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AI chatbots ‘highly vulnerable’ to repeating false medical information, experts warn

AI chatbots are frequently prone to repeating false and misleading medical information, according to new research.

Experts have warned of a “critical need” for stronger safeguards before the bots can be used in healthcare, adding models not only repeated untrue claims but also “confidently” expanded on them to create explanations for non-existent medical conditions.

The team from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine created fictional patient scenarios, each containing one fabricated medical terms such as a made-up disease, symptom, or test, and submitted them to leading large language models. In a study published in journal Communications Medicine, they said that the chatbots “routinely” expanded on the fake medical detail, giving a “detailed, decisive response based entirely on fiction”.

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Source: The Independent, 7 August 2025

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A walk-in fishermen's clinic saved Tom from sepsis - and could transform the NHS

Tom Parker was working alone three miles (4.8km) off the Devon coast when his fishing boat hit a wave and lurched to one side.

He didn't know it at the time, but Tom, 37, had broken his fibula and badly damaged his ankle ligaments. He somehow hauled in his fishing gear and made it to hospital to get patched up, but months after the accident his wound just wouldn't heal properly.

It was only after he turned up at an innovative clinic on the quayside in Brixham that he was put on strong antibiotics and told he needed a second operation.

"Without that service, I would have probably ended up with my leg turning septic and I'm not too sure what would have happened after that," he says.

Under the 10 Year Health Plan, published last month, health officials said the NHS in England needed to undergo a radical shift, away from hospitals to community care, and away from treating sickness to preventing it in the first place.

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Source: BBC News, 8 August 2025

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A massive US measles outbreak has slowed but the start of the school year brings renewed risk of spread

There have been more measles cases reported in the US in the past month – at least 89 confirmed cases since the start of July – than in most years since the disease was declared eliminated a quarter century ago, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And this year’s total – 1,356 confirmed cases since January – is higher than it’s been in more than 30 years. There have been 32 outbreaks this year, accounting for nearly 90% of all cases since January. Only 10 states remain at zero cases reported this year.

Experts say that declining childhood vaccination rates across the US coupled with ongoing spread of measles in the US – and large outbreaks in neighbouring Canada and Mexico – are raising concerns as children start to gather for the new school year.

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Source: CNN, 6 August 2025

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Nearly half of doctors in Scotland witness care failings every week

A General Medical Council survey has found that 46 per cent of clinicians in Scotland see care failings weekly, a higher proportion than elsewhere in the UK.

The survey showed a reduction in the number of doctors noting safety incidents weekly in England, Wales and Northern Ireland since 2023 — but an increase in Scotland.

Backlogs in accident and emergency departments, resulting in thousands of patients stuck on trolleys for hours queueing for beds, are thought to be one of the issues driving potential errors.

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Source: The Times, 7 August 2025

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Patients whose lives were ruined after being ‘needlessly given cancer drug for years’ sue NHS trust

More than 20 patients who say their quality of life was wrecked when they were needlessly given a highly toxic cancer drug are suing the NHS trust involved.

Some people were prescribed temozolomide – which should normally be used for only six months – for more than a decade during treatment by the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust.

They say the overprescribing left them with side-effects including secondary cancers and crippling fatigue.

Earlier this year the Care Quality Commission was looking into at least 14 cases, but lawyers say more are emerging all the time. An investigation by lawyers Brabners found that, over the past two decades, numerous patients with brain and spinal tumours under the care of Professor Ian Brown were routinely exposed to prolonged and in some cases “unnecessary” use of the chemotherapy drug, which has severe side-effects including extreme fatigue, confusion, sickness and seizures.

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Source: The Independent, 6 August 2025

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UK warned it risks exodus of 'disillusioned' doctors

Nearly one in five doctors is considering quitting in the UK, new figures show, while one in eight is thinking about leaving the country to work abroad.

The General Medical Council (GMC), which commissioned the research, is warning that plans to cut hospital waiting lists will be at risk unless more is done to retain them.

The main reason doctors gave for considering moving abroad was they are "treated better" in other countries, while the second most common reason was better pay.

Some 43% said they had researched career opportunities in other countries, while 15% reported taking "hard steps" towards moving abroad, like applying for roles or contacting recruiters.

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Source: Sky News, 7 August 2025

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Crackdown on unsafe cosmetic procedures to protect the public

New measures to crack down on cowboy cosmetic procedures that have left people maimed, injured and in need of urgent NHS care will be introduced by the UK Government.  

Only qualified healthcare professionals will be able to perform the highest risk procedures – such as non-surgical Brazilian Butt Lifts. 

Other lower risk cosmetic treatments - including Botox, lip fillers and facial dermal fillers - will also come under stricter oversight through a new local authority licensing system. Practitioners will be required to meet rigorous safety, training, and insurance standards before they can legally operate.  Once regulations are introduced, practitioners who break the rules on the highest risk procedures will be subject to CQC enforcement and financial penalties.

The planned crackdown follows a series of incidents where people have had high-risk treatments from people with little or no medical training, leading to dangerous complications, permanent scarring and even death. These new rules will seek to protect people from unqualified, rogue operators and reduce the cost to the NHS of fixing botched procedures.  This follows growing alarm over unqualified individuals performing invasive treatments in unsafe environments—including homes, hotels, and pop-up clinics. Many of these procedures are marketed as non-surgical but, in reality, are invasive and carry serious risks.  

The new regulations will be subject to public consultation and parliamentary scrutiny before they are introduced.  

Read the full press release.

Source: Department of Health and Social Care, 7 August 2025

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Surgeon struck off after patients left in agony

A surgeon who performed unnecessary bowel operations using artificial mesh on more than 200 patients - leaving dozens in agony - has been struck off.

In two separate tribunals, Tony Dixon was found to have performed operations on five patients without obtaining or documenting informed consent and that one of these procedures was not clinically indicated and that he failed to provide post operative care.

Mr Dixon denied the allegations at the two tribunals, in 2024 and this year.

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service ordered for Dixon to be removed from the medical register. The tribunal report said he "demonstrated a persistent lack of insight into the seriousness of his actions".

This was the case "not only for patients and colleagues, but also for public confidence in the medical profession", it said.

Mr Dixon, a fully registered doctor of 41 years, was also found to have dishonestly created patient records long after he was involved in their care.

A former patient of Dixon, who was found to have had an unnecessary operation but wishes to remain anonymous, said they were "delighted" with the outcome.

"It's been just such a long time, he's harmed so many people.

"He shouldn't be allowed to do it to anyone else, so being struck off is amazing.

"It should have happened a long time ago. To get that result is brilliant."

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Source: BBC News, 6 August 2025

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AI catches one-third of interval breast cancers missed at screening

An AI algorithm for breast cancer screening has potential to enhance the performance of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), reducing interval cancers by up to one-third, according to a study published in Radiology, a journal of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

Interval breast cancers - symptomatic cancers diagnosed within a period between regular screening mammography exams - tend to have poorer outcomes due to their more aggressive biology and rapid growth. DBT, or 3D mammography, can improve visualization of breast lesions and reveal cancers that may be obscured by dense tissue. Because DBT is relatively new as an advanced screening technology, long-term data on patient outcomes are limited in institutions that have not transitioned to DBT until recently.

"Given the lack of long-term data on breast cancer-related mortality measured over 10 or more years following the initiation of DBT screening, the interval cancer rate was often used as a surrogate marker," explained study author Manisha Bahl, M.D., M.P.H., breast imaging division quality director and co-service chief at Massachusetts General Hospital and associate professor at Harvard Medical School. "Lowering this rate is assumed to reduce breast cancer-related morbidity and mortality."

In a study of 1,376 cases, Dr. Bahl and her colleagues retrospectively analysed 224 interval cancers in 224 women who had undergone DBT screening. On those DBT exams, the AI algorithm (Lunit INSIGHT DBT v1.1.0.0) correctly localized 32.6% (73/224) of cancers that were previously undetected.

"My team and I were surprised to find that nearly one-third of interval cancers were detected and correctly localized by the AI algorithm on screening mammograms that had been interpreted as negative by radiologists, highlighting AI’s potential as a valuable second reader," Dr. Bahl said.

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Source: Digital Health News, 1 August 2025

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‘Unjust’ NHS ethnic pay gap to be reviewed

A long-awaited review into “unjust and unfair” pay disparities between white and minority ethnic staff across the NHS has been launched. 

The NHS Race and Health Observatory has commissioned the first-ever study of the issue. The project will be carried out in partnership with the University of Surrey.

It will examine differences in pay, career progression, and pension contributions - as well as the potential impact on cumulative financial earnings - between staff from different ethnic backgrounds.

The review will also explore the potential explanations for any differences and make recommendations to “reduce and eliminate unwarranted inequalities where they are found to exist”, the RHO has said.

The final report is due in December 2026.

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Source: HSJ, 6 August 2025

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Thousands of patients miss out on weight loss jab due to NHS ‘postcode lottery’

Thousands of obese patients are missing out on a key weight loss jab due to a “postcode lottery” of provision in the NHS, according to a report.

Mounjaro, dubbed the “King Kong” of weight loss medicine, was supposed to be available through GP surgeries from 23 June under an agreement between NHS England and NICE.

But just eight out of 42 NHS Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) in England were able to provide treatment to patients, according to Sky News, who obtained the data using a Freedom of Information request. Many other ICBs were reportedly unable to confirm when treatment would be available.

Dr Jonathan Hazlehurst, an endocrinologist and obesity physician at University Hospitals Birmingham, said patients were “set up for failure” and have been treated unfairly.

"Giving people open promises and setting them up for disappointment and failure is clearly grossly unfair. That's what the current system is doing,” he told the broadcaster.

NICE said in December that the NHS should offer Mounjaro to patients with a BMI of over 40 and at least four clinical conditions related to their weight, such as heart disease or type 2 diabetes.

It calculated from NHS England data that there were 97,500 patients who should be treated in the first year.

But Dr Hazlehurst claims NHS England has only provided funding for just over 22,000 patients.

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Source: The Independent, 5 August 2025

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NHS issues vaccination warning for pregnant women over dangerous virus currently surging in Australia

Expectant mothers and people over 75 are being urged to get vaccinated against a potentially deadly virus following a record number of cases in Australia.

Health chiefs say the Australian winter often predicts how viruses will spread in the UK, and already this year cases of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) have steadily risen in many areas.

The virus, which is a common cause of coughs and colds, may also cause a chest infection called bronchiolitis.

Some people have a high risk of becoming seriously ill with it, including babies and adults over 75.

According to NHS England, RSV is a leading cause of infant deaths worldwide and a main cause of children being taken into hospital.

NHS England is encouraging pregnant women to get a jab that protects against RSV so their babies are protected after birth.

Kate Brintworth, chief midwifery officer for NHS England, said: “While for most adults RSV only causes mild, cold-like symptoms, for older adults and young children it can lead to serious breathing problems that can end up in hospitalisation.

“Getting vaccinated while pregnant is the best way to protect your baby from the moment they are born, and now is the time for mums to act, to make sure their babies are protected ahead of their first few months this winter, when there tends to be more bugs circulating.”

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Source: The Independent, 5 August 2025

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Suicidal teen warned mental health hospital staff ‘slept on shifts’ and urged ‘shut this place down’

A suicidal teenager revealed that staff “slept on shifts” and said the scandal-hit mental health hospital she was being held in should be “shut down” in a note she wrote before her death, an inquest has heard.

Ruth Szymankiewicz, 14, died on 14 February 2022 after she was left alone at Huntercombe Hospital, near Maidenhead in Berkshire, despite requiring constant one-to-one observation, Buckinghamshire Coroner’s Court was told.

In the 15 minutes she was left alone, Ruth, who had an eating disorder, made her way to her room, where she self-harmed. She was found and resuscitated before being transferred to hospital, but died two days later from a brain injury.

In a note written before she died, which was read aloud on Tuesday at the inquest into her death, Ruth said there was a lack of therapy at the hospital, which she said had an “unsafe number of staff”.

On Monday, the court heard that the support worker responsible for monitoring Ruth was working under a false identity and had completed just a day or a day and a half of online training the day before his first shift at the children’s psychiatric hospital.

Evidence presented at the inquest also revealed that on the day of Ruth’s death, he was working on another ward in the hospital, but had been assigned to Ruth as Thames Ward, where she was being cared for, was short-staffed.

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Source: The Independent, 5 August 2025

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Schools and hospitals ‘very likely’ to be hacked

Britain’s schools and hospitals are “very likely” to suffer a “large-scale loss or hijack” of their websites, the government has admitted.

Officials have said that the internet domains of public sector websites are particularly vulnerable to being exploited by “hostile actors”.

A hack could lead to a “significant loss of information and reputation”, officials concluded.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) also said it was “likely” not to be prepared for a significant cyberattack that could “potentially contribute to a national crisis”.

The NHS has faced a series of damaging cyberattacks. Last year, doctors at two big hospital trusts in London were forced to cancel all elective inpatient procedures and admissions after a lab that processes pathology tests was hacked.

Richard Horne, the chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, wrote in a letter to The Times in May that organisations “must operate in a way that minimises the risks”, adding that freely available advice is “not being followed nearly enough across the UK”.

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Source: The Times, 3 August 2025

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We will no longer tolerate ‘negative behaviours’, pledges ICB

An integrated care board has apologised to staff and pledged to no longer tolerate a range of “negative behaviours” identified by a report into the organisation’s culture. 

The report into management behaviour at Kent and Medway ICB, obtained by HSJ, reveals staff were reluctant to speak up due to the “perceived futility or fear of consequences”. Executives were perceived as “defensive, remote, and closed-off” by staff, while poor behaviour often remained “unaddressed” or was met with “a lack of action”.

The report added this had led to “colleagues avoiding direct challenge and relying on processes such as the [Freedom to Speak Up] Guardian, even when these methods are not appropriate or best suited to addressing these issues”. 

The ICB commissioned consultancies Kaleidoscope Health and Care and Absolute Diversity to conduct a joint review last November, following concerns expressed in internal staff surveys and FTSU Guardian reports. These included “differential and poorer” work experience for staff with a protected characteristic and low morale.

The report identified “a number of significant and widespread cultural challenges”. These included:

  • A “loss of civility” in parts of the organisation, particularly between some staff and executives;
  • Senior leaders of band 8 and above felt “disempowered, deskilled and devalued by executives, with excessive decision escalation and micromanagement hindering their ability”; and
  • Executive team members “publicly disagreed with and undermined collective decisions”, leading to inconsistent briefing of teams on executive decisions.

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Source: HSJ, 5 August 2025

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‘Growing cultural tension’ could turn hospital’s staff against leaders

A hospital has uncovered concerns about “toxic behaviours” and racism, and been warned that “growing cultural tension” could turn “staff against each other or against leadership”.

The review was ordered by Medway Foundation Trust after it identified concerns about culture and potential racism and bias. Staff at Medway Maritime Hospital also reported increasing violence and aggression from patients and relatives.

The resulting report – by a company called Absolute Diversity – details concerns around bullying, toxic behaviour and discrimination. It also found some signs of hope, however, with a sense of pride among staff and a commitment to patient care.

It called on the trust to make it safe to speak up, review staff experience of employee relations processes, and increase leadership accountability and clarity with “clear expectations for leadership behaviours”.

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Source: HSJ, 5 September 2025

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Great Ormond Street Hospital surgeons forced to use mobile phone torches during surgery after power cut

Surgeons at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) for children were forced to use mobile phone torches during an operation due to a power outage, the NHS’s safety watchdog has found.

The leading children’s hospital has faced ongoing concerns over the maintenance of its estate and operating theatres, which have led to water leaks and power outages, according to a report by the Care Quality Commission.

The CQC warned of “recurrent” problems, including a power outage during spinal surgery and ventilation failures.

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Source: The Guardian, 4 August 2025

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New support helps parents cope with ICU trauma

Charlotte Creevy's son Seth was two weeks old when he stopped breathing and was rushed to intensive care at a London hospital.

"What kept going through my mind was, 'Is he going to live or die?'"

Charlotte said Seth had contracted three viruses and needed respiratory support.

Thankfully Seth recovered and returned home after being treated at the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington for three weeks in October 2022.

Now a "first of its kind" support service by the charity Cosmic is being rolled out at the hospital to help parents like Charlotte cope with the trauma of experiencing their child going into intensive care.

"It was awful. I would cry because it was hard not knowing what would happen to Seth," Charlotte added.

"I was only two weeks postpartum after an emergency C-section, so I was physically not in a good way anyway."

Chief executive of Cosmic, Susannah Forland said "things like the beeping of a fridge can trigger trauma or flashbacks".

She added: "The impact can be long-lasting and far-reaching after the families return home.

"Our service will bridge the gap between hospital and home, providing a vital safety net during one of the most emotionally vulnerable times in a parent's life."

Research at St Mary's Hospital found that early intervention helped reduce symptoms of PTSD and other long-term mental health issues among parents, following their child's discharge from intensive care.

After a successful pilot, Cosmic is funding and delivering the post-PICU service on a permanent basis.

It involves providing parents with a booklet containing information and coping mechanisms, a follow-up telephone call by trained staff, and ongoing referral for counselling where needed.

Read full story 

Source: BBC News, 5 August 2025

Further reading on hub:

How a charity in France is supporting intensive care units: An interview with Anne-Sophie Debue

 

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NHS in England told to keep Welsh patients waiting

NHS patients from Wales who need knee and hip operations in England face lengthy delays after a health board asked English hospitals to copy Wales' longer waiting times.

Powys health board announced the change as it could not afford the cost of how quickly operations over the border were being carried out, but patients have said they were not informed.

Mel Wallace, 59, from Howey, Powys, was initially told she would have a 12-month wait for her hip replacement, but now faces another 45-week wait after already waiting 59 weeks.

Health board chief executive Hayley Thomas said people in the area "should be treated in the same timeframe as residents of anywhere else in Wales".

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Source: BBC News, 4 August 2025

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Quarter of a million NHS Scotland patient falls in 5 years

New figures reveal it is becoming more likely for NHS Scotland patients to fall as a quarter of a million incidents are recorded in just five years. 

There were least 266,573 patient falls between 2019 and 2024, according to Freedom of Information data obtained by the Labour Party. When incidents in 2025 were included, this number rose to 282,385. 

With nine out of 14 health boards reporting an increase, the figures suggest that patients are becoming more likely to fall.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: The Herald

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Common allergy medication’s risks outweigh its usefulness, experts say (CNN)

Dr. Anna Wolfson says she sees dangerous misuse of the allergy medication diphenhydramine in her clinic every day.

“If someone has an allergic reaction to a food, people will say, ‘Don’t worry, I have diphenhydramine in my purse,’ and I would say, ‘Really, epinephrine is the first-line treatment for food allergies,’” said Wolfson, an allergist at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Diphenhydramine can be harmful if people take it after having an allergic reaction to food, she said, because the drug – best known by the brand name Benadryl – makes them drowsy and can cause them to miss signs that their symptoms are getting worse.

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Source: CNN, 1 August 2025

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'I'm in control of my sexual health' - UK gonorrhoea vaccine rollout begins

Gonorrhoea vaccines will be widely available from today in sexual health clinics across the UK, in a bid to tackle record-breaking levels of infections.

The jabs will first be offered to those at highest risk - mostly gay and bisexual men who have a history of multiple sexual partners or sexually transmitted infections.

NHS England say the roll out is a world-first, and predict it could prevent as many as 100,000 cases, potentially saving the NHS almost £8m over the next decade.

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Source: BBC News online, 4 August 2025

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Three million on NHS England waiting lists have had no care since GP referral

Almost half of the 6 million people needing treatment from the NHS in England have had no further care at all since joining a hospital waiting list, new data reveals.

Previously unseen NHS England figures show that 2.99 million of the 6.23 million patients (48%) awaiting care have not had either their first appointment with a specialist or a diagnostic test since being referred by a GP.

The Patients Association described the situation as “an invisible waiting list crisis” that was “staggering” in scale, with millions living in limbo, anxious as their health deteriorates.

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Source: The Guardian, 1 August 2025

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Obstetricians and gynaecologists: Suicidal thoughts and burnout rose after pandemic, survey suggests

Obstetricians and gynaecologists have become more likely to report suicidal thoughts since the Covid pandemic, a UK survey has found.

Researchers at Imperial College London surveyed 1400 practising doctors who had been registered with the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) from June to August 2022 and compared the findings with the previous questionnaire results from 2018.

They found that 72% (805) of respondents met the criteria for burnout, up from 36% (1116) in 2018. Trainees experienced the highest levels of burnout at 80% (344), while consultants reported the lowest levels at 67% (393).

The proportion of doctors reporting anxiety and depression had also risen: anxiety increased from 33% of doctors (1008) to 62% (643), and depression rose from 14% (416) to 31% (317). Doctors having suicidal thoughts rose from 3% (90) to 9% (98).

However, researchers highlighted that the post-pandemic study had a smaller response rate of 19% (1400 of 7388 members)—much lower than the 55% rate (3102 of 5661) in 2018. 

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Source: BMJ, 30 July 2025

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Neighbourhood health ‘can’t be line managed’

A government neighbourhood health lead has warned the service “can’t line manage organisations outside the NHS into change”, which will instead rely on “frontline involvement” organised in relatively small patches.

Sir John Oldham, a former GP who is chairing the government’s neighbourhood health implementation programme, launched a call three weeks ago for applications to join its first wave.

The “large-scale change programme” will be joined up with parallel national 10-Year Health Plan  delivery work, including developing two neighbourhood health provider contracts, and changing funding flows.

But Sir John told HSJ that successful implementation “requires the meaningful frontline involvement of partners at a neighbourhood level… You can’t line manage organisations outside the NHS into change, you have to engage and facilitate. Yet it is their contribution that will be needed [to achieve] the hard deliverables”. 

The senior adviser to health and social care secretary Wes Streeting also said the programme would not accept applications from multiple places working as one, because they would be too wide to properly engage local teams. “The connectivity between place and neighbourhood will be very important, which is why a single application from multiple places won’t be accepted,” he said. “The definition of a place is up to local people.

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Source: HSJ, 1 August 2025

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