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

Nearly all NHS trusts failing to hit cancer target

Almost every hospital trust in England is failing to meet the key NHS waiting time target for cancer care, BBC analysis shows.
Just three trusts out of 121 in England are treating cancer patients quickly enough - within 62 days - with experts warning delays could be putting lives at risk.
The government accepted waits were too long, but said it was investing in the NHS to improve performance.
Research shows getting treatment quickly is crucial, with every four-week delay reducing patient survival by an average of 10%.
Dr Timothy Hanna, a leading global expert on cancer who led that research, said the BBC findings were "worrying".
"It's not a few outliers. It's the norm for trusts in England to not hit these waiting time targets and they are set for a reason - timely treatment can improve survival rates."
Paul, who has stage three colon cancer, is one of many patients who has faced delays. His first biopsy was taken in January 2024 when cancer was suspected.
He did not receive any further contact from his cancer services, despite his best efforts, until January this year. He eventually had surgery on his colon in February.
“The waiting was horrendous and now I think that if I had been treated properly and not had to wait so long it wouldn't have progressed to stage three,” Paul said.
He is due to have further surgery next year.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 11 November 2025
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Surgical menopause like a 'hormonal cliff edge'

A woman from East Sussex who was plunged into sudden menopause after surgery to remove both ovaries is spearheading efforts to change NHS policy in this area.
Kate Dyson, 44, from Hastings, underwent the surgery six months ago after having a subtotal hysterectomy just over four years ago to remove her uterus - a procedure which leaves the cervix in place.
The mum-of-three says she was completely unprepared for the impact of surgical menopause, which is triggered by both ovaries being removed.
"Honestly it was like falling off a hormonal cliff edge," she told BBC Radio Sussex.
"Within hours of the surgery I was home the same day. I was experiencing hot flushes, confusion, and the first night I woke up in the morning and I was absolutely dripping with sweat," she said.
Ms Dyson says she found the aftercare galling, and says this is commonplace for many women.
She said: "We are discharged without hormones, without warning, and without support. In my discharge notes it simply read, 'can try combined HRT [hormone replacement therapy] if she wishes', as if it were suggesting a glass of wine at the weekend."
This experience prompted her to start campaign group Surge Menopause, whose aim is to push the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to revolutionise its offering.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 10 November 2025
Related reading on the hub:
“It’s not menopause, you’re too young and don’t have the right symptoms"—the difficulties accessing menopause support and treatment Raising awareness of surgical menopause
Patient Safety Learning

Revealed: Home monitoring operating under lowest level of regulation

Several technologies in use in the NHS are operating under a low-risk form of regulation, despite being advertised for remote monitoring of patients’ vital signs, HSJ  can reveal.
An HSJ  analysis of registrations with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)  has found wide variation in the classification of remote monitoring systems – with some complex software operating on the same level of risk assessment as a bandage or needleless syringe.
The systems use wearable devices to track vital signs, blood sugar levels, medicine adherence and other health observations outside hospital, with the aim of triggering an intervention when patients are at risk.
Between November 2020 and January 2023, over 487,000 people were supported at home using the technologies,  and the government is pledging a big expansion.
Some of the most widely used platforms are listed with the MHRA as “Class I” devices – the category for devices with the ”lowest risk”, which can be self-certified by manufacturers, and is subject to minimal external oversight.
Suppliers said cost and a shortage of “notified bodies”, which can review applications, held them back from obtaining higher accreditation.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 11 November 2025
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NHSE tells trusts to deliver 95% of planned activity during doctors’ strike

Trusts should deliver at least 95 per cent of planned elective activity during the forthcoming five-day resident doctor’s strike, according to NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey.
In a letter to trust and integrated care board CEOs, he also says a “predicted spike” of flu expected immediately after the strike action makes it essential the service recovers as quickly as possible.
The letter, seen by HSJ, begins by stating: “Frustratingly, the British Medical Association has confirmed their planned strikes for next week will go ahead from 7am on Friday 14 November to 7am on Wednesday 19 November.”
The NHSE chief executive writes: “Reducing volumes of bookings, rescheduling appointments and other activity should only happen in exceptional circumstances to safeguard patient safety. This should be undertaken in consultation with your NHS England regional chief operating officer.”
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: HSJ, 10 November 2025
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Crime gangs in UK start making own branded weight-loss drugs

Organised crime gangs have begun manufacturing their own branded weight-loss drugs, designed to look like legitimate medicines, in what authorities warn is a significant threat.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said the trend had only just emerged, leading them to conduct the largest single seizure of trafficked weight-loss drugs ever recorded by any global law enforcement agency.
Andy Morling, the head of the MHRA’s criminal enforcement unit, said that in the last few months it had seen a new model of production, “where criminals are putting investment into designing their own packaging and branding … and selling it purporting to be a genuine product”.
He added: “That is an unusual model. [What they seized] looked like genuine medicines, but are entirely unlicensed and illegal to sell in the UK. The most recent model, and the level of investment to do packaging and production facilities to sell on an industrial scale – that is undoubtedly organised crime. That is why we are working to eliminate that model before it takes a grip.”
Morling said a product “that sophisticated … is a significant concern” for his unit.
Morling said that there was a “blurring of line in what is considered medicine and another cosmetic treatment available these days”. He said that most customers thought what they were buying in the syringes was a cosmetic treatment.
Morling added: “Some of the beauty parlours are selling them in this setting not realising that they are selling medicine that could end up giving them a custodial sentence … In both customer and seller there is a lack of awareness.”
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 11 November 2025
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NHS staff who visit patients at home say St George’s flags can mean ‘no-go zones’

NHS staff who care for patients in their own homes fear some areas have become “no-go zones” for them because of the presence of St George’s flags, health leaders have said.
Black and Asian staff have been left feeling “deliberately intimidated” as a result of the flags that were put up in many parts of England during the summer, according to the chief executive of one NHS trust in England, who asked to remain anonymous.
“We saw during the time the flags went up, our staff, who are a large minority of black and Asian staff, feeling deliberately intimidated,” he said.
“It felt like the flags were creating no-go zones. That’s what it felt like to them. You add on top of that real autonomous working, that real bravery of working in people’s homes, with an environment … [where] it feels like it’s an area that’s designed to exclude them.”
He said his staff had felt intimidated, “and, if I’m honest, in many cases I think that’s what it was designed to feel like”, he added.
The Royal College of Nursing said the fear created by the flags was part of an alarming wider picture. Prof Nicola Ranger, the union’s general secretary, said: “A sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric is fuelling a growing cesspool of racism, including against international and ethnic minority nursing staff, without whom our health and care system would simply cease to function.
“Those working in the community feel especially vulnerable and employers have a duty to ensure they are protected.
“Following a summer of further racist disorder, it is little wonder a growing number of nursing staff report feeling unsafe, particularly when having to work on their own and often at night.
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 11 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

Care workers charged following BBC Panorama probe

Two care workers have been charged with the ill-treatment of four people at a mental health unit which featured in an undercover BBC investigation.
The Panorama programme, broadcast in 2022, revealed that patients were humiliated and bullied at the Edenfield Centre in Prestwich, Greater Manchester.
Support worker Sheryl Price, 45, of Eldergreen Close in Bolton, faces 14 charges, while 42-year-old nurse Sara Coleman, of Mitford Street in Stretford, is accused of five.
Both have been bailed and are due to appear at Manchester Magistrates' Court on 25 March.
A undercover Panorama reporter filmed staff at the Edenfield Centre - one of the UK's biggest mental health hospitals - using restraint inappropriately and patients enduring long periods of seclusion in small, bare rooms.
Staff swore at patients and on occasion were seen slapping or pinching them.
Some workers were sacked after the BBC's findings were broadcast.
The programme sparked an independent report, which found Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust repeatedly missed opportunities to act on concerns and had a culture of "suppressing bad news".
The trust was again rated "inadequate" by the Care Quality Commission earlier this year despite some improvements having been made.
Criticisms included issues with patient safety and pressures on staff, with some still feeling unable to speak up about their concerns.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 9 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

New HIV protection jab approved for use in Northern Ireland

An injection to prevent HIV which is being offered in Great Britain will also be rolled out in Northern Ireland, it has been confirmed.
The long-acting cabotegravir (CAB-LA) jab, which is administered every two months, is an alternative to HIV prevention pills, known as PrEP, which is used daily.
It was announced last month that the injection had been approved for England and Wales, bringing it into line with Scotland.
Campaigners had called for Northern Ireland health authorities to follow suit - with the Department of Health (DoH) now saying the treatment will be rolled-out, a prominent LGBT charity has described the move as "a game-changer".
The Rainbow Project's chief executive Scott Cuthbertson said it "could make HIV prevention much more widely accessible".
Known as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), the treatment is taken by HIV-negative people to reduce the risk of getting HIV. It was introduced in Northern Ireland in 2018.
It is taken as a pill and is effective, but they are not always easy for some to take.
It can be hard to access, unpractical or feel embarrassing if people are worried about the possibility of parents or housemates finding the medication.
Other factors such as homelessness can make it difficult to take oral PrEP every day.
However, cabotegravir is given as jab, usually six times a year or every other month, making it potentially more convenient and discreet.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 9 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

No link between paracetamol in pregnancy and autism or ADHD in children, review finds

A wide-ranging review into paracetamol use by pregnant women has found no convincing link between the common painkiller and the chances of children being diagnosed with autism and ADHD.
Publication of the work was fast-tracked to provide prospective mothers and their doctors with reliable information after the Trump administration urged pregnant women to avoid paracetamol – also known as acetaminophen or Tylenol – claiming it was contributing to rising rates of autism.
Speaking at the White House in September, the US president said women should talk to their doctor about limiting the use of the painkiller while pregnant and followed up with far stronger language, telling women to “fight like hell” not to take it.
While rates of autism have risen in recent decades, many scientists believe the trend is driven by greater awareness, improvements in diagnosis and a substantial broadening of the criteria doctors use to describe the condition.
In an umbrella review published in the British Medical Journal on Monday, researchers analysed previously published scientific reviews on whether paracetamol raised the likelihood of pregnant women having children who are diagnosed with autism or ADHD.
They concluded the quality of the reviews ranged from “low to critically low”, while any apparent link between the painkiller and autism was probably explained by family genetics and other factors.
Prof Shakila Thangaratinam, a consultant obstetrician and senior author on the review at the University of Liverpool, said: “Women should know that the existing evidence does not really support a link between paracetamol and autism and ADHD.
“If pregnant women need to take paracetamol for fever or pain then we would say please do, particularly because high fever in pregnancy could be dangerous to the unborn baby.” Alternative painkillers such as ibuprofen are not recommended during pregnancy.
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 10 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

Hospital failings continued after Alice Figueiredo death, leaked documents show

Just four months after a young woman died in a London mental health unit,, another patient tried to harm herself in startlingly similar circumstances, leaked documents seen by the BBC show.
Alice Figueiredo, a patient at Goodmayes Hospital, which is run by North East London Mental Health Trust (NELFT), attempted to harm herself using plastic or bin bags on 18 occasions, mostly taking them from the same shared toilet. On the 19th occasion, in July 2015, she managed to take her own life.
Just four months later, in November 2015, another young woman also on Hepworth ward attempted to harm herself using a bin bag. She survived.
Mental health campaigners say it suggests a worrying failure to learn from tragedies.
"It's shocking and distressing that this was still going on four months after Alice died," says Jane Figueiredo, Alice's mother. "The bin bags could and should definitely have been removed, but instead patients continued to be put at unnecessary risk."
NELFT says all bin bags have been removed and "it is committed to learning from every incident and continuously improving" the care it provides.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 10 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

New chief of scandal-hit nursing regulator finally admits: We got it wrong on Lucy Letby

The new chief of the UK’s crisis-hit nursing watchdog has admitted it got things “completely wrong” following a series of revelations by The Independent exposing a “toxic” culture in which rogue nurses were free to work in the NHS.
In his first national interview as head of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), Paul Rees apologised for a string of scandals which have dogged the watchdog and prompted a major overhaul of the beleaguered organisation.
He admitted the regulator – which is responsible for overseeing nearly 800,000 nurses, midwives and nursing associates in the UK – had got its handling of sexual misconduct cases “completely wrong” when it refused to investigate nurses who had been accused of committing sexual assault outside of work.
He also conceded the body should have suspended Lucy Letby when she was first arrested. The NMC failed to suspend the nurse until she was charged with a series of shocking crimes a year later, blaming a loophole in its guidance. Mr Rees has now admitted that was wrong, after this publication uncovered a secret report into failings over the convicted killer’s treatment.
He told The Independent: “We have to be honest about things that have gone wrong. And things have gone wrong in the past.”
Ten months into his role, Mr Rees insists the watchdog, the largest professional regulator in Europe, has undergone a major change of its leadership team. But he warned it could take years to turn around the organisation, which was found in an independent review to have a “dysfunctional” and “toxic” culture due to evidence of racism and sexism within its ranks.
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 9 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

NHS frontline staff forced to ‘plug gaps that should be filled by managers’

NHS staff on the frontline are being forced to plug gaps in services that should be filled by skilled managers and admin staff, according to a new report.
Despite a widespread perception that the health service is beleaguered by a top-heavy structure, new research by the King’s Fund suggests that there are now a “near record low” number of NHS managers for each member of staff.
According to its analysis of NHS hospital and community data, there are now 33 staff members for each manager, compared to 27 staff in 2010.
“The narrative that there are too many managers does not survive contact with reality,” said Suzie Bailey, director of leadership and organisational development at the King’s Fund.
Skilled clinical professionals are being forced to spend hours each week “chasing paperwork, managing rotas or navigating broke administrative systems”, she said.
Read full story
Source: The Independent, 10 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

Social media misinformation driving men to seek unneeded NHS

Social media misinformation is driving men to NHS clinics in search of testosterone therapy they don’t need, adding pressure to already stretched waiting lists, doctors have said.
Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) is a prescription-only treatment recommended under national guidelines for men with a clinically proven deficiency, confirmed by symptoms and repeated blood tests.
But a wave of viral videos on TikTok and Instagram have begun marketing blood tests as a means of accessing testosterone as lifestyle supplement, advertising the hormone as a solution to problems such as low energy levels, poor concentration and reduced sex drive.
Doctors warn taking testosterone unnecessarily can suppress the body’s natural hormone production, cause infertility, and increase the risk of blood clots, heart problems and mood disorders.
The online demand for treatment is so great that medical professionals have now begun to see it mirrored in their clinics.
Prof Channa Jayasena, of Imperial College London, who is chair of the Society for Endocrinology Andrology Network, said hospital specialists were seeing growing numbers of men who had had private blood tests, often promoted on social media, and been told incorrectly that they needed testosterone.
“At the national meeting, we asked 300 endocrinologists across the UK; everyone is seeing patients from these clinics every week,” he said. “They are filling our clinics. We used to see people with adrenal problems and diabetes, and it’s really affecting NHS care. We are all asking how to deal with this.”
Read full story
Source: The Guardian, 8 November 2025
Further reading on the hub:
14 top picks: Men's health
Patient Safety Learning

Maternity scandal at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust prompts calls for action from the Health Secretary

A joint Channel 4 News and New Statesman investigation has revealed shocking allegations against Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, including that a baby declared stillborn was later found to be alive.
The two news organisations have been investigating John Radcliffe Hospital – one of the UK’s most prestigious research hospitals – and its maternity and neonatal unit for several months.
The investigation has heard from more than 20 families who say they have lost babies, had children born with severe disabilities, or suffered serious harm themselves, as a result of poor care at the Trust, with many women still searching for answers.
Amongst the numerous harrowing cases disclosed to the news organisations includes the testimony from Emma Cox, who gave birth to twins aged 17.
“At 24 weeks I went into spontaneous labour. They were born. I was told that one of them was stillborn and the other one was taken and resuscitated and taken to the neonatal unit. A short time later Lilly was brought back to me and they said the mortuary was unable to take her because she was actually alive”, said Ms Cox.
Read full story
Source: Channel 4 News, 5 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

German nurse gets life in jail after murdering 10 to reduce workload

A palliative care nurse in Germany has been sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of the murder of 10 patients and the attempted murder of 27 others.
Prosecutors alleged that the man, who has not been publicly named, injected his mostly elderly patients with painkillers or sedatives in an effort to ease his workload during shifts overnight.
The offences were committed between December 2023 and May 2024 in a hospital in Wuerselen, in western Germany.
Investigators are reported to be looking into several other suspicious cases during his career.
According to media outlet Agence France-Presse (AFP), the unnamed man had been employed at the hospital in Wuerselen since 2020, after completing training as a nursing professional in 2007.
Prosecutors told a court in Aachen that he showed "irritation" and a lack of empathy to patients who required a higher level of care, and accused him of playing "master of life and death".
The court was told that he injected patients with large doses of morphine and midazolam, a type of sedative, in an effort to reduce his workload during night shifts.
When issuing the life sentence, the court said that the man's crimes carried a "particular severity of guilt" which should bar him from early release after 15 years.
Read full story
Source: BBC News, 6 November 2025
Patient Safety Learning

The unsolved murder on a hospital ward that shames the NHS

Valerie Kneale was chatting away, sitting upright in her hospital bed, when her family left her behind on the ward.
Hours before, the 75-year-old grandmother had been admitted to Blackpool Victoria Hospital in Lancashire in November 2018 after suffering a stroke while eating her dinner.
But she appeared to have made a remarkable recovery. Her husband and two children were assured by hospital staff that they could go home and she would be looked after overnight.
The next morning, Mrs Kneale’s family returned to discover that she had slipped into a coma. She died three days later.
The post-mortem examination revealed that she had been sexually assaulted while on the ward, where entry was controlled by key card, with such force that it had caused severe, fatal blood loss.
Lancashire Constabulary immediately started a murder investigation but seven years on, the force has stopped searching for who was responsible for attacking Mrs Kneale.
Her death – and the failure to find a culprit – is but one tragedy in a hospital that appears to be out of control.
A weeks-long Telegraph investigation has uncovered a litany of failures at Blackpool Victoria:
Eight other deaths on the stroke ward in 2018 are being investigated, “Corrupt” nurses were jailed for drugging patients to keep them compliant, Powerful medicines went missing, A heart surgeon was imprisoned for groping the breasts and bottoms of female colleagues, Doctors shared sexist jokes in WhatsApp groups called “cardiac sluts” and “work slags”. With no one held accountable for the deaths and a police investigation into corporate failings at the stroke unit still ongoing after two years, the families of several victims told The Telegraph that only a public inquiry could answer their questions.
Read full story (paywalled)
Source: The Telegraph, 6 November 2025
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