published by a Scottish government committee said tackling the stigma around long Covid needs "urgent" action.

The Covid-19 recovery committee has outlined a raft of measures to improve awareness of the condition among healthcare professionals.

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Source: BBC News, 26 April 2023

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'My child is in pain - but I'm helpless'

Thomas Hebbron is one of the forgotten victims of the pandemic.

He was diagnosed with leukaemia in February 2019 - a year before Covid hit the UK.

The eight-year-old, from Leeds, has been treated with chemotherapy which has continued throughout the pandemic, but his health has suffered in other ways - and his mother believes the unrelenting focus on the virus is to blame.

Pre-pandemic he was seen in person by doctors every two weeks. But that changed to monthly video calls, and liver and urinary problems went undetected.

His treatment also affected his fine motor skills and has weakened his legs, but he has not seen an occupational therapist since before the pandemic.

"I want to take this pain away from him," says his mother, Gemma. "I don't want to sit and watch him in this pain, but I can't do anything. I just feel completely helpless."

Thomas's story is not unique. An analysis by the Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation has for the first time laid bare how access to core health services in England has been squeezed, threatening to leave behind a generation of young people.

The review has looked at both physical and mental health services and come to the same conclusion - support has been badly disrupted and the plight of children overlooked.

The Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation have been joined by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) in calling for a dedicated plan for children to help them recover from the pandemic.

Dr Camilla Kingdon, RCPCH president, said the figures "do not take into account the many other 'hidden' waiting lists of children waiting for community therapies and diagnostic assessments, especially for autism".

She added that children are "struggling" and, despite services being stretched, no-one should be deterred from speaking to a health professional.

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Source: BBC News, 18 February 2022

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'My baby died of sepsis - we can stop more deaths'

New monitors that can detect the deadly blood condition sepsis are being fitted at a Scottish children's hospital. The equipment will be installed at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow.

Charlotte Cooper, who lost her nine-month-old daughter Heidi to sepsis last year, said she had "no doubt" the monitors would help save babies' lives. She told BBC Scotland: "You don't have time to come to terms with the fact that someone you love is dying from sepsis because it happens so quickly."

Ms Cooper now wants to see the monitors installed in every paediatric ward in Scotland. "We need to do whatever we can to stop preventable deaths from sepsis in Scotland," she said.

The monitors record and track changes in heart rate, temperature and blood pressure, and can pick up early sepsis symptoms. The machines, which have been installed in a critical care area, use the  Paediatric Early Warning Scores to monitor the children for any signs of deterioration in their condition.

Sepsis Research said early warning of the changes would mean sepsis being diagnosed and treated faster.

The monitors were accepted on behalf of the hospital by senior staff nurse Sharon Pate, who said: "In a very busy paediatric word it is vital all our patients are monitored regularly and closely for signs of deterioration. The addition of these new monitors will greatly improve our ability to monitor patients and provide vital care."

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Source: BBC News, 4 February 2020

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'Multiple systemic failures' found at Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh A&E

Patients spent up to 25 hours on trolleys in corridors waiting for treatment and in some cases were left lying on "urine-soaked sheets" and in another on a "blood-stained pillow for several hours" at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) inspectors also raised concerns over fire safety in the overcrowded A&E after two visits to the hospital - the first of which was carried out between February 20 to 22 and a further unannounced follow-up in March.

The watchdog found "multiple systemic failures" in a report published on Thursday but NHS Lothian said a major improvement drive was already underway.

The health board added that the hospital was had just endured its busiest winter on record ahead of the inspections.

At the time of the inspection, the emergency department was on some days operating at over three times its capacity.

The report described this as unsafe and a "fire safety risk" with the evacuation plan in place at the time not reflecting the "significant" impact of overcrowding. 

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Source: The Herald, 18 May 2023

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'Most healthcare apps not up to NHS standards'

A firm which reviews healthcare apps for several NHS trusts says 80% of them do not meet its standards.

Failings include poor information, lack of security updates and insufficient awareness of regulatory requirements, said Orcha chief executive Liz Ashall-Payne.

The firm's reviews help determine whether an app should be recommended to patients by NHS staff.

There are about 370,000 health-related apps available online, Orcha said.

App developers can categorise their apps themselves and the ones reviewed by the firm include those tagged health, fitness and medical. So far, the firm has reviewed nearly 5,000 apps and found many poor examples, including:

  • A diabetes management app offering complex medical support without any back-up from experts.
  • A physiotherapy app offering exercise plans without any visible input from professionals.
  • An app to help smokers quit, which had not had security updates in more than two years.

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Source: BBC News, 16 February 2021

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'More work to do' to improve Nottingham maternity units

More needs to be done to bring maternity units at a city's two main hospitals up to scratch, inspectors have said.

In 2020 the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found serious concerns at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and labelled the units "inadequate".

A new report concluded the trust still has "some areas to address".

In October a coroner said the death of Wynter Andrews minutes after she was born was "a clear and obvious case of neglect".

Nottinghamshire assistant coroner Laurinda Bower also revealed a 2018 whistle-blowing letter from midwives to trust bosses outlining concerns over staffing levels as "the cause of a potential disaster".

In the same month "in response to concerns raised... and coronial inquests", the CQC carried out an unannounced inspection at the hospital and found some staff had not completed training and "did not always understand how to keep women and babies safe", and issued a warning notice over its concerns.

Its latest report, based on an inspection in April, found improvements in the way women at risk of deterioration were identified and found documentation and monitoring had improved.

However the CQC found a disconnect between online and paper record-keeping and said there were multiple systems in place that led to duplication and errors at times.

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Source: BBC News, 28 May 2021

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'More help needed' to make patient info accessible

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Source: BBC News, 21 June 2022

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'Moral distress' experienced by 8 in 10 doctors during pandemic

A new survey by the BMA was conducted throughout the UK on moral distress from 18 March 2021 to 12 April 2021. 

It was found that those doctors who worked with Covid-19 patients and doctors who were from ethnic backgrounds, were more likely to say moral distress was a feeling they had experienced. It was also found  doctors from ethnic backgrounds were also more likely to say moral injury resonated with their experiences.

 The results of the survey has raised concerns for staff wellbeing with the BMA asking that the government increase staffing to the NHS, and provide emotional and psychological support for healthcare workers. 

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Source: BMJ, 16 June 2021

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'Metabolically healthy' patients with obesity should still be given weight management advice

It has been recommended by UK researchers that patients, regardless of their metabolic rate, should be given weight management advice as people with obesity were still at risk of diabetes, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. 

A recent study found that regardless of your metabolic rate, it did not necessarily mean that the patient with obesity were healthy and that doctors should avoid using the term “metabolically healthy obesity” as it could be misleading. 

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Source: Nursing Times, 11 June 2021

 

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'Make or break' moment to break PTSD

NHS staff are at risk of high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) if they don't get the right support as the coronavirus outbreak subsides, health service adviser Prof Neil Greenberg has said.

For now there's a national focus on health and care workers. Public billboards praise them, millions turn out on the street for a weekly round of applause and volunteers have been rushing to help in any way they can. But the height of the crisis is when many staff will be in coping mode. It's when things slow down - and the clapping stops - that, psychologists believe, the real risk of difficulties will arise.

People may need months or even years of "active monitoring" of their mental health after things return to some semblance of normality, according to Prof Greenberg, a world-leading expert in trauma at King's College London.

The NHS in England is providing crisis support to its staff. But it hasn't produced a formal long-term plan to offer extra psychological services in the aftermath of the pandemic.

It's what happens after the trauma that is "most predictive of what people will be like in terms of their mental health", according to Prof Greenberg. How well people are supported and how much stress they're put under as they try to recover can make or break whether someone manages well or develops far more serious difficulties including PTSD.

"If we muck it up then that's going to make the trauma they've already had much more difficult to deal with," he says.

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Source: BBC News, 15 May 2020

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'Major discrepancies' in radiologist review

A review into the work of a locum consultant radiologist has so far identified "major discrepancies" affecting 12 cases.

A full lookback review of 13,030 radiology images was launched last month.

The doctor worked at hospitals run by the Northern Health Trust between July 2019 and February 2020.

The review steering group chair said it was "images in levels one and two that we are most concerned about".

"To date there are 12 level ones and twos [approximately 0.5% of the total number reviewed]," said Dr Seamus O'Reilly, the Northern Trust medical director.

"Most of these concern CT scans where inaccurate initial reading of the scans could, or is likely to, have had an impact on the patient's clinical treatment and outcome."

More than 9,000 patients have been contacted as part of the review, which is looking at radiology images taken in Antrim Area, Causeway, Whiteabbey and Mid Ulster Hospitals as well as the Ballymena Health and Care Centre.

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Source: BBC News, 28 July 2021

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'Major changes needed' at Northern Ireland emergency departments

Major change is required if Northern Ireland's emergency departments are to avoid another "exceptionally difficult" winter, a senior consultant has warned.

Dr Brendan Lavery, who works for the Western Health Trust, said "standing still is not an option". He described the system as currently operating on a "knife edge".

The Department of Health said it was "a very challenging time" for staff "with COVID-19 restrictions impacting on an already fragile system".

Speaking to BBC News NI, Dr Lavery likened the situation to "Groundhog Day" with decade-long problems like capacity and staffing exacerbated by the lingering effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on other healthcare services.

The department responded: "Well before COVID-19, there was clear evidence that our urgent and emergency care services were under increasing pressure. This is an unsustainable position that requires sustained investment and reform, including, of course, long-term investment in staffing. There is no quick or easy solution to these problems."

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Source: BBC News, 12 May 2021

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'Long Covid': Why are some people not recovering?

For most people, COVID-19 is a brief and mild disease but some are left struggling with symptoms including lasting fatigue, persistent pain and breathlessness for months. The condition known as "long Covid" is having a debilitating effect on people's lives, and stories of being left exhausted after even a short walk are now common.

There is no medical definition or list of symptoms shared by all patients - two people with long Covid can have very different experiences. However, the most common feature is crippling fatigue.

Others symptoms include: breathlessness, a cough that won't go away, joint pain, muscle aches, hearing and eyesight problems, headaches, loss of smell and taste as well as damage to the heart, lungs, kidneys and gut. Mental health problems have been reported including depression, anxiety and struggling to think clearly.

Long Covid is not just people taking time to recover from a stay in intensive care. Even people with relatively mild infections can be left with lasting and severe health problems.

"We've got no doubt long Covid exists," Prof David Strain, from the University of Exeter, who is already seeing long-Covid patients at his Chronic Fatigue Syndrome clinic, told the BBC.

A study of 143 people in Rome's biggest hospital, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, followed hospital patients after they were discharged. It showed 87% had at least one symptom nearly two months later and more than half still had fatigue.

The Covid Symptom Tracker App - used by around four million people in the UK - found 12% of people still had symptoms after 30 days. Its latest, unpublished data, suggests as many as one in 50 (2%) of all people infected have long-Covid symptoms after 90 days.

The number of people with long-Covid appears to be falling with time. However, the virus emerged only at the end of 2019 before going global earlier this year so there is a lack of long-term data.

"We've asked, deliberately, to follow people for 25 years, I certainly hope only a very small number will have problems going beyond a year, but I could be wrong," said Prof Brightling.

However, there are concerns that even if people appear to recover now, they could face lifelong risks. People who have had chronic fatigue syndrome are more likely to have it again and the concern is that future infections may cause more flare-ups.

"If long Covid follows the same pattern I'd expect some recovery, but if it takes just another coronavirus infection to react then this could be every winter," said Prof Strain.

It is still possible more problems could emerge in the future.

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Source: BBC News, 6 October 2020

 

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'Long Covid has destroyed me but I am fighting back'

Health coach Jasmine Hayer had to give up her life in London and move back in with her parents after catching Covid. Now she is focused on a twin goal - battling back to health while helping others get the right treatment for Long Covid.

Dr William Man, the head of the Royal Brompton Hospital's chest clinic, started treating her in December, as part of a clinic seeing 100 severe long Covid cases in the UK.

Jasmine describes it as a "complete game changer".

However, she worries that other so-called "long haulers" are not getting the help they need because they face "such a battle" to be taken seriously.

She decided to start a blog to document her symptoms and wants to share her story as widely as possible in the hope of helping others.

"I've had messages from around the world and I was so happy to hear that one girl has shown her doctor my blog and he is giving her more tests as a result," she says.

"I know how lonely and scary it is when you are fighting to be believed. You are literally on your own."

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Source: BBC News, 7 April 2021

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'Little progress' for NHS patient safety over past 20 years, says chief inspector of hospitals

“Little progress” has been made improving patient safety in the NHS over the past 20 years, said the Chief Inspector of Hospitals at the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 

Professor Ted Baker yesterday revealed he receives between 500 and 600 reports of “never events” a year, incidents that are wholly preventable whatever the circumstances.

This includes an occasion where surgeons operated on the wrong eye of a patient.

Speaking at Patient Safety Learning's annual conference, he said that hospital managers routinely hide evidence from the CQC, because they regard the organisation as out to blame them.

The chief inspector called for a fundamental change in culture whereby NHS bosses drove safety improvements for their own sake, rather than in order to pass an inspection.

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Source: The Telegraph, 2 October 2019

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