Sam
Administrators2 Followers
-
News ArticleMillions of people will be invited for their autumn Covid booster jab in England and Scotland, with care home residents the first to receive them. Although infections are falling, health bosses are predicting a resurgence of Covid and flu this autumn and winter. They are urging those eligible to protect themselves from serious illness by getting vaccines against both. A recently approved vaccine against the Omicron variant will be used first. However, there is not enough of Moderna's "bivalent" vaccine to protect everyone aged over 50 so health officials say people should t
-
Event
Healthcare Safety Investigations Conference 2022
Sam posted a calendar event in Community Calendar
untilThe Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) conference is for all healthcare staff and in particular those interested in patient safety and who conduct investigations. The conference will provide: a focus on our maternity, national and investigation education programmes, an opportunity to share learning to help make patient care safer in your organisation, expertise on conducting professional healthcare safety investigations in your setting, updates on the future of our national and maternity programmes, as they form into either the Health Services Safety I -
News ArticleInternal documents show significant evidence of bullying and discrimination within NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) which dates back at least eight years, when the organisation was led by the current chief executive of the Care Quality Commission. HSJ has seen a report which detailed major tensions and dysfunction at NHSBT’s Colindale site in north London in 2016, four years before another report found similar problems. Given the damning findings of the second report, in 2020 – which found a “toxic environment”, multiple accounts of bullying, and “systemic racism” at the same site –
-
News ArticleDr Ted Baker has been named as the government’s preferred candidate for chair of the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). Steve Barclay, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, has today (26 August 2022) invited the Health and Social Care Committee to hold a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing with Dr Baker. Ted Baker was Chief Inspector of Hospitals at the Care Quality Commission between 2017 and 2022. He trained as a paediatric cardiologist. He was in clinical practice for 35 years and has held a range of clinical and academic leadership roles including medic
-
News ArticleA shortage of some medicines is putting patients at risk, pharmacists have warned. A poll of 1,562 UK pharmacists for the Pharmaceutical Journal found more than half (54%) believed patients had been put at risk in the past six months due to shortages. A number of patients have been facing difficulties accessing some medicines in recent months, sometimes having to go to multiple pharmacies to find their prescription or needing to go back to their GP to be prescribed an alternative. Since June, the government has issued a number of "medicine supply notifications", which highlight
-
News ArticleLast month saw the highest number of ambulance callouts for life-threatening conditions since records began, NHS England officials say. There were more than 85,000 category one calls, for situations like cardiac arrests and people stopping breathing. The heatwave could have been one reason for increased demand, but experts say hospitals already face immense pressures. Nearly 30,000 patients waited more than 12 hours to be admitted to hospital. The number is up 33% on the previous month and the highest since records began in 2010. Richard Murray, chief executive of The
-
News ArticleCriminals have issued ‘demands’ to an NHS IT supplier targeted by a cyber attack, leading health chiefs to fear they have accessed confidential patient data, HSJ has learned. IT firm Advanced was targeted last week. The company provides electronic patient records to several trusts and most NHS 111 providers. Multiple government agencies – including the National Crime Agency and GCHQ – are now working to identify the extent of the damage caused by the attackers, while leaders of affected mental health trusts have warned of a “pretty desperate” situation as staff are unable to access
-
Content Article
We need to fix it (HindSite, 2021/22)
Sam posted an article in Digital health and care service provision
Key points Digital technology supports everything we do in safety-critical industries. There are also hidden digital problems that affect everything we do, and things will go wrong. IT-related problems can have significant consequences for justice, as well as safety and security. The formal qualifications and relevant experience required for system designers in safety-critical sectors are often not specified in the way that they are for front-line staff. We have to manage digital risks more effectively to prevent associated incidents and even miscarriages of just -
News ArticleNHS England has revealed plans to crack down on poor care being provided by mental health service providers. There will be a particular focus on independent units treating NHS patients, as just over a quarter of these providers are failing to meet quality standards. Official data shared with HSJ shows that of the 238 independent NHS mental health providers licensed by the Care Quality Commission in England, 174 (73 per cent) are classed as “good” or “outstanding”. The remaining 64 (27 per cent) either “require improvement” or are considered “inadequate”. There have
-
News ArticleNHS England patients with Type 1 diabetes will now be eligible for life-changing continuous glucose monitors after the health service secured a new cut-price deal. The wearable arm gadget sends information to a mobile app and allows diabetes patients to keep track of their glucose levels at all times without having to scan or take a finger prick test. Traditionally, continuous glucose monitors are more expensive than their flash monitor counterparts – which record glucose levels by scanning a sensor – but thanks to the NHS agreeing on a new cost-effective deal with manufacturers DEXC
-
News ArticleThe monkeypox outbreak has been declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization. According to the UK Health Security Agency, early symptoms of monkeypox include fever, headache, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes and chills, as well as other features such as exhaustion. Monkeypox does not spread easily between humans, and requires close contact. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it is thought that human-to-human transmission primarily occurs through large respiratory droplets. Globally, there have so far been 16,016 monkeypox case
-
Content Article
-
News ArticleA pilot scheme to reduce infections following catheter insertions has shown a 100% fall within a hospital trust. NHS Supply Chain is now encouraging acute trusts in England to take advantage of the scheme which has shown to not only reduce infection rates but shorten patient length of stay and save clinicians’ time. Catheter associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are not uncommon and can cause patients significant pain, discomfort, confusion and anxiety for family and friends. They further impact healthcare with increased antibiotic use, prolonged hospital stays, increased clin
-
News ArticleHormone replacement therapy is to be offered over the counter for the first time in the UK after the medicines watchdog gave the green light. Millions of women go through the menopause every year, with the majority experiencing some symptoms that can be severe and have a negative impact on everyday life. In a landmark move hailed as a “huge step forward” for women’s health, the first type of HRT to become available at pharmacies without a prescription will be Gina 10 microgram vaginal tablets (containing estradiol). The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
-
News ArticleA quarter of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) non-executive directors of NHS trusts have seen or experienced discrimination in the course of their work, a report reveals. While almost four out of five (79%) of these BAME non-executives said they challenged such behaviour when they encountered it, only half (50%) said that led to a change of policy or behaviour. The other half felt they had been ‘fobbed off’ or subjected to actively hostile behaviour for having spoken up,” says a report commissioned by the Seacole Group, which represents most of the BAME non-executive board mem
