Jump to content
  • articles
    6,946
  • comments
    83
  • views
    5,212,669

Contributors to this article

About this News

Articles in the news

Error causes 800 patients to be wrongly removed from waiting list

A trust is carrying out a review after hundreds of patients were wrongly removed from the waiting list and potentially missed out on treatment.

York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust told HSJ that roughly 800 patients of its referral to treatment waiting list, were affected.

A serious incident was declared after it emerged some patients “had their referral to treat clocks stopped erroneously, resulting in patients not receiving treatment”, according to a report to the trust board.

The trust said reviews were under way but had not yet identified any cases of “moderate or significant clinical harm”, although it admitted some patients had been significantly delayed.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 2 June 2023

Read more
 

Liver dialysis device safe and effective for treating liver failure

Researchers have completed the first successful in-patient trial of liver dialysis.

The DIALIVE device, invented by researchers at UCL’s Institute for Liver and Digestive Health, was found to be safe and effective, research suggests.

According to a new study, the device is associated with substantial improvement in the severity of symptoms and organ function in a greater proportion of patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF), when compared with patients receiving standard of care.

The next step would be a larger clinical trial, which if successful could see DIALIVE approved for clinical use within the next three years.

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 1 June 2023

Read more

USA: Eating disorder group pulls chatbot sharing diet advice

A US organisation that supports people with eating disorders has suspended use of a chatbot after reports it shared harmful advice.

The National Eating Disorder Association (Neda) recently closed its live helpline and directed people seeking help to other resources, including the chatbot.

The AI bot, named "Tessa," has been taken down, the association said. It will be investigating reports about the bot's behaviour.

In recent weeks, some social media users posted screenshots of their experience with the chatbot online.

They said the bot continued to recommend behaviours like calorie restriction and dieting, even after it was told the user had an eating disorder.

For patients already struggling with stigma around their weight, further encouragement to shed pounds can lead to disordered eating behaviours like bingeing, restricting or purging, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians.

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 2 June 2023

Read more

‘Muddle, frustration and distrust’ at ‘most mature’ ICS

Multiple problems have been highlighted with the leadership and governance of a much-vaunted integrated care system, including a lack of trust between organisations which often hide information that could weaken their position.

HSJ has seen an executive summary of the review of Greater Manchester ICS, which cited widespread concerns around the allocation of resources, confusion about the role of commissioning, and “muddled” governance, including:

a lack of transparency and trust between partners, with some only sharing a “partial overview” of performance and finances which drives choices likely to “bias” some organisations;

complex architecture of system boards, committees and forums, with “muddled” governance, unclear paths for critical decisions to be made, and unclear delegations to localities;

frustration at the quantum of meetings that take place at system, locality and provider level.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 2 June 2023

Read more

Women waiting too long for abortions, health watchdog finds

Women are waiting too long for abortions, according to a major review into a leading UK provider.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) review of the leadership at the abortion provider the British Pregnancy Advisory Service found there were “delays” in “investigating incidents”.

The remains of some pregnancies were sometimes not stored properly and there were issues were record keeping, patient monitoring and safe care, the review found.

The watchdog also noted “women did not always receive care in a timely way to meet their needs”.

The health watchdog said: “In August 2021 we found significant concerns in we found that safe care was not being provided; ineffective safeguarding processes; incomplete risk assessments were not fully completed; observations were not monitored or recorded; records were not fully completed, clear or up to date.”

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 2 June 2023

Read more

ICB defies NHSE over patient record access

An integrated care board (ICB) has advised its GP practices not to give patients automatic access to their records, contradicting NHS England national requirements. 

Instead, North East London ICB has suggested practices only allow access where patients request it, and subject to conditions.

The national go-live date for patients to be allowed automatic access to future entries in their records has been repeatedly delayed since initially being set at December 2021. GPs have argued they needed more time to redact sensitive information, ensure records are not inappropriately shared, and train staff. They have cited workload and safeguarding concerns.

The ICB’s chief clinical information officer Osman Bhatti, who is a GP, told HSJ the ICB instead “wanted a process where patients could access both prospective and retrospective records safely, with less workload for GPs and so patients who actually want access can have it”.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ. 1 June 2023

Read more

Almost 780,000 on NHS Scotland waiting lists

Almost 780,000 Scots found themselves on an NHS waiting list for an appointment, treatment, or test, new figures show.

Statistics published on Tuesday by Public Health Scotland show a rise in the number of people waiting, from 772,887 on December 31 to 779,533 as of March 31. Some 479,725 people were waiting for an outpatient appointment on March 31, an increase of 0.5% (2,617) from December 31 and 14.5% higher than the same date last year.

Since March 2020 – the beginning of lockdowns in response to the pandemic in the UK – the waiting list has grown by 87%. A Scottish Government target aims to ensure 95% of patients are seen within 12 weeks. Of those waits, 31,498 people had been waiting longer than 1 year for their procedure, the figures show.

Humza Yousaf, Scotland's First Minister said: "There’s going to be a long way to go. The recovery plan is purposely a 5-year recovery plan because we know that recovery from the pandemic—which was the biggest shock the NHS faced for almost 75 years—is going to take us not weeks or months, but years to recover from."

Read full story

Source: Medscape, 31 May 2023

Read more

Why the Met shouldn’t stop responding to mental health 999 calls

Sir Mark Rowley, commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, has written to health leaders warning the force will stop sending officers to attend thousands of 999 calls about mental health incidents. The ban will only be waived if a threat to life is feared.

The move by Scotland Yard follows the rollout of a similar policy by Humberside Police in 2020 called Right Care Right Person, which sees mental health professionals dealing with calls. An inspection by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services in November found the switch had saved the force – which has mental health workers from the charity Mind in the force control room – 1,100 police hours per month.

However, there is a concern that healthcare services cannot possibly set up an appropriate response that will keep vulnerable individuals safe within three months.

Read full story

Source: Independent, 31 May 2023

Read more

Florida doctors can soon deny patient care based on personal, religious beliefs

A controversial new Florida bill will allow physicians to opt out of performing certain services because of "sincerely held" religious, moral, or ethical beliefs.

The bill, part of a "medical freedom" legislative package signed last week, permits healthcare providers to make conscience-based objections to providing medical care and protects them from getting sued or losing their licenses.

Critics say the new law could exacerbate health disparities and lead to discrimination against certain groups of patients, including LGBTQ+ individuals and women seeking reproductive healthcare.

Psychologists could refuse to treat someone for gender dysphoria, for example. Doctors could refuse to prescribe birth control, administer childhood vaccines, or accept patients with state insurance.

Kenneth W. Goodman, professor and director of the University of Miami's Institute for Bioethics and Health Policy, told Medscape Medical News the legislation could upset a longstanding precedent.

"To deny care based on unspecified and unarticulated 'moral, ethical, or religious reasons' opens the door to neglect, abandonment, and suspicion," Goodman said. "It undermines two millennia of a cornerstone of medical ethics: take care of your patients — no matter who they are."

Read full story

Source: Medscape, 18 May 2023

Read more

Paediatric wards may not be safe for patients with 'high-risk' behaviours


Children presenting with 'high-risk' behaviours are being cared for in NHS paediatric wards that may put them and others at risk of harm, according to a new report from the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB). HSIB's interim report warns that the placement of children and young people with complex mental health issues on NHS paediatric wards can impact on the wellbeing of these patients and their families, and pose a risk to other patients and staff.  

The report emphasises that paediatric wards are designed to care for patients who only have physical health needs and not for those who are exhibiting high-risk behaviours, which include attempts to die by suicide, self-harm, attempts to leave the hospital without permission, and episodes of violence and aggression.

Examples of children and young people being restrained or sedated in front of other sick and vulnerable patients, families feeling concerned for their and their children's safety during incidents, rooms being stripped down to remove any risk of self-harm or death by suicide, and paediatric staff being physically assaulted are cited in the report.

 Saskia Fursland, HSIB national Investigator, said,"We know that NHS staff are trying to provide a safe environment for their patients, but they are facing difficult choices in wards that are not designed to support children and young people displaying high-risk behaviours. Our ongoing investigation will take a longer-term look at effective design, adaptations and risk management in the wards. A whole system response is now needed to ensure we can keep children and young people safe."

Read full story

Source: Medscape, 25 May 2023

Read more

Health alert system aims to cut heatwave deaths

A new alert system will warn the public when high temperatures could damage their health this summer in England.

Run by the UK Health Security Agency and the Met Office, it is aimed at reducing illness and deaths among the most vulnerable as climate change makes heatwaves more frequent.

The Heat Health Alert system will operate year-round, but the core alerting season will run from 1 June to 30 September. The system will offer regional information and advice to the public and send guidance direct to NHS England, the government and healthcare professionals. Individuals can sign up to receive alerts directly and people can specify which region they would like to receive alerts for.

Dr Agostinho Sousa, head of extreme events and health protection at the UK Health Security Agency, said, "It is important we are able to quantify the likely impacts of these heatwaves before they arrive to prevent illness and reduce the number of deaths."

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 1 June 2023

Read more

NHS productivity lags as recruitment fails to keep pace with demand

The NHS in England faces an uphill struggle to improve productivity as it confronts record waiting lists, with data suggesting that an increase in staff numbers alone will not transform its performance.

Creaking infrastructure, a sicker population and a reliance on less experienced staff are hampering the health service’s attempts to treat people in greater numbers than before the pandemic, according to health experts.

This difficult context is casting a shadow over the government’s goal that hospital waiting lists should be falling by the next election.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: Financial Times, 1 June 2023

Read more

‘Devastated’ director quits after ‘bullying’ row with consultants

A trust director has stepped down after a row with consultants about the leadership culture within her department, HSJ  has learned.

Pratima Gupta quit as director of women’s services at University Hospitals Birmingham Foundation Trust last week after a group of consultants expressed “no confidence” in her leadership. They claimed there was “intimidating and bullying behaviour” by individual managers.

However, Ms Gupta said the allegations are untrue, and said she has faced “obstruction at almost every step” from some consultants when trying to improve training and culture within the department.

Trainee doctors in obstetrics and gynaecology have previously expressed concerns around a lack of support from consultants, with the trust recently receiving a further warning around this from the General Medical Council and Health Education England.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 1 June 2023

Read more

Mental health services that fail to improve could be shut, says watchdog

Failing mental health services that do not improve, whether run by private firms or the NHS, could be shut, a Care Quality Commission (CQC) chief has said.

It follows the watchdog judging as "inadequate" three child wards at the Priory Group's biggest hospital.

The wards at Cheadle Royal, near Manchester, "did not always provide safe care", the CQC found.

The unannounced inspection of Cheadle Royal took place earlier this year "in response to concerns about safety". BBC News first reported in January three women had died at the hospital last year, although not in the wards inspected for this report.

The CQC's new director of mental health services, Chris Dzikiti, said he was determined to drive up standards in all units and warned he will close services who fail to improve.

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 31 May 2023

Read more

‘Discrimination’ claim as ‘40 new hospitals’ snubs mental health

A chief executive has compared a lack of investment into mental health estate to ‘institutionalised discrimination’, after no new schemes were accepted on to the ‘40 new hospitals’ programme.

HSJ revealed that almost 50 capital projects from mental health trusts attempted to win one of the final places on the “new hospitals programme”, but all were taken by new acute schemes.

Some of the trusts that submitted unsuccessful bids are using buildings which are more than 100 years old and were constructed without modern care practices in mind. Many of the bids raised safety concerns about the current estates.

Joe Rafferty, chief executive of Mersey Care Foundation Trust, told HSJ: “If there’s been a priority order, mental health has been at the back of the queue.

“It’s almost a sort of institutionalised discrimination in a way… there is a risk that the system itself is stigmatised or discriminated against mental health patients.

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 31 May 2023

Read more
 

New migraine drug on NHS could help thousands of patients in England

Thousands of people in England who get migraines could benefit from a drug that has been approved on the NHS.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), the drugs regulator, said it was recommending rimegepant for preventing migraines in the approximately 145,000 adults where at least three previous preventive treatments had failed.

The drug, also called Vydura and made by Pfizer, is taken as a wafer which dissolves under the tongue. It is the first time Nice has recommended an oral treatment for preventing migraines.

“Each year the lives of millions of people in England are blighted by migraine attacks,” said Helen Knight, the director of medicines evaluation at Nice. “They can be extremely debilitating and can significantly affect a person’s quality of life.

“Rimegepant is the first oral treatment for migraine to be recommended by Nice and for many thousands of people it is likely to be a welcome and more convenient addition to existing options for a condition that is often overlooked and undertreated.”

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 31 March 2023

Read more
 

FDA proposes revamping medication guides that come with prescriptions

The US Food and Drug Administration has proposed to add to what you get with your prescription drugs.

The proposed rule would require the prescriptions you get to come with a new kind of single-page medication guide with an easy-to-use set of directions and easy-to-understand safety information, a goal the FDA has been working toward for years.

One study found that nearly 75% of Americans have had trouble taking their medicine as directed. A lot of that is due to cost – people might not be able to afford their medicine, so they don’t take it – but some is due to confusion. They might get more than one kind of written information with their prescription, or the information they receive can be conflicting, incomplete or repetitive, the FDA said.

When people are confused or misinformed about their prescription, there is a good chance they will not take it or will stop taking it, and that can directly hurt their health.

“Research suggests that medication nonadherence can contribute to nearly 25% of hospital admissions, 50% of treatment failures, and approximately 125,000 deaths in our country each year,” the FDA says.

The agency said the new proposal is also meant to help fight the “nation’s crisis with health care misinformation and disinformation.”

Read full story

Source: CNN, 30 May 2023

Read more

Outcry over 123 rejected ‘new hospital’ bids

Multiple trusts have expressed disappointment at being overlooked in the government’s latest announcement on the ‘40 new hospitals’ programme.

In 2021, ministers expanded the new hospitals programme by inviting bids for another eight projects to be funded nationally. However, last week they confirmed that just five new bids – all acute hospitals with unsafe roof plank structures – had been accepted.

Multiple mental health trusts have also expressed frustration, after just one new mental health scheme has been included in the list of 40 “new” hospitals, although the government is counting three which were already in progress outside the programme.

Joe Rafferty, chief executive of Mersey Care, has compared a lack of investment into mental health estate to “institutionalised discrimination”. Bradford District Care said it was “very disappointing” to find out its bid to replace “wholly unsuitable” wards designed in the 1950s had not been accepted, adding: “Still no parity for mental health in the total NHP funding allocation so far.”

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: HSJ, 31 May 2023

Read more

The Guardian view on the Met’s mental health ultimatum: a deadline is not a solution

The decision last week by the Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, that in future his officers will attend emergency calls related to mental health only where a threat to life is feared, was both a wake-up call and a threat. His letter, and deadline of 31 August, have raised the stakes in negotiations with health bosses. The danger is that his combative approach will undermine attempts to find a solution to a problem that no one denies.

In Humberside, a scheme called Right Care, Right Person resulted in 1,100 police officer hours a month being clawed back as health practitioners took over tasks that were previously done by them. The scheme attracted plaudits from the police inspectorate. This is the example that Sir Mark aims to follow as part of his plan to put his discredited force back on its feet.

This is a sound idea. Humberside police has been judged the best force in the country, and successful innovations in public service should be copied. But the Met is a special case. At almost 20 times the size of Humberside’s service, with 43,000 officers, it is a huge organisation with responsibility for policing a growing city of almost 9 million people. Its relationships with local health and care services are far more complicated than in a smaller area. In London, there are five integrated care systems (partnership organisations that plan and deliver care). Given how overstretched these services already are, it is alarming to learn of the capital’s police chief announcing a unilateral withdrawal.

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 29 May 2023

Read more

USA: A national safety board made transportation safer and could do the same for healthcare, advocates say

People concerned about the safety of patients often compare health care to aviation. Why, they ask, can’t hospitals learn from medical errors the way airlines learn from plane crashes?

That’s the rationale behind calls to create a 'National Patient Safety Board,' an independent federal agency that would be loosely modelled after the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which is credited with increasing the safety of skies, railways, and highways by investigating why accidents occur and recommending steps to avoid future mishaps.

But as worker shortages strain the US healthcare system, heightening concerns about unsafe care, one proposal to create such a board has some patient safety advocates fearing that it wouldn’t provide the transparency and accountability they believe is necessary to drive improvement. One major reason: the power of the hospital industry.

The board would need permission from health care organisations to probe safety events and could not identify any healthcare provider or setting in its reports. That differs from the NTSB, which can subpoena both witnesses and evidence, and publish detailed accident reports that list locations and companies.

A related measure under review by a presidential advisory council would create such a board by executive order. Its details have not been made public.

Learning about safety concerns at specific facilities remains difficult. While transportation crashes are public spectacles that make news, creating demand for public accountability, medical errors often remain confidential, sometimes even ordered into silence by court settlements. Meaningful and timely information for consumers can be challenging to find. However, patient advocates said, unsafe providers should not be shielded from reputational consequences.

Read full story

Source: CNN, 30 May 2023

Related reading on the hub:

 

Read more

Cancer patients diagnosed in pandemic less likely to survive

Patients diagnosed with cancer in 2020 had “significantly lower” survival rates in Scotland a year after having their cases confirmed compared with the previous year, a report has found.

The increase in deaths was an indirect result of the pandemic as coronavirus dissuaded people from getting check-ups or visiting physicians.

Many cancer screening programmes were also paused and infection control measures in healthcare settings caused delays in both diagnosis and treatment.

Andrew Elder, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said the government’s decision to pause screening programmes was “understandable in the extreme circumstances”, but added that the figures were “concerning”. He said: “Fewer and later presentations by patients who may have had more advanced disease clearly have had sometimes tragic consequences that are now being identified in the data.”

Read full story (paywalled)

Source: The Times, 31 May 2023

Read more

‘Smart bandages’ could improve outcomes for patients with non-healing wounds

Pioneering new technology could help patients with non-healing wounds avoid infections and the need for antibiotics, scientists say.

Wirelessly powered, environmentally friendly “smart bandages” have been developed by a team of scientists from the UK and France, with the University of Glasgow and the University of Southampton leading the research.

The bandage could help improve the quality of life for people with chronic non-healing wounds as a result of conditions such as cancer, diabetes or damaged blood vessels, they said.

Currently, wounds require painful cleaning and treatment.

Researchers believe the technology could help to slow the rise of dangerous new strains of antibiotic resistant bacteria known as superbugs.

Read full story

Source: The Independent, 30 May 2023

Read more

Inadequate maternity unit handed safety warning

An NHS maternity department has been handed a warning notice by the health regulator because of safety failings.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said it was taking the action over the James Paget Hospital in Norfolk to prevent patients coming to harm.

Inspectors found the unit did not have enough staff to care for women and babies and keep them safe.

The maternity department has been deemed "inadequate" by the CQC, which meant the overall rating for the hospital has now dropped from "good" to "requires improvement".

Between June and November 2022 there were 30 maternity "red flags" that the inspectors found, of which more than half related to delays or cancellations to time-critical activity.

In one instance, there was a delay in recognising a serious health problem and taking the appropriate action.

The report also highlighted the service did not have enough maternity staff with the right qualifications, skills, training and experience "to keep women safe from avoidable harm and to provide the right care and treatment".

Read full story

Source: BBC News, 31 May 2023

Read more

Complaints to Australian medical regulator about telehealth rise by 413% over three years

Complaints to the national medical practitioner regulator arising from telehealth appointments have increased by 413% in three years, a significant number of these relating to prescriptions.

The data provided to Guardian Australia by the Medical Board of Australia comes as the body prepares to release new guidelines for health practitioners and companies that provide telehealth consultations with patients.

Guardian Australia understands the guidelines, to be made public by Friday, will state that real-time video or phone consults are “preferred” over real-time text-based consults such as online chat because identification is harder to establish without video.

The guidelines will not ban real-time text-based consults but they will mean online quizzes, for example, can not be used to diagnose and prescribe medications to patients.

“Prescribing or providing healthcare for a patient with whom you have never consulted, whether face-to-face, via video or telephone is not good practice and is not supported by the board,” the draft guidelines state.

“This includes requests for medication communicated by text, email or online that do not take place in real-time and are based on the patient completing a health questionnaire but where the practitioner has never spoken with the patient.”

Read full story

Source: The Guardian, 20 May 2023

 

Read more

'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.

Read full story

Source: 31 May 2023

Read more
×
×
  • Create New...