News – Page 1895
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Scottish ambulance delays rise
The number of ambulances across Scotland taking longer than an hour to reach an emergency incident has risen from 71 to 179 over the last six years, despite an increase of 25 per cent in the number of trained crews available, according to the Scottish National Party.www.snp.org/news
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Cancer reform strategy board named
Health minister Rosie Winterton has announced the 29 members of the Department of Health's cancer reform strategy board that will build on the 2000 cancer plan.The group will be chaired by national cancer director Professor Mike Richards and will develop a new strategy through six working groups: service models; commissioning ...
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Hewitt defends fall in bed numbers
Health secretary Patricia Hewitt has been attacked for describing cuts to bed numbers as a sign of 'success' in a presentation to the cabinet.In a webchat this week she also highlighted how improvements in community nursing in Dudley to support those with long-term conditions had 'slashed' emergency admissions and meant ...
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Time to break the circle of negativity
There's no row like a family row and the NHS family is not an exception. It has long been recognised that the NHS's own staff can often be the worst ambassadors for what is happening in the service, nationally and locally.
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National Audit Office slates DoH over £12m Dr Foster deal
The Department of Health has been savaged by the National Audit Office for the handling of its £12m deal with healthcare information analysts Dr Foster.
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GPs to face tougher tests on surgery
The government is to publish national standards for minor surgery carried out in primary care.
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Government warns PCTs over dentistry capacity
Patients may have to resort to emergency care, or find an alternative practice, because their dentists have fulfilled their annual contracts too soon.
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SHA pays £2m for firm to size up PCT commissioning
South Central strategic health authority has called in turnaround specialists PricewaterhouseCoopers to assess whether its nine primary care trusts should contract out their commissioning functions to the private sector.
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Patients could be told costs of care
Patients could be told the 'actual value' of the health services they are using in a bid to make them use the NHS more responsibly and relieve pressure on staff.
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News anlaysis: germinators look to Europe for next ideas in superbug war
The Dutch experience shows it is possible to get on top of MRSA and other superbugs - but it will be costly. Meanwhile, some UK hospitals are pioneering simple but effective strategies that could help turn the tide of deadly infections, writes Alison Moore
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Society calls for end to unnecessary suffering
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has called on the government to stop the unnecessary suffering caused by accidents to 2 million children each year by backing the recommendations in a new report from the Audit Commission and Healthcare Commission.The report, Better ...
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New funding for parent support services
Families minister Beverley Hughes has announced that £7.5m will be spent on information and support services for parents.From April 10 pilot areas will offer new mothers extra help from their midwife and health visitor. The health-led schemes are modelled on a version in the US which helps to reduce accidental ...
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Babies to be screened for metabolic disease
The Department of Health has announced that newborn babies will be screened for medium chain acyl CoA dehydrogenase deficiency, a metabolic disease.The screening will be included as part of the standard 'heel-prick' test that screens babies for other diseases such as sickle cell disorders and congenital hypothyroidism.MCADD affects between one ...
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MHRA to consult on Cyclo-f
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is to carry out a consultation on whether Cyclo-f, a medicine for the treatment of heavy periods, should be available over the counter.Dr June Raine, director of vigilance and risk management of medicines at the MHRA, says that being able to buy the ...
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NICE to develop new range of guidance
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has been asked to develop guidance on new treatments for breast and lung cancer, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, obesity and rheumatoid arthritis.The additional topics for its forward work programme were welcomed by chief executive Andrew Dillon. He said that the treatments were ...
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BMA warns on prison healthcare
The British Medical Association says that 'incoherent government policy and inadequate funding' is creating a crisis in the prison healthcare system.At a BMA conference on prison health today, its civil and public services committee will call on ministers to address a range of problems undermining health service provision in prisons.Committee ...
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New chief for allied health professionals
Chief nursing officer Christine Beasley announced today that Karen Middleton will take up the post of chief health professions officer for England from 1 March 2007.The chief health professions officer is the government's most senior allied health professions adviser, leading the allied health professions team at the Department of Health.The ...
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Guidance to improve information for disabled people
Minister for disabled people Anne McGuire has announced the launch of a five-point guide that will help public sector organisations improve the way that they provide information to disabled people.The guide, written by the Office for Disability Issues, follows research which shows that a third of disabled people have difficulty ...
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Public unaware of abuse to the elderly
Half a million older people are believed to be neglected or abused - sexually, physically, emotionally or financially - at any one time in the UK, according to a new survey for Help the Aged.The survey shows that more than a third of people have not heard of elder abuse ...
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Demand management at odds with choose and book
Bedford Hospital is rejecting GP referrals not made through choose and book in an attempt to manage demand for its services, according to local GP representatives.The trust's decision mirrors that of Milton Keynes primary care trust, which recently told GPs that all referrals to Milton Keynes General Hospital must be ...