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Keep up to date with the latest news, research and activity in patient safety.

Misleading AI-generated doctors pose ‘huge danger to public safety’

Misleading health claims online pose a “huge danger to public safety”, experts have warned, after research has shown that AI-generated doctors are gaining millions of views on TikTok by spreading dubious health advice.
The British Medical Association council deputy chair, Dr Emma Runswick, flagged the risks posed by AI accounts that “peddle medical myths and promote so-called miracle cures”.
AI-generated physicians were found to have spread disproven myths about cancer, including that microwaving food in plastic, using deodorants and sleeping next to your phone could all cause cancer – all claims which have been refuted by Cancer Research UK.
The research was published this month by Hallam, a digital marketing agency. It follows warnings by the NHS that health misinformation on social media was a “real threat to public health”.
The research found that AI-generated content appeared in 40% of top health-related TikTok videos, with most posted by a growing number of deepfake influencer accounts designed to resemble real doctors. For some specific search terms, such as “health tips”, 84% of videos were classed as AI-generated or AI-assisted content.
Read full article.
Source: The Guardian, 27 July 2026
Mark Hughes

Trainee doctors: Burnout risk falls, but “unwelcome sexual conduct” is rising, finds GMC survey

The risk of trainee doctors experiencing burnout or discrimination has slightly decreased, the latest annual survey from the General Medical Council has suggested.
However, there was “a small but real increase” in the number of trainee doctors reporting having experienced regular unwelcome sexual conduct in the workforce.
This year’s GMC national training survey was completed by 51 727 doctors in postgraduate medical training and 22 923 trainers.
For trainees, measures relating to workload slightly improved when compared with last year. For example, 22% of trainees reported that their working pattern left them feeling short of sleep on a daily or weekly basis, down from 24% in 2025.
By collating responses to seven work related questions, the GMC calculated that 61% of doctors in training were still considered to be at moderate or high risk of burnout—down one percentage point from last year.
Doctors in training reported fewer experiences of discriminatory behaviours across several areas. For example, 28% reported they had experienced microaggressions, negative comments, or oppressive body language from colleagues, down from 29% in 2025.
However, 141 trainees reported experiencing unwelcome sexual conduct in the workplace on a daily or weekly basis in 2026, an increase of 23 trainees from 2025.
The GMC said any rise in this measure matters and that trainees must be able to work and learn free from harassment. “We will continue to expect organisations to take direct action to address this,” the report said.
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Source: BMJ, 21 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Australian regulator warns of ‘rare but severe’ eye disorder linked to GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic

Australia’s medicines regulator has issued warnings for several type 2 diabetes and obesity-related treatments – including Ozempic and Mounjaro – over the potential to cause a “rare but severe” eye disorder that could lead to blindness.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (TGA) warning came after several GLP-1 RA medicines marketed in Australia as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro, among other products, were linked to 36 cases of the condition.
The TGA says the eye disorder – non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy (NAION) – may result in permanent visual impairment and “no treatment has been shown to improve visual acuity outcomes” after the condition develops.
Product information documents for Australians have been updated to reflect the new warning, and patients prescribed the drugs are urged to “seek urgent medical attention if they experience sudden vision loss, including partial loss of vision”.
But the TGA does not recommend patients stop treatment without first consulting a doctor, nor has it placed new restrictions on prescriptions.
Prof Helen Danesh-Meyer, from the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists, said that NAION is “a very rare condition” that “needs to be put in perspective” to avoid causing alarm.
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 24 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

‘I would rather be poor’: man says money cannot compensate for partner’s death after failed cancer diagnosis

“I remember the doctor, after he’d examined Helen and found a large lump in her colon, saying: ‘It’s very sinister – we need to bring you in to be investigated.’”
Darren Rosheski is recalling the moment a consultant doctor at Tameside hospital broke the news to his partner, Helen Dutton, that her symptoms – which also included back pain, passing blood and altered bowel habits – were so worrying that they needed further tests.
“I lost her because nobody listened to her. It came down to the GP not listening to her. They should have investigated her when she first saw the GP. Passing blood is a serious thing, isn’t it?”
The family doctor who Dutton saw then, back in late 2016, judged that her symptoms were signs of irritable bowel syndrome and haemorrhoids. The GP did not recommend any further action.
It proved a serious misjudgement. Dutton, a 35-year-old finance manager and mother of one, already had bowel cancer. However, it went undetected until she went back to her GP surgery two years later, saw a different doctor and was referred to Tameside hospital in Greater Manchester. In January 2019 she had a physical examination, CT and MRI scans and finally a colonoscopy, which confirmed the presence of a cancer that had already begun to spread.
Three weeks later doctors at Manchester’s Christie cancer hospital told Dutton she had advanced rectal cancer, a type of bowel cancer, that was already at stage 4. She had all three main types of cancer treatment: chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery. In June 2020, she was given the all-clear. But her cancer returned just two months later and she died aged 40 a year later, in August 2021.
The GP’s failure to refer Dutton for tests when she first presented with her symptoms proved disastrous for her chances of survival – and also very costly for the NHS. Rosheski, a tradesman, hired Irwin Mitchell solicitors to sue the NHS over the errors in his partner’s care. He reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed sum in January. 
“I would rather be poor and have Helen still around. A family has been destroyed by a doctor’s negligence. I don’t care about the compensation. I just wish she was here now,” he said.
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Source: The Guardian, 23 July 2026
Further reading on the hub:
Jess’s Rule: Three strikes and we rethink (NHS England)  
Patient Safety Learning

You’re ‘too gentle’ with those who abuse staff, police tell trust

NHS staff “tolerate too much” abuse and trusts are “too gentle” with perpetrators, police have told the workforce of a large district general hospital. 
The warning came from Thames Valley Police, who were invited by Royal Berkshire Foundation Trust chief executive James Blythe to join a recent staff webinar.
Mr Blythe told HSJ: “It’s been really difficult to get prosecutions in the past. Police tell us we’re far too gentle with it and that NHS staff tolerate too much. Police said we should tolerate less and report more.”
The trust had already teamed up with TVP under Mr Blythe’s predecessor Steve McManus as part of the force’s Operation Cavell. This sees every incident of assault against staff reviewed by dedicated investigators with an understanding of healthcare environments.
The trust itself is cracking down on abuse and aggression against staff by pursuing prosecutions. It has reported 10 cases of abuse to police this year. Three people have been charged, one case is with the Crown Prosecution Service, one resulted in an out-of-court settlement and the rest are being “looked at”.
Mr Blythe said the trust was now communicating “very openly and assertively to the local community” about the clampdown as part of its “no excuse for abuse” campaign. This included sharing the number of people prosecuted and/or banned from its hospital. 
He told HSJ: “The trust has a really important role to play in supporting staff practically and psychologically in pursuing prosecutions… This is supportive not just to them, but also to their colleagues because it prevents a recurrence.”
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 23 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Man sues OpenAI for unlicensed practice of medicine

A lawsuit 21 July claims that ChatGPT offered inaccurate medical guidance to a Florida man that resulted in delayed care for a pulmonary embolism last year.
The lawsuit, filed in the Superior Court of California in San Francisco, accuses OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman of negligence, unlicensed practice of medicine, defective product design and other claims. It is among the first to allege that a chatbot’s health advice caused physical injury to a user seeking guidance about a medical condition, according to The New York Times, and the plaintiff has asked the court to stop ChatGPT Health from operating until independent evaluators verify its safety.
According to the complaint, ChatGPT-4o told Scott Winters, a pastor, that early signs of his health problems were “not something dangerous” and discouraged him from seeking medical care, urging him instead to trust that “God did not design your body to endlessly fail.” Mr. Winters, 55, claims ChatGPT manipulated his own language and beliefs with the knowledge that he was a pastor.
He began using ChatGPT in 2024 for everyday questions and general health queries. Over time, the lawsuit claims, the chatbot’s disclaimers urging him to seek professional care fell away, and it began offering direct guidance instead — including, when he described dizziness and blood pressure instability in June 2025, advice to stay home and “recliner-bound.” Mr. Winters followed the guidance and limited his movement.
“ChatGPT-4o positioned itself as an authoritative partner in a medical journey it was simultaneously designing for Scott,” alleges the complaint, which includes screenshots of Mr. Winters’ exchanges with the chatbot.
Read full story
Source: Becker's Hospital Review, 22 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Alarm over hospital lung admissions for children in England’s poorest postcodes

Children living in the poorest areas across England are 40% more likely to be admitted to hospital for respiratory infections, an analysis of NHS England data shows, with experts raising the alarm on the impact of air pollution on young people’s health.
The analysis, based on data obtained via freedom of information requests by the charity Impact on Urban Health, revealed 1,941 out of every 100,000 children living in the most deprived fifth of England were admitted to hospital for respiratory illnesses in 2024/25.
The high admission rate contrasted starkly with figures on England’s least deprived area, where 1,380 out of every 100,000 children were admitted to hospital for respiratory illnesses, including acute upper and lower respiratory infections, influenza and pneumonia, that same year.
Although the data did not provide an exact cause for these hospital admissions, air pollution was identified as a significant risk factor, with children living in deprived areas exposed to the most extreme levels of toxins and pollutants.
“Children growing up in deprived neighbourhoods are often exposed to dirtier air,” said Dr Gergo Baranyi, a senior research fellow at University College London with a focus on air pollution. “But air pollution is only part of the story. Poor-quality housing, overcrowding, damp and mould, outdated heating systems, indoor air quality and exposure to smoking, are also more common in deprived areas. These conditions can all harm children’s respiratory health.
He added that the “stark” inequalities in admission rates should not come as a surprise. “They are shaped by individual circumstances and environmental exposures where children grow up. Respiratory infections in childhood can have long-lasting consequences on health and wellbeing."
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 23 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Corporate manslaughter investigation launched into trust

A trust that treated a man with paranoid schizophrenia who went on to kill three people is being investigated for corporate manslaughter.
A criminal inquiry has been launched into Nottinghamshire Healthcare Foundation Trust’s care and treatment of Valdo Calocane, who killed Barnaby Webber, Grace O’Malley-Kumar, and Ian Coates in June 2023. Three others were seriously injured after Mr Calocane drove a van into them.
The investigation – which will run for several months – is being carried out by Northumbria Police because Nottinghamshire Police is implicated in failings related to the attack, The Times reported last night.
In a statement, the trust said it would be “cooperating fully”. It said: “We know how important the independent inquiry and police investigation are for the affected families, the survivors and our local communities.”
A public inquiry opened in February this year and ran until June. It heard evidence of poor communication between agencies, flawed risk assessments, failures to escalate Mr Calocane’s treatment, and discharging a high-risk patient after he disengaged with services.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 22 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Mental health patient monitoring system in spotlight

A healthcare trust has defended its decision to abandon a controversial digital monitoring system for mental health patients.
Leicestershire Partnership Trust (LPT) gave evidence on Tuesday during the Lampard Inquiry in London, which is examining the deaths of more than 2,000 people under the care of Essex mental health services between 2000 and 2023.
The Leicestershire trust piloted a system which uses infrared sensors and cameras in patients' bedrooms, but decided not to use it.
Oxevision is used by a number of mental health trusts across England, including neighbouring Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust where bosses are looking to expand its use.
Grave concerns about the system have been raised previously in the inquiry with campaigners claiming it had been overly relied upon by staff at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust.
Campaign group Stop Oxevision has said it had concerns around patient's dignity, privacy and consent processes which vary across the country, but the creators of the system have said it is an important safety aid.
The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) recently confirmed it was investigating Oxehealth, which developed Oxevision, and said "as this is a live investigation, we are unable to comment further".
Andres Freire-Patino, deputy director of mental health services at LPT, who began working at the trust in 2023, told the inquiry that one of the aims of the pilot was to test whether Oxevision could support patients getting a better night sleep.
Oxevision can digitally track pulse rates and breathing rates, so this does not need to be done in-person and disturb patients throughout the night.
Freire-Patino said: "Sleep is incredibly important in terms of people's recovery from mental health."
However, the inquiry heard one patient - a pregnant woman - slept in an interview room as she refused to stay in a bedroom with Oxevision, even with it off.
Freire-Patino said there were a number of reasons why they decided not to use the technology, but one was only 42% of patients consented to its use during the second pilot.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 22 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

More young women in their 20s are getting type 2 diabetes

England is seeing a "worrying increase" in young women in their 20s developing type 2 diabetes, experts at Imperial College London have warned.
The rise has largely occurred since the Covid pandemic and is closely linked to increasing obesity levels, according to an analysis of NHS data from 2011 to 2024, external.
Type 2 diabetes is serious, and can lead to severe complications, such as heart attacks and strokes.
When it develops at a younger age, the disease tends to be more aggressive, raising the risk of devastating complications and cutting lives short, according to Diabetes UK.
It is vital that those at risk are diagnosed early to prevent long-term organ damage, the charity says.
Type 2 diabetes can sometimes be put into remission by eating a healthy diet and keeping slim without needing to rely on glucose-lowering medications.
The researchers say newer obesity treatments - such as GLP-1 jabs and pills - might help, alongside healthy eating advice.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 22 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Lack of defibrillators could put 16m at risk of death by cardiac arrest in England and Wales

More than 16 million people in England and Wales risk dying from a cardiac arrest because they live farther than a 1km round trip from the nearest 24/7 defibrillator, according to exclusive research.

Analysis of publicly available defibrillators by the Heart Restart campaign found that in England and Wales alone, 35 million people – more than half the population – do not live within the recommended three- to five-minute brisk walk of a defibrillator. Of these, about half live more than a 1km round trip from a 24/7 accessible defibrillator.
There are more than 40,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests each year in the UK, but fewer than one in 10 people survive. However, early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and defibrillation can more than double the chance of survival.
Patients in cardiac arrest who do not receive emergency treatment within 10 minutes – a 1km round trip to retrieve a defibrillator – are highly likely to die. But Heart Restart’s researchers calculated that with the exception of the City of London, all local authorities have at least some of their residents living at least 10 minutes’ round trip from their nearest 24/7 defibrillator.
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 22 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Army medics could plug gaps in ‘unsafe’ service

Army medics could be used to prop up a service at risk of closure, a struggling trust has declared.
University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Foundation Trust’s Furness General Hospital has been unable to provide the highest level of intensive care for nearly two years due to staffing shortages.
Patients needing level three ICU care are transferred 50 miles to Royal Lancaster Infirmary.
The trust had recommended closing the service to the most critically ill patients on safety grounds earlier this year. However, it also continued to explore alternative service models in a bid to avoid this step.
In a joint update with Lancashire and South Cumbria integrated care board on Wednesday, the trust revealed it was in “ongoing discussions with Defence Medical Services”. These included the potential use of army medics “as happens in some other hospitals elsewhere in NHS England”.
Military staff have been embedded at a small number of NHS hospitals through the DMS since the last dedicated military hospitals closed in the late 1990s. However, the main focus is on the maintenance of the medic’s clinical skills, rather than the relief of workforce pressures.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 21 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Experts agree at landmark event that simulation should be built into health system

On 15 June 2026, over 80 representatives from simulation societies, ministries of health, hospitals, universities, international organizations, professional associations and industry partners met at the WHO Academy in Lyon for a joint event of WHO and the Society for Simulation in Europe (SESAM). Together they tackled a pressing question: how can simulation move from isolated initiatives to systematic integration within health systems?
The consensus was clear: simulation is no longer a niche educational tool. Beyond training, it strengthens health systems by improving quality of care, patient safety, workforce preparedness, team performance and organisational resilience.
Participants agreed the evidence for simulation’s value no longer needs to be demonstrated, but that implementation remains fragmented and too often dependent on individual local champions. Bridging that gap, they said, means both generating further evidence and raising awareness among decision-makers.
“At the WHO Academy, we see simulation not simply as a training methodology but as a strategic tool for capacity-building, workforce readiness and stronger health systems,” said Dr Bart Janssens, Unit Head, Health Learning and Capacity Building. “This event is not only about discussion; it is about moving from ideas to action.”
As health systems worldwide face workforce shortages, growing complexity of care and rapidly evolving competency needs, participants concluded that the question is no longer “Why simulation?” but rather how to scale it, how to sustain it, and how to ensure it becomes an integral part of stronger health systems.
Read full story
Source: WHO, 21 July 2026
Related reading on the hub:
The role of simulation-based education, co-design and co-delivery in improving patient safety  
Patient Safety Learning

US measles cases set to surpass last year’s record high – and it’s only July

The number of U.S. measles cases is about to exceed the total for all of last year – and it’s only July.
There are now 2,260 confirmed cases in 44 states and the District of Columbia, according to the latest numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
2025 was the worst year for measles in America in over three decades. There were 2,289 cases and three deaths.
The majority of cases are in young, unvaccinated children and teenagers, and doctors have blamed vaccine hesitancy on recent spikes. The measles-mumps-rubella vaccine is 97% effective in preventing illness.
Without it, measles infections can lead to life-threatening brain swelling, pneumonia, fever, ear infections and a rash.
Fortunately, no patient has died from measles this year.
More than 30 outbreaks have been reported this year, with the largest number of cases in South Carolina, Utah and Texas.
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 20 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

UK health tech firm Craneware admits customer and staff data stolen in cyber attack

Healthcare technology firm, Craneware, has disclosed it suffered a cyber attack resulting in the theft of customer and employee data.
The Edinburgh-based company, which supplies software to thousands of hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies across the US healthcare sector, confirmed it is actively responding to and investigating the incident.
Craneware, listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM), stated that a significant volume of file names were viewed and exfiltrated during the breach.
“The current assessment is that a large element of the data involved is non-sensitive or already public regulatory data,” according to the company.
“A percentage of Craneware employee data as well as a subset of customer and partner records have been accessed and exfiltrated.”
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 20 July 2026
Patient Safety Learning

Make us feel ‘safe’ while we drive reform, ICBs tell NHSE

Greater “air cover” from NHS England and “assurance” that commissioning leaders will not suffer from making difficult decisions has been demanded by integrated care boards.
System chiefs have told NHSE they need greater support for potentially unpopular decisions on redesigning services, and have also called for more relaxed performance targets and financial flexibility in order to innovate.
ICBs have responded to a letter from NHSE chief executive Sir Jim Mackey sent earlier this year, which asked commissioners what the centre could do to “help accelerate the pace of change locally, including getting out of the way where necessary”.
Humber and North Yorkshire ICB has asked for regional and national “air cover for difficult system decisions” - such as when decommissioning, scaling back or consolidating services.
Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, and Gloucestershire ICB meanwhile called for “the psychological safety and assurance needed” from the centre “to test new contractual and payment mechanisms locally”.
Norfolk and Suffolk wanted greater support for system leaders to “take calculated risks in redesigning services, particularly around financial flows”.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 20 July 2026
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