All News articles – Page 1345

  • News

    Over 40 maternity units may be closed or downgraded, Conservatives claim

    2006-12-12T00:00:00Z

    The Conservative Party has claimed it has identified 43 maternity units under threat of being downgraded or closed, of which 21 are midwife-led and 22 consultant-led. Of the 43, 26 of the maternity units are operated by providers which finished the 2005-06 financial year in ...

  • News

    Nicholson says £250m surplus should be delivered by 2008

    2006-12-12T00:00:00Z

    NHS chief executive David Nicholson has said the NHS should achieve a net surplus of £250m by the end of 2007-08. Other priorities, set out in an operating framework for 2007-08, include 85 per cent of patients admitted for hospital treatment and 80 per cent ...

  • News

    Helping middle managers

    2006-12-11T09:00:00Z

    One of the ills plaguing the NHS that seem to be overlooked by senior managers is middle managers that stay in one job, one position, same department for years. This includes ward sisters in acute hospitals, managers in community and primary care and those in primary care trusts.

  • News

    Peter Cardy on a new focus on lung cancer

    2006-12-11T09:00:00Z

    'While there has been striking progress in some cancers, lung cancer research has languished. Perhaps because of the stigma attached to a disease widely seen as self-inflicted through tobacco use, and the accompanying nihilism, it has had low priority.'

  • News

    Connecting for health: the good, the bad and the wobbly

    2006-12-11T09:00:00Z

    The national IT programme is in all sorts of trouble, with problems ranging from slow uptake to embattled suppliers. Andy Cowper looks for a silver lining

  • News

    National bowel cancer audit

    2006-12-11T09:00:00Z

    An audit on the care and treatment of patients with bowel cancer by the NHS Information Centre for health and social care on behalf of the Healthcare Commission has found that more hospitals are now meeting NICE guidelines on examination and treatment of bowel cancer.

  • News

    United Bristol Healthcare trust: child obesity

    2006-12-11T08:00:00Z

    Childhood obesity has doubled in England in the last ten years. The condition affects one in four children aged 11-15 and has been increasing in prevalence since the mid 1980's. Where it used to be the view that overweight children grew out of the condition as they moved into adolescence ...

  • News

    Doncaster PCT: helping benefit claimants back to work

    2006-12-11T08:00:00Z

    Barriers to Employment is as ongoing partnership project in Doncaster that supports Incapacity Benefit Claimants (IBCs) to improve their health and well-being and return to work where possible.

  • News

    Public sector managers 'must have more flexibility in determining pay'

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    A major change to the pay and reward system within the NHS and the rest of the public sector is needed to achieve serious improvements in delivery, the Confederation for British Industry has said.In a new report, the CBI has concluded that greater incentives must be created for public sector ...

  • News

    More details on the future of patient involvement in the NHS

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    More information on how patients will be involved in designing future NHS services have been set out by the government. The details are included in the government's response to its consultation on A stronger local voice, published in July, ...

  • News

    Legal briefing: EU procurement

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    Interpretation of EU regulations about advertising when commissioning healthcare is changing

  • News

    New immunisation booklet published

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    A new version of the government's guidance on vaccines and immunisation known as the Green Book, has been published.The booklet includes new chapters on immunisation for patients with underlying conditions and monitoring of vaccine safety.Read the book here

  • News

    Audit finds little improvement in continence care

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    The second audit of continence care in the NHS has seen little improvement over the past 12 months, the Royal College of Physicians has found.The Healthcare Commission-backed audit found that only 37 per cent of hospitals, and 10 per cent of mental health care sites have a written continence policy.Read ...

  • News

    Hewitt announces new medical research centres

    2006-12-11T00:00:00Z

    Eleven new biomedical research centres of excellence have been announced by health secretary Patricia Hewitt.The centres, which will focus on translational research, will be partnerships between NHS acute trusts, foundation trusts and universities.Read more here

  • News

    Good and bad targets

    2006-12-10T11:00:00Z

    Malcolm Lowe-Lauri's carefully worded article emphasised the processes that may be provoked by a target culture. It is surely right that these are the clue to any improvement in performance associated with targeting, other than thrashing the horses. However, the article colludes with the general statement of 'Targets Work', without ...

  • News

    Service reconfiguration

    2006-12-08T16:00:00Z

    While there may well be a case for focusing resources on a smaller number of acute sites, there is a huge issue about accessibility and convenience, which doesn't sit well with the supposedly consumer-friendly modern NHS.

  • News

    Health inequalities increase

    2006-12-08T00:00:00Z

    There has been a small increase in the gap in life expectancy for women between Britain's most affluent and poorest areas, according to an update from the Department of Health.The annual update on the public service agreement targets on health inequalities revealed that the gap in life expectancy for men ...

  • News

    HSJ and NT launch NICE guidelines service

    2006-12-08T00:00:00Z

    HSJand Nursing Timeshave teamed up with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to launch a service to help managers and nurses implement NICE guidelines. In the new year HSJand NTwill ...

  • News

    Drug trial report makes recommendations

    2006-12-08T00:00:00Z

    A report into the drug trials at Northwick Park Hospital that left six volunteers with multiple organ failure has produced 22 recommendations designed to make such trials safer in the future.The inquiry group, chaired by Professor Gordon Duff, concluded that independent scientific advice should be sought before some drugs are ...

  • News

    Couch potato Britons surveyed

    2006-12-08T00:00:00Z

    Only one-fifth of people in this country regularly take exercise, according to the biggest ever survey of sporting habits.The Active People survey, carried out by Sport England, found that only 21 per cent of people took 30 minutes of exercise three times a week. More than 350,000 people were polled.See ...