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Content Article
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NHS England has set a target that cervical cancer will be eliminated in England by 2040. Although progress has been made in detecting and treating cervical cancer, there are still many women who are reluctant to go for cervical screening, or who face barriers to accessing screening. These barriers include perceived discrimination, lack of understanding the risk of cervical cancer and unmet access needs. This contributes to persistent health inequalities amongst particular groups. Patient Safety Learning has pulled together nine useful resources shared on the hub about how to improve access and overcome barriers to cervical screening. 1. Cervical screening, my way: Women's attitudes and solutions to improve uptake of cervical screening This research by Healthwatch explored why some women are hesitant to go for cervical screening. Based on the findings of a survey of more than 2,400 women who were hesitant about screening, it makes recommendations to policymakers on how to improve uptake, including: improvements to the way data about the disability and ethnicity of people attending screening. producing an NHS-branded trauma card for affected women to bring to appointments. ensuring staff are effectively trained on accessibility and adjustments to care. looking at the possibility of home-based self-screening. 2. Exploring the inequalities of women with learning disabilities deciding to attend and then accessing cervical and breast cancer screening, using the Social Ecological Model Women with learning disabilities are less likely to access cervical and breast cancer screening when compared to the general population. In this study, the Social Ecological Model (SEM) was used to examine the inequalities faced by women with learning disabilities in accessing cervical and breast cancer screening in England. The study highlights key barriers to access for women with learning disabilities. 3. “We’re not taken seriously”: Describing the experiences of perceived discrimination in medical settings for Black women Black women continue to experience disparities in cervical cancer despite targeted efforts. One potential factor affecting screening and prevention is discrimination in medical settings. This US study in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities describes experiences of perceived discrimination in medical settings for Black women and explores the impact of this on cervical cancer screening and prevention. The authors suggest that future interventions should address the poor quality of medical encounters that Black women experience. 4. Top tips for healthcare professionals: Cervical screenings This article by the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists and the My Body Back Project offers tips for healthcare professionals to make cervical cancer screening attendees feel as comfortable as possible during their appointments. Cervical screening can be very daunting for some women, and for those who have experienced sexual violence it can be triggering and cause emotional distress. The article provides tips on communication, making the environment calm and safe, sharing control and building trust with women. 5. The Eve Appeal: What adjustments can you ask for at your cervical screening? The Eve Appeal want to raise awareness of what adaptations women and people with a cervix can ask for during their screening to make the appointment more comfortable. 6. How can reframing women’s health improve outcomes? An interview with Dr Marieke Bigg Dr Marieke Bigg is the author of a 2023 book, This won’t hurt: How medicine fails women. In this interview, Marieke discusses how societal ideas about the female body have restricted the healthcare system’s approach to women’s health and describes the impact this has had on health outcomes. She also highlights areas where the health system is reframing its approach by listening to the needs of women and describes how simple changes, such as allowing women to carry out their own cervical screening at home, can make a big difference. 7. Having a smear test. What is it about? This download A4 Easy Read booklet from Jo's Cervical Cancer Trust uses simple language and pictures to talk about smear tests. It explains what a smear test is, has tips for the person having the test and has a list of words they might hear at their appointment. 8. Health Improvement Scotland: Cervical screening standards Published by Healthcare Improvement Scotland in March, the new cervical screening standards include recommendations to ensure women receive accessible letters and information about screening and healthcare professionals are trained to support women to make informed choices. 9. Cervical cancer screening in women with physical disabilities This US study explored how the cervical cancer screening experiences of women with physical disabilities (WWPD) can be improved. Interviews with WWPD indicated that access to self-sampling options would be more comfortable for cervical cancer screening participation. The authors highlight that these findings that can inform the promotion of self-sampling devices for cervical cancer screening. Have your say Are you a healthcare professional who works in women’s health or cancer services? We would love to hear your insights and share resources you have developed. Perhaps you have an experience of cervical screening or cervical cancer that you would like to share? We would love to hear from you! Comment below (register as a hub member for free first) Get in touch with us directly to share your insights -
News Article
Questions after three disabled children at same care home die
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Three disabled children died in similar circumstances at the UK's largest brain rehabilitation centre for children despite warnings about care failings, The Independent can reveal. Five-year-old Connor Wellsted died in 2017 at The Children's Trust’s (TCT) Tadworth unit in Surrey, having suffocated when a cot bumper became lodged under his chin. Six years later, in 2023, Raihana Oluwadamilola Awolaja, 12, died after her breathing tube became blocked, and Mia Gauci-Lamport, 16, died after she was found unresponsive in her bed. Inquests into all three deaths uncovered a litany of failings and identified common problems in the children's care at the home where multiple senior directors earn six-figure salaries. Now, police have launched a fresh investigation into Connor’s death. Coroners who investigated their deaths criticised staff for failing to adequately monitor the children – all of whom had complex disabilities and needed one-to-one care – and for not sharing the full circumstances of how they died with authorities. The families of the children, who were all under the care of their local council, are demanding that the government and the regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), take action. Speaking to The Independent, Connor’s father, Chris Wellsted, said: “How many more children are going to die because of their incompetence? CQC failed, NHS England failed. The government failed. Every organisation that should have been investigating the children's trust. It’s a disgrace.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 10 June 2025 -
News Article
Hospital 'deeply sorry' after 12-year-old's death
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A hospital boss has apologised "unreservedly" after the death of a 12-year-old girl which led a coroner to raise concerns about the "discrimination of disabled children". Rose Harfleet died at Royal Surrey County Hospital, in Guildford, on 30 January 2024, having attended its emergency department the day before with abdominal pain and vomiting. Assistant coroner for Surrey, Karen Henderson, said in a recent report that there was a failure of the medical and nursing staff to appreciate Rose was clinically deteriorating. The coroner said Rose, who from birth was diagnosed with mosaic trisomy 17 with global developmental delay, was "wholly reliant on her mother to advocate on her behalf". But she said at the hospital no history was taken from Rose's mother and that the severity of her signs and symptoms were underestimated. She said poor clinical decisions contributed to Rose's death. "This gives rise to a concern that by not listening to parents or guardians as a matter of course leads to discrimination of disabled children," she added. Read full story Source: BBC News, 4 June 2025 -
News ArticleA coroner has warned of a "culture of cover-up" at a care home where neglect contributed to the death of a disabled 12-year-old girl. Raihana Awolaja, who required 24-hour one-to-one care, died of cardiac arrest in 2023 after her breathing tube became clogged while she was left alone at Tadworth Court in Surrey, a residential care facility operated by The Children’s Trust. Now a senior coroner looking into her death, Professor Fiona Wilcox, has written to the Trust's chief executive, warning there could be further deaths at the home if improvements aren't made. Prof Wilcox raised several serious concerns about the home, including that severely disabled children may not be receiving the level of care needed to keep them safe and more staff training was required. She also warned there "may be culture of cover up at Tadworth Children’s Trust". She added: "They carried out a flawed investigation after this incident, pushing blame onto an innocent individual and thereby avoiding highlighting systemic failures and learning and thus risking lessons that should be learned are lost that could prevent future deaths." Read full story Source: ITV News, 21 May 2025
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News ArticleWhen doctors tried to work out whether Marie Tidball would need a specially designed birth plan, one asked her to lie fully clothed on the bed and spread her legs in the air so they could see how far they could open. The incident was one of several occasions when Tidball, now a Labour MP, felt neglected during her pregnancy and early motherhood because of the NHS’s failure to adapt on account of her physical disabilities. Tidball has physical impairments affecting all four of her limbs and had major surgeries on both her hips and legs as a child. She is speaking publicly about her experiences for the first time to highlight a report showing that disabled mothers and their children have significantly worse neonatal and postnatal NHS care than others. Speaking about the doctor’s request to open her legs, Tidball told the Guardian: “I was shocked, really, that that was their approach, rather than actually looking properly at some of my medical history and the notes around my hips. “They didn’t think about how that orthopaedic surgery might interact with birth, but also [about] carrying the baby and the way the baby was lying in uterus. They just hadn’t really thought those intersections through.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 5 March 2025 Related reading on the hub Diagnostic safety: accessibility and adaptations– a (un)reasonable adjustment?
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Content ArticleThis US study explored how the cervical cancer screening experiences of women with physical disabilities (WWPD) can be improved. Interviews with WWPD indicated that access to self-sampling options would be more comfortable for cervical cancer screening participation. The authors highlight that these findings that can inform the promotion of self-sampling devices for cervical cancer screening.
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News Article
‘Gross failures’ in London hospital’s care may have led to disabled woman’s death
Patient_Safety_Learning posted a news article in News
A coroner who ruled that “gross failure” in the hospital care of a disabled woman “possibly contributed to her death” has called for improvements to protect patients. Graeme Irvine, the senior coroner for east London, said the inquest into the death of Chloe Every had revealed matters “giving rise to concern” while she was in the care of Barking, Havering and Redbridge university hospitals NHS trust. He said there was a “risk that future deaths could occur unless action is taken”. Read full story Source: Guardian, 27 December 2024 -
News ArticleRachel Reeves’ Budget measures will devastate care providers, leaving vulnerable disabled and elderly people without care next year, healthcare experts are warning. The disastrous scenario could also bankrupt local authorities, care providers say. The rise in employers’ national insurance in April, together with increases in the minimum wage and national living wage, will threaten the future of care companies, according to the Homecare Association, a membership body for care providers. The association says that if care providers fold, the UK risks widespread failure of care provision, which could “leave people without care, overwhelm family carers and cripple NHS services”. Read full story Source: The Independent, 15 December 2024
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Content ArticleThis report sets out why Mencap believe there is institutional discrimination within the NHS, and why people with a learning disability get worse healthcare than non-disabled people. They present the stories of six people who they believe have died unnecessarily. They do so because they argue that healthcare professionals need to realise the serious – even fatal – consequences of their lack of understanding. They call for professionals to work to ensure that such tragedies can never happen again
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Content ArticleIn this report, Carer's UK examine the benefits of moving to paid Carer’s Leave, including the positive impact it would have for women and lower paid workers. They also outline the anticipated costs and savings this would result in for HM Treasury.
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Content ArticleDrawing on The King’s Fund’s five-year programme of work on health inequalities and tackling the worst health outcomes, which includes insights from stakeholders, partners and people with lived experience, this long read outlines what the King's Fund think the anticipated 10-year health plan should focus on to help the NHS do more to tackle these challenges. It includes a video from Stella O'Brien describing the barriers she has faced when accessing health and care services as a deaf person, and the importance of recognising patients and carers as assets. Seven priorities for the new 10-year health plan: Develop a cross-government health inequalities strategy for the 10-year health plan to feed into. Reorientate the NHS to focus on prevention. Radically change the relationships the NHS has with people and communities, from ‘power over’ to ‘power with’. Tackle racism and discrimination in the NHS and cultivate a culture of compassion. Enable staff to identify and act on health inequalities and capture learning. Empower place-based partnerships to take more decisions about how NHS money is spent. Actively support local voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations through changes in financial planning and commissioning.
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Content ArticleResearch by NatCen for the Department for Transport, into the 3 factors linking transport, health and wellbeing: access to health services, particularly for vulnerable groups including older people how modes of transport affect physical and mental health transport as a facilitator for social interactions and social inclusion Transport can have both positive and negative impacts on health, and these impacts are experienced differently by different groups in society.
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Content ArticleThis is one of a series of 'Learning from safety incidents' resources published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Each one briefly describes a critical issue—what happened, what the CQC and the provider have done about it, and the steps you can take to avoid it happening in your service. This edition is about ensuring the safety of people using wheelchairs in health and social care. The CQC recently prosecuted a care home provider for exposing someone using their service to a significant risk of avoidable harm, which resulted in a life-changing injury. Incident Before the incident, the person had been experiencing difficulties with mobility and had sometimes been confused and agitated. They had been provided with an adapted wheelchair with extended footplates for their own use, and staff helped them get around in it. However, staff mainly used a standard wheelchair for communal use within the care home. On several occasions, the person's foot had come away from the footplate when using a standard wheelchair, resulting in a risk of it getting trapped. On the day of the incident, while pushing the person down a slope in a standard wheelchair, the staff member noticed resistance and found the person's foot caught underneath. The staff member replaced the person's foot on the footplate and continued the journey. Afterwards, the person complained about pain in the affected leg and was taken to hospital for further assessment. The person was found to have significant, life-changing fractures to their leg and, at one stage, it was thought it may have to be amputated. The person spent 16 weeks in bed with their leg in a cast, before being discharged from hospital to a different service. Unfortunately, they did not make a full recovery and their physical health was permanently affected by the incident. The CQC's investigation found that, although the provider knew the risks associated with the use of a communal wheelchair, the care home failed to take adequate steps to assess and mitigate those risks. Recommendations To manage the risk of injuries to people from wheelchairs, health and social care providers need to: develop and implement adequate moving and handling plans develop and implement a risk assessment specific to a person's use of a wheelchair have adequate policies and procedures to support staff in managing these risks assess a person's mental capacity to decide about using a wheelchair, especially one not provided specifically for them provide staff with the training, skills and knowledge required to safely use a wheelchair seek the support of other professionals, such as occupational therapists, where required.
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Content ArticleThere is a well-established case for involving communities and people with lived experience in health and care policy, service design and delivery. NHS England guidance on working in partnership with communities highlights the financial benefits and improvements to quality and health outcomes that working with local communities brings. But could this involvement go further? In this article, Loreen Chikwira, Researcher at The King's Fund looks at the arguments for the use of intersectional approaches in understanding people’s lived experience of care in tackling ethnic health inequalities. These intersectional approaches help health and care providers shift their focus from people’s behaviours to also identifying and addressing ways of working that create and reinforce inequalities and poor experiences of care.
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Content ArticleThis study looked at nursing within the UK and The Netherlands' health sectors, which are both highly regulated with policies to increase inclusiveness. It aimed to investigate the interplay between employment conditions and policy measures at sectoral level, in order to identify how these both facilitate and limit employment participation for disabled workers.
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Content ArticleThe Safe Care at Home Review is an important reminder that people with care and support needs may experience abuse and neglect, sometimes under the guise of ‘care’. Older people, or people with disabilities, may be particularly vulnerable to harm because of their dependence on others and the complexity of their care needs. They might rely on other people for physical, mental or financial support, and may face difficulties recognising or reporting harm. The review draws on a range of evidence, including the Home Office funded Vulnerability Knowledge and Practice Programme, which has highlighted that one in six domestic homicides involved people who were cared for by, or caring for, the suspect.
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Content ArticleThis national data collection project has been commissioned by NHS England (NHSE) and is run by the NHS Benchmarking Network (NHSBN). The aim of the project is to understand the extent to which organisations are complying with the NHSE Learning Disability Improvement Standards, and to identify improvement opportunities. Compliance with these standards requires organisations to assure themselves that they have the necessary structures, processes, workforce and skills to deliver the outcomes that people with learning disabilities and their families and carers, expect and deserve. This project aims to collect data from a number of perspectives to understand the overall quality of care across Learning Disability services. Read summary reports from previous years of the NHS England Learning Disability Improvement Standards project.
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Content ArticleNew research showed how a national quality improvement programme called PReCePT (Preventing Cerebral Palsy in Pre Term labour) accelerated maternity units’ use of Magnesium sulphate for pre-term labour. The programme could serve as a blueprint for future efforts to get clinical guidelines into practice in other areas of care. The quality improvement programme involved training staff on the benefits of magnesium sulphate, and having a local midwife dedicated to encouraging and monitoring use of the medicine at their maternity unit. The programme was supported by Academic Health Science Networks (a regional and national organisation that encourages improvement and innovation in healthcare). This article from the National Institute for Health and Care Research provides a plain English summary and short film about the project.
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Content ArticleGetting a GP appointment is often a challenge at the moment, but for many disabled people, access to their GP has long been a problem. The King's Fund explored disabled people’s experiences of involvement in health and care design, their experiences accessing health and care, as well as of involvement in service design. Some participants described the significant difference a GP could make: those who made someone feel listened to and validated, compared with GPs who dismissed concerns or spoke to a person’s personal assistants rather than directly to them.
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Content Article
Top picks: 10 resources about disability
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Health inequalities
The 3 December is International Day of Persons with Disabilities. More than 1.3 billion people experience significant disability today, which represents 16% of the global population. Many persons with disabilities die earlier, are at increased risk of developing a range of health conditions, and experience more limitations in everyday functioning than the rest of the population. To mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we are sharing 10 resources, blogs and reports from the hub on improving care, treatment and outcomes for people with disabilities. 1. Learning from safety incidents issue 13: Protecting people using wheelchairs 'Learning from safety incidents' resources are published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Each one briefly describes a critical issue—what happened, what the CQC and the provider have done about it, and the steps you can take to avoid it happening in your service. This edition is about ensuring the safety of people using wheelchairs in health and social care. 2. Tommy Jessop: Why I investigated hospital care for people like me People with a learning disability are more than twice as likely to die from avoidable causes than the rest of the population. Actor Tommy Jessop and BBC Panorama investigated some of the stories of families who say they were let down by their medical care. 3. WHO - Global report on health equity for persons with disabilities People with disabilities have the right to the highest standard of health, however, this report by the World Health Organization (WHO) demonstrates that while some progress has been made in recent years, many people with disabilities continue to die earlier and have poorer health than others. The report demonstrates how these poor health outcomes are due to unfair conditions faced by people with disabilities in all areas of life, including in the health system itself. 4. Towards a social model approach? : British and Dutch disability policies in the health sector compared This study looked at nursing within the UK and The Netherlands' health sectors, which are both highly regulated with policies to increase inclusiveness. It aimed to investigate the interplay between employment conditions and policy measures at sectoral level, in order to identify how these both facilitate and limit employment participation for disabled workers. 5. Tanni Grey-Thompson: NHS leaves the disabled feeling ‘they don’t count When the Paralympian and television presenter Tanni Grey-Thompson found she was pregnant in 2001, she went to see her doctor. “The first thing I was offered was a termination,” she says, “because people like me shouldn’t be allowed to have children.” In this Times article, she says that for disabled people, “the relationship with the NHS can be quite mixed”. 6. My Involvement Profile (Shaping Our Lives) Shaping Our Lives is a non-profit, user-led group, led by disabled people and service users. They want to make sure everyone can have their say, especially those from marginalised groups who often face barriers to getting involved. The My Involvement Profile was designed by disabled people. Involvement activities enable people to influence and improve policies and services that affect their lives, like health or social care. Involvement can mean sharing your experiences and opinions in a focus group, a patient involvement forum, or a research study. It’s made up of two simple template forms and can help you keep a record of your involvement activities, keep a list of your access and support requirements so you don’t have to keep repeating them, and each section has help notes to assist you in completing it if you need them. 7. NHS England Learning Disability Improvement Standards project This national data collection project has been commissioned by NHS England (NHSE) and is run by the NHS Benchmarking Network (NHSBN). The aim of the project is to understand the extent to which organisations are complying with the NHSE Learning Disability Improvement Standards, and to identify improvement opportunities. 8. The King's Fund: Towards a new partnership between disabled people and health and care services getting our voices heard Disabled people's voices need to be valued and prioritised in the planning and delivery of health and care services. This long read sets out the findings of research carried out by The King's Fund and Disability Rights UK into how disabled people are currently involved in health and care system design, and what good might look like. 9 Self-advocacy and barriers for young people accessing health care in the Scottish Highlands Self-advocacy is an individual's ability to communicate their own needs and is an important skill for patients. However, medical self-advocacy can be challenging, especially when there is a power imbalance between people in positions of authority and patients, who are often in a more vulnerable position. This power imbalance can be even more difficult to navigate for children and young people. In this personal account, Hannah Eaton describes her experiences as a disabled young person attempting to get support for diagnoses relating to chronic illness and neurodivergence. 10 Diagnostic safety: accessibility and adaptations– a (un)reasonable adjustment? Pavi Brar is Senior Policy Advisor at National Voices, a coalition of over 200 health and care charities. In this blog, Pavi explains why accessibility needs and adaptations must be taken into account and addressed to enable everyone to access diagnostic services. -
Content ArticleThis study in the Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities aimed to share rich detail of the emotional and physical impact on children and young people with intellectual disabilities of attending hospital, from their own and their parent's perspective. The authors found that the multiple and compounding layers of complexity surrounding hospital care of children and young people with intellectual disabilities resulted in challenges associated with loss of familiarity and routine, undergoing procedures, managing sensory overload, managing pain and having a lack of safety awareness. They concluded that an individualised approach to care is needed to overcome these issues.
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Content ArticleThe Disability Royal Commission held Public hearing 33 in Brisbane from 8 to 10 May 2023. Public hearing 33 was a case study about two young men, brothers Kaleb and Jonathon. Their names have been changed to protect their identity. The brothers have disability and the hearing examined their experience of violence, abuse, neglect and deprivation of human rights. They held the hearing to ask why and how it happened. In total 13 witnesses gave evidence. This video is a summary of the report.
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Content ArticleThe Australian Disability Royal Commission was established in April 2019 in response to community concern about widespread reports of violence against, and the neglect, abuse and exploitation of, people with disability. These incidents might have happened recently or a long time ago. The Disability Royal Commission will investigate: preventing and better protecting people with disability from experiencing violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. achieving best practice in reporting, investigating and responding to violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation of people with disability. promoting a more inclusive society that supports people with disability to be independent and live free from violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation. The Disability Royal Commission gathers information through research, public hearings, the personal experiences people tell us about and submissions, private sessions, and other forums. It will deliver a final report to the Australian Government by 29 September 2023. The Disability Royal Commission publishes progress reports at intervals of approximately six months. The reports are primarily intended to provide a brief account of the Royal Commission’s activities over the preceding half-year period. The Interim Report was published on 30 October 2020. It sets out what the Royal Commission has done in its first 15 months. The report says people with disability experience attitudinal, environmental, institutional and communication barriers to achieving inclusion within Australian society. It shows that a great deal needs to be done to ensure that the human rights of people with disability are respected and that Australia becomes a truly inclusive society. Private sessions factsheet: Over the course of the Royal Commission, almost 10,000 people shared their experience of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation by making a submission or participating in a private session.
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News Article
Covid inquiry: Ex-minister challenged on plan for disabled people
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
An ex-minister has defended the government's approach to disabled people during the pandemic, following claims they were "largely disregarded". Justin Tomlinson, a former minister for disabled people, told the Covid inquiry the government recognised this group was at greater risk from the virus. He added that work had been done "at pace" to address this. The inquiry has previously been told that disabled people's views were not properly heard ahead of key decisions. Nearly six out of 10 people who died with coronavirus in England from January to November 2020 were disabled, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In a witness statement published earlier this month, chief executive of charity Disability Rights UK, Kamran Mallik, said: "From the statements, decisions and actions of the UK government throughout the crisis, considerations relating to disabled people appeared to be largely disregarded." In his evidence earlier this month, Mr Mallik of Disability Rights UK said there was a "shocking disregard" when it came to providing information in alternative formats for disabled people, including letters on shielding for clinically vulnerable groups. He said his charity had also raised concerns about protections for care home residents, and help for disabled people who were not shielding but still needed support accessing food and essentials. Mr Mallik added that there had been no consultation to allow the views of charities or disabled people to be "properly heard before decisions were made". Read full story Source: BBC News, 8 November 2023 -
News Article
Wheelchairs and weight: 'I haven't been able to weigh myself for 22 years'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Weight management is a sensitive topic. Nevertheless, the measurement is often used as a marker to inform medical decisions or for someone's personal interest. But for many wheelchair users, accessing scales has proved near impossible. "The last time I was weighed was about 22 years ago, " Lizzie tells the BBC podcast, Access All. "I think I was about 15." As a result, now aged 37, Lizzie has been through three successful pregnancies, all without knowing how her body was adapting or how her baby was growing. Based in Devon, she has a degenerative muscle-related impairment and uses a wheelchair. This makes weighing herself on traditional bathroom scales, which require you to stand still and independently on a small platform, a challenge. There is equipment out there to help wheelchair users, like Lizzie. Chair scales enable someone to sit on a seat which records their weight and there are similar bed and hoist versions too. There are also wheel-on scales which are very large and involve subtracting the weight of the chair afterwards. But none of these seem widely available. Dr Georgie Budd, who is based in Merthyr Tydfil, says this worries her. A wheelchair user herself she appreciates how difficult it can be for people to access scales. "There's a lot of things that we use weight for in health - anaesthetics and drug dosing - and just to keep an eye on it as well for someone's general health. During pregnancy for example, if someone was losing weight I, as a GP, would actually be really quite concerned," she says. Neither NHS England nor the government have guidance for doctors nor advice on what equipment to use and no figures are kept on how many hospitals have access to such equipment and where they are. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) previously considered the issue in 2014 and requested more research be carried out. But so far nothing has been started. Read full story Source: BBC News, 13 October 2023
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