Wednesday 25th February 2015- The Guardian: How an overlooked workforce is key to rescuing the NHS

‘Their numbers have grown by a third since 2002 and they now make up about 6% of the NHS workforce. They already deliver the prevention, public health services and integrated out-of-hospital care that NHS England’s Five Year Forward View and the health service financial sustainability agenda are crying out for.

They are the allied health professionals (AHPs): occupational therapists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, paramedics, prosthetists and others – who, according to a landmark investigation by the Nuffield Trust and the Health Foundation, are well primed to address the key challenges facing health and care. Yet, the same research also says, their contribution to the NHS is obscured.’

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How an overlooked workforce is key to rescuing the NHS

Tuesday 24th February 2015- The Independent: HIV pill: Scientists hail discovery of ‘game-changer’ that cuts the risk of infection among gay men by 86%

‘Results of a major UK trial of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) have been described as “extremely exciting” and a “game-changer” by leading specialists.’

‘An estimated 2,800 gay men acquired HIV in the UK in 2013 and the rate of new infections has remained high for a decade. Six per cent of gay and bisexual men are now living with HIV, rising to 13 per cent in London.’

‘The Proud study [funded by government agencies, the Medical Research Council and Public Health England] found that PrEP cut the risk of HIV infection among gay men considered to be at high risk by an unprecedented 86 per cent. The Proud trial, which took place across 12 NHS trusts in Brighton, London, York, Manchester, Birmingham and Sheffield, was set up to provide real-world evidence on the pill’s effectiveness, and to answer outstanding questions, such as whether providing it would lead to reduced use of condoms. Among the 276 men given PrEP immediately, there were only three HIV infections in the first year of the study, compared with 19 among the deferred group.’

‘The pill used in the trial, Truvada, is a combination of two antiretroviral drugs which has previously been used to treat HIV infection. Developed by Gilead, its newly established ability to prevent as well as treat the virus marks a major turning point in efforts to combat HIV among high-risk groups.’

‘With evidence of its effectiveness now established, it will have to consider whether the pills, which will cost £423 per month for each patient, will be cost-effective, and what the criteria should be for accessing them.’

PrEP has been available to at-risk groups in the United States since 2012.’

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HIV pill: Scientists hail discovery of ‘game-changer’ that cuts the risk of infection among gay men by 86%

Sunday 22nd February 2015- The Independent: Britain’s flying doctors asked to come home

‘The NHS is embarking on a recruitment drive to bring home doctors who have left the UK to find a better work-life balance in Australia, New Zealand and other countries.

Health officials are hoping to persuade hundreds of doctors to return, in order to boost the under-staffed and demoralised GP workforce.

Restrictions that make qualified doctors undertake lengthy and expensive re-examinations before they can practise again in the UK are among issues under review.

Some NHS trusts are already actively recruiting overseas. NHS Shropshire and Staffordshire have posted adverts in Australian medical journals in which they offer funding for expatriates’ return, and induction schemes.’

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Britain’s flying doctors asked to come home

Thursday 19th February 2015-The Telegraph: Los Angeles hospital says more than 100 exposed to drug-resistant ‘superbug’

‘Half a dozen people were infected and more than 100 exposed to a potentially deadly, drug-resistant “superbug” on contaminated medical instruments at a medical centre in Los Angeles.

Patients at Ronald Reagan UCLA were exposed to CRE [Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae] during endoscopic procedures between October and January, the University of California, Los Angeles said in a statement.

It may have been a “contributing factor” in the deaths of two patients, the university said.’

‘The bacteria can cause infections of the bladder or lungs, leading to coughing, fever or chills. CRE infections have been reported in every state except Idaho, Alaska and Maine, according to the CDC.

UCLA said infections may have been transmitted through endoscopes used during the diagnosis and treatment of pancreatic and bile-duct problems.’

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Los Angeles hospital says more than 100 exposed to drug-resistant ‘superbug’

Thursday 19th February 2015- World Health Organisation: Immunization leaders call for increased political support for immunization in Pakistan

It has become apparent that childhood immunization in Pakistan is ‘at a crossroads and strong political will is required to ensure that the lives of millions of children are not put at risk’. Dr Seth Berkley, Chief Executive Office of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Dr Ala Alwan, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean and Dr Geeta Rao Gupta, Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF are set to meet with leaders in Islamabad ‘to set out their concerns and offer their support to Pakistan moving forwards’.

‘Almost three million children miss out on a full course of the most basic vaccines every year in Pakistan, leaving them vulnerable to life-threatening diseases. Immunization coverage rates across the country vary widely with some districts seeing very few children protected against diseases, such as diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, measles and bacterial pneumonia.

“Deaths among children under five years attributable to vaccine-preventable diseases constitute up to 25% of the total deaths among this age group in developing countries, including Pakistan,” said Dr Ala Alwan, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean. “Pakistan is not on track for achieving Millennium Development Goal No 4, which aims at reducing child mortality by two thirds by 2015. Increasing routine vaccination coverage will significantly contribute to reducing infant and child deaths and achieving MDG4.”’

‘“Pakistan has a choice to make for its children,” added Dr Berkley. “Routine immunization is the bedrock for access to vaccines against many illnesses, including polio, so by strengthening these systems Pakistan will be making an investment of political will which will benefit many generations to come.”’

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Immunization leaders call for increased political support for immunization in Pakistan

Sunday 15th February 2015- The Guardian: Health chiefs to remove patients from private hospital after CQC concerns

‘NHS England to relocate vulnerable patients from Vista Healthcare hospital in Hampshire, in bid to avoid repeat of Winterbourne View care home scandal.’

After failing an inspection by the Care Quality Commission, ‘NHS England is moving patients with mental health needs and learning disabilities out of the Vista Healthcare hospital in Winchfield, Hampshire after it missed a deadline last week to make urgent improvements’ to prevent another Winterbourne View care home scandal, where six staff are jailed and five given suspended sentences following abuse of disabled patients was secretly filmed by a reporter in 2011.

‘Inspectors found that patient movement was restricted because of staff shortages – on one ward, patients had not been able to go outside for two days – and that safety measures were flawed. In one case, ligature cutters for freeing a patient at risk of hanging were stored at the back of a locked safe, the keys for which were kept by the nurse in charge.’

‘Under [Simon] Stevens’s [NHS England’s chief executive] new plan, many of the 58 NHS units in England will be shut and the 49 private units such as Vista will face the loss of referrals for which they are paid up to £4,000 a week.’

‘The inspection report, made public at the end of last month, found the hospital in breach of 12 national guidelines and stipulated urgent action to safeguard patients from abuse and to monitor care quality. The final deadline for doing so was set for last Wednesday.

Inspectors had uncovered a “disturbing” number of recorded violent incidents – 334 involving patients and 272 assaults on staff in a seven-month period last year – but no effective system for reviewing them.

During the same period, there had been 267 recorded incidents of restraint of patients, including 55 where the individual had been forced to the floor. However, knowledge of approved techniques was limited and less than a third of staff had been trained in floor restraint.’

See:

Health chiefs to remove patients from private hospital after CQC concerns

Winterbourne View care home staff jailed for abusing residents