RECENT NEWS

Rates of Clostridium difficile infection and MRSA in Scotland’s hospitals have fallen to their lowest ever level. The latest statistics, from Health Protection Scotland, show rates of C. difficile have fallen by over 42%, compared with the same period last year, while MRSA rates are down nearly 45 %.

The pioneer of robotic surgery and former health minister Professor Lord Ara Darzi is taking the helm of an institute at Imperial College London that aims to develop innovative approaches to global health challenges.

NICE has published final draft guidance recommending the wider use of clopidogrel for the prevention of occlusive vascular events (ischaemic stroke, transient ischaemic attack or heart attack) in people who have previously had an ischaemic stroke, or who have been diagnosed with peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Long-term daily use of 75 mg aspirin may reduce the long-term incidence of bowel cancer by a quarter, and deaths by a third, according to research published in The Lancet.

Researchers at Kaiser Permanente have found that patients with a very early form of breast cancer (ductal carcinoma in situ or DCIS) who have higher mammographic density may be at increased risk for subsequent breast cancer, especially in the breast opposite to the one with the initial cancer.

Draft NICE guidance, recently published, has shown that a well-validated technology could save the NHS £850 million per year in England alone.

The NHS Confederation has warned that even with protection of its budget, the health service will still be hard hit by spending cuts and called for political leaders to be frank and realistic about the impact on the public.

Reported instances of death, severe and moderate harm are falling against a backdrop of increased reporting by Trusts across England. The latest figures from the National Patient Safety Agency show that the total number of patient safety incidents reported to the NPSA was 569,165 between 1 October 2009 – 31 March 2010 – an increase of 4% (22,577) compared to the previous reporting period (April – September 2009).

Building on a proud heritage and embracing the future will be crucial to enhancing patient care and professional development, according to the new president of the UK’s leading body representing perioperative practitioners.

A variant of last year’s pandemic influenza linked to fatal cases carried a mutation that enabled it to infect a different subset of cells lining the airway, according to new research. The study, published in the Journal of Virology, suggests that the mutant virus could have impaired the lungs’ ability to clear out germs.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has recently identified a series of breaches of safety and quality standards at Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare NHS Trust, ordering the Trust to take immediate action. CQC said there was no evidence of harm to patients as a result of the breaches.

A new report by NCT, the UK’s largest parenting charity, shows new mums are left unprepared and unsupported by the NHS after they have had a baby and calls on the NHS to improve postnatal care in the UK.

The BMA has warned ministers that increasing tuition fees could result in medical students facing a debt bill of potentially £100,000 – a financial burden that could discourage many applicants from low and middle income families.

The Government has announced a new bowel cancer screening test, known as the “Flexiscope”, which could save up to 3,000 lives a year. A 16-year clinical trial, co-funded by Cancer Research UK and published in the Lancet medical journal earlier this year, revealed that 10,000 people each year will avoid bowel cancer as a result of incorporating the Flexi-scope test into the national bowel screening programme.

Huntleigh has announced the signing of a major new contract with Oxford University, to become the sole distributor of the Dawes/Redman fetal monitor trace (CTG) analysis software, with exclusive worldwide distribution rights.

The Technology Strategy Board, together with the DH, the Scottish Government Health Directorates, the Medical Research Council, Cancer Research UK and the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), is to bring the Government, researchers and business together in a major initiative that will place the UK at the centre of a revolution in the diagnosis and treatment of disease.

A new survey commissioned by The King’s Fund with Doctors.net.uk (DNUK) has revealed significant scepticism among doctors about the Government’s proposed health reforms.

Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, announced that, from next year, hospitals will be required to monitor reported infections of Methicillin Sensitive Staphylococcus Aureus (MSSA) and E. coli which have been rising in recent years.

Both male and female relatives of women diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 35 are at an increased risk of other cancers even if they do not carry faulty BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, scientists have discovered.

For the first time, heart attack patients in England are more likely to have their damaged artery opened with a balloon catheter (primary angioplasty) than receive clot-busting drugs (thrombolysis). Figures from the ninth annual MINAP audit show that 63% of eligible patients had the balloon catheter procedure, compared to 44% in 2008/9. In Wales the increase was from 11% to 22%.