Heart Beat

  June 19 – A fresh look at the split between health and social care in the UK is to be undertaken, it is to be undertaken. The think-tank the King’s Fund says its new commission will consider whether the split remains “fit for purpose”. It says the split dates back to the 1940s when the NHS [...]

  June 17 – Concern about the risks of pregnancy has led to “medicalisation”, an expert says. Modern childbirth was the focus of a lecture at the recent Royal College of Midwives Annual Event, held last Thursday (13 June). The speaker was Dr Helen Cheyne from Stirling University, UK, who spoke on ‘Making childbirth risky: an unintended [...]

  June 14 – People with alcohol-related liver disease are dying unnecessarily because hospitals are failing to provide early intervention and specialist consultant care, a major report says today. The latest National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death (NCEPOD) report published today said hospitals were missing the opportunity to help patients with the disease, despite [...]

  June 12 – There must be clearer national guidance on the roles and responsibilities of community nursing assistants, researchers have concluded. The team, led by Professor Karen Spilsbury of York University, UK, explain that this group of NHS staff deliver care alongside registered nurses in locations including patients’ homes, residential care homes and health centres. [...]

  June 10 – The controversial new NHS 111 phone line is getting better, it has been claimed. The service was plunged into crisis when attempts were made to introduce it nationwide at Easter. And it has taken part of the blame for problems in hospital accident services – with accusations levelled that its staff are poorly [...]

May 28 – Dozens of hospitals and some GP practices are to establish monthly debrief sessions for staff aimed at improving care quality, it has been announced. The organisations will be adopted Schwartz Center Rounds, which currently take place in 15 NHS trusts. The government has pumped some £650,000 into the project aimed at extending the rounds [...]

May 24 – The NHS needs to train more community nurses if it is to hope to cut hospital costs, according to an analysis published yesterday. Inadequacies in community services mean that patient stays in UK hospitals are the longest in Europe, according to the Royal College of Nursing report. However Britain is not alone in struggling [...]

May 22 – Pledges to cut NHS red-tape were cast into doubt yesterday as a senior official said there was no “dimming” in the culture of collecting data. Dr Mike Durkin, director of patient safety at NHS England, said he believed collection of information was crucial for improving patient safety. Speaking at the Patient Safety [...]

May 20 – Today is International Clinical Trials Day – and one hospital is marking it by giving out chocolate.The first clinical trial is thought to have been performed by James Lind on May 20 1747 – 266 years ago. Lind’s trial proved that foods containing vitamin C – oranges and lemons – could prevent [...]

May 16 – Experts have called for a rethink on a key project that is directing hundreds of health visitors to work with vulnerable families. So far some 315 health visitors are working on Family Nurse Partnership project, which seeks to reduce abuse and neglect of children. The number will increase to nearly 600 within two [...]