All Health Service Journal articles in November 2006 – Page 2
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HSJ Knowledge
Improving prescribing in mental health: the patient perspective
The Healthcare Commission's State of Healthcare 2006report, published on 1 November, highlights a number of problems with mental health prescribing which frequently deviates from best practice and national guidance with potentially devastating effects for patients.
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HSJ Knowledge
Stephen Thornton on getting engaged, committing to a partner, raising offspring
'One of the common misconceptions around patient safety work is that it is all common sense. But if it were that simple then why don't all our hospitals have a zero per cent adverse event rate?'
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HSJ Knowledge
Managing patients with complex chronic conditions
Derek Feeley is director of healthcare policy and strategy at the Scottish Executive's Health Department. He has just spent a year in the United States on a Harkness/Health Foundation fellowship, looking at chronic-disease management.
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News
Legal briefing: organising key commissioning relationships
Commissioning has been part and parcel of the NHS for a number of years. What has changed recently is the view that a reinvigorated and more sophisticated commissioning process, with the implementation of practice-based commissioning, will improve services and ensure value for money.
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HSJ Knowledge
Reducing health inequalities for South Asian population
Knowledge that the risk of dying prematurely from coronary heart disease is 50 per cent higher in the South Asian community - immigrants from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka - than in the indigenous population has been available for more than half a century.
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News
Testing a new approach to patient-centred care
Millions of people in the UK are living with long-term conditions such as asthma or diabetes. However, the extent to which they are able to lead full and active lives depends, in part, on how able they are to manage their own healthcare, for example by their medication doses or ...
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News
National learning disabilities audit updated
The Healthcare Commission has published an update on its forthcoming audit of services for people with learning disabilities.It outlines which types of services will be reviewed, the pilot schemes now under way to test the methodology and plans for the national roll out.The update can be found ...
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News
Annual healthcheck overhauled
The Healthcare Commission has revised the criteria that will be used to assess NHS trusts' performance against the core standards in 2006-07.It takes into account new targets, revised policy as well as attempting to reduce repetition and increase clarity.See the revised criteria here
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News
Polonium-210 guidance issued
The Health Protection Agency and NHS Direct have issued information about the radioactive material polonium-210 in the wake of the death of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko.It offers advice to anyone who thinks they may have been exposed to the substance.Read the HPA's guidance ...
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News
Treasury: more civil service cuts on way
The Treasury has announced further cuts in civil servants as par of the Gershon efficiency programme.It said that the government was two thirds of the way to the target to save £21.5bn by 2008. A total of 55,000 civil service posts have been cut in the last two years.
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News
How Middle England turned into a nation of reconfiguration rebels
Demonstrations against changes to hospital services have brought thousands on to the streets. Tash Shifrin spoke to some of the campaigners about their aims
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News
Author of reconfiguration blueprint rails against 'wrong, confusing and puzzling' opposition
The man who wrote the blueprint for Scottish health services has hit out at politicians and unions who originally backed his plans but are now opposing them as they are rolled out locally.
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News
Doctors to provide treatment at threatened site
Teams of GPs have used their commissioning skills to help keep open a community hospital that was threatened with closure.
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News
HIV diagnoses up
An estimated 63,500 adults are now living with HIV in the UK, according to A Complex Picture, a report published today by the Health Protection Agency. This latest figure includes both those who have been diagnosed and also around a third (20,100) who remain unaware of their infection. The report ...
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News
Warner publishes PEC consultation
Health minister Lord Warner today announced the publication of a consultation document on the future of primary care trust professional executive committees.The consultation follows the recent review of PECs, the body of doctors, nurses and health professionals that guide PCTs on priorities, policies and investment plans. The review, carried out ...
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News
NICE expands breast cancer drug options
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has announced that it is recommending the use of the hormonal therapies anastrozole, exemestane and letrozole for the treatment of women with early oestrogen receptor-positive invasive breast cancer following surgery to remove the tumours.The drugs will be available alongside existing breast cancer ...
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News
Welsh Assembly launches therapies strategy
Welsh health minister Dr Brian Gibbons has today launched the Welsh Assembly's strategy for improving therapy services.The strategy covers therapeutic services covering injury and health prevention, early intervention, acute care, rehabilitation, chronic condition management and long-term care. It identifies ten key and emerging roles that professionals can fulfil and develop.To ...
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News
Testicle-checking among British men triples
Cancer Research UK has released a new report which reveals that the number of young British men who check their testicles for signs of cancer has tripled in a decade. In 1990 only 10 per cent of men checked their testicles but this increased to more than 36 per cent ...